Beef Pad Kra Pao (Thai Beef with Basil)

Beef Pad Kra Pao (Thai Beef with Basil)

I love the sweet, sweet smell of basil in the...morning?

I don't want to steal the Flavor Town® exaltation from guido-with-top-down-red-sports-car-and-sunglasses-reversed Guy Fieri, but basil will drive you to Flavor Town, drop you off at the front door, pay for the gas, tip the doorman, and compliment you on your luxurious hair. And it will all happen with "Then He Kissed Me" by the Crystals playing in the background.

The centerpiece of Thai cooking, basil has a minty, licorice flavor that kicks stir fry and noodle dishes into an aromatic Valhalla.

Not all basils are created equal.

There are more than 100 different basils, according to this basil expert. Italians tend to cook with sweet basil, while Thai use holy basil and or Thai basil. Most of the basil you find in Asian supermarkets in America will be labelled "Thai basil" (sometimes "Chinese basil"). Pad kra pao is traditionally made with holy basil, which is much harder to find in the States than in Thailand. For this dish, Thai basil is sufficient.

The most popular proteins for Pad Kra Pao in Thai restaurants are chicken or beef. I find that beef adds a little more assertiveness to the flavors, while chicken has a more mellow texture. Many American Thai restaurants offer Chicken with Basil with chunks of bite-sized chicken, but the traditional ingredient is ground chicken. Instead of the bell peppers, you can use green beans, cut into 1/3 pieces.

Finally, I would recommend eating this with steamed white rice and topping the whole dish a fried egg. This common method of eating kra pao in Thailand makes for a gooey, rich and substantial weeknight treat.

Flavor MVP: It's a tie. First, the basil, of course. Next, the super-secret special sauce that many of the top Thai restaurants in America use in many of their dishes, including Sripraphai Thai Restaurant in Queens, New York (which got a 27 out of 30 food rating in the latest Zagat) is none other than Golden Mountain sauce. I will write more about this magic seasoning sauce in other posts.

You ain't seen the last of me, you meddling kids!

Ingredients:

• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 6-8 Thai red chillis, minced
• 1 white onion, chopped
• 1 lb ground beef, pork, or chicken
• 1/2 cup Thai or holy basil leaves
• optional: shrimps, de-shelled
• salt and pepper, to taste
• your favorite chilli paste, to taste

Stir Fry Sauce:

• 1 tbl fish sauce
• 1 tbl oyster sauce
• 1 tbl dark soy sauce
• 2 tbl white sugar
• 2 tbl Maggi sauce
• 3 tbl Golden Mountain sauce
• 1 tbl chilli powder

Method:

1. Heat up oil, fry garlic and red chilli peppers.

2. Fry onions, then red and green bell peppers, add a few lines of oyster sauce.

3. Season ground meat with a little salt, pepper and add in meat to wok.

4. Add stir fry sauce.

5. Add chilli paste, and black pepper to taste.

6. Add basil leaves, turn off heat after 20 seconds.