A quick stir fry that my family absolutely loves! Minced chicken quickly fried with sweet and savory sauce, topped with a generous amount of fresh basil.
This Teochew (Chiuchow) style of Basil Chicken is influenced by Vietnamese and Thai cuisines. It's coarsely minced chicken, quickly stir fried with a bit of fish sauce, soy sauce, aromatics, and a large handful of fresh basil.
One of the tricks to making Teochew Basil Chicken so delicious is using minced chicken thighs (skin on or off, either way works). The moist dark meat gives you a little leeway when it comes to overcooking which makes this recipe nearly fool proof.
To prepare the chicken, start with boneless thighs. First cut the thighs into small pieces, then use a cleaver or chef’s knife and randomly chop away.
The chicken doesn’t need to be finely minced into tiny pieces like ground meat and it doesn’t need to be consistent in size either. A coarse chop is all that is needed. Having variation in size actually gives the dish a more interesting texture.
Once your chicken is ready, add a teaspoon of cornstarch. Massage it into the chicken and work out any clumps of cornstarch. Marinating is not needed in this recipe. Since the chicken is cut into small pieces, the rich sauce will flavor it all the way through as you cook.
As with any stir fry, depending on your stove and the size of your wok, don’t over crowd the wok, that is especially true with this recipe. Since we are using dark meat, the chicken will release a bit of liquid and fat into the wok. You will start out frying and quickly turn to steaming if the wok is overcrowded. I usually limit it to about 3-4 medium thighs as a time.
Serve Teochew Basil Chicken with steamed rice and top with a fried egg. Oh, and before you dig in, be sure to break the egg yolk over the chicken and let the yolk run down. 😊
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken thigh meat, coarsely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ medium onion, diced
- 1 handful Thai basil
- 1 fried egg, (optional)
Sauce
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1.5 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar
Instructions
- Add a teaspoon of cornstarch to the chopped chicken and mix well. Make sure there are no lumps.
- Mix all the SAUCE ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
- Heat up a wok or skillet over medium-high heat and add a tablespoon of oil.
- Add the onion and garlic and stir fry until the onion begins to turn translucent. Be careful not to burn the garlic.
- Push the onions and garlic to the edge of the wok. Add the chicken to the center in a single layer and allow it to sear on both sides.
- Stir in the sauce. Continue stir frying until the chicken is cooked and the sauce has thickened.
- Toss in basil leaves and stir fry until the leaves become wilted.
- Turn off the heat. Serve over a bed of rice and top with a fried egg (optional).
Join the Discussion