Pad Kra Pao-style Thai basil chicken with fried egg

Ingredients

• 500 g chicken mince (or finely chopped thigh)
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 6 garlic cloves, chopped
• 4 bird’s eye chillies, chopped (adjust to taste)
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp dark soy sauce
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 cup Thai holy basil leaves
• 4 eggs
• Jasmine rice, to serve
• Sliced cucumber, to serve

Method

1. Sauce. Mix dark soy, fish sauce, oyster sauce, sugar. Set aside.
2. Aromatics. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a wok until smoking. Add garlic, chillies, shallot. Fry 30 seconds.
3. Chicken. Add mince, break up, stir-fry 4 minutes until cooked and lightly caramelised.
4. Combine. Pour sauce over. Toss 1 minute.
5. Basil. Off heat. Stir in basil leaves — they wilt in seconds.
6. Eggs. Heat remaining oil in a small pan. Fry eggs sunny-side up, edges lacy and crispy.
7. Serve. Over rice, topped with fried egg, cucumber on the side.

Tips

• Holy basil, not sweet basil. Aniseed kick, completely different.
• Egg edges crispy, yolk runny. That’s the whole point.
• Dark soy + fish sauce + oyster. Triple umami hit.