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Madeira Park · the Sunshine Coast
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Thai · Thailand

Pad Krapao — Holy Basil Stir-Fry / ผัดกะเพรา

Pad krapao is the most-eaten single dish in Thailand — available at every restaurant from street stall to hotel, eaten at any time of day, and considered the ultimate benchmark of Thai wok cooking. Its simplicity is deceptive: it requires extreme wok heat, fresh holy basil (krapao), and a high quality protein-to-flavour ratio to achieve the characteristic dry-wok char and the peppery basil finish. Minced pork (moo) or chicken (gai) is the traditional standard; the wok must be at maximum heat; the holy basil goes in at the absolute last moment and is served immediately. The fried egg on top (kai dao) is not optional in the Thai street tradition — pad krapao without a fried egg is considered incomplete.

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Serves4
Total15 min
Within reach0of 5 in Madeira Park

Five not yet within reach.

How the 5 are reached
Not yet within reach
5 · pork mince, vegetable oil, dark soy sauce, palm sugar, fresh holy basil leaves
Cook
‹ Previous · Pad Khing (Ginger Stir-Fry)|Next · Pad Krapao Mu (Stir-Fried Pork with Holy Basil) ›
I

The Market List

The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.

300 g
pork mince
or chicken
Not yet within reach of Madeira Park · each reach is counted
2 tablespoons
vegetable oil
Not yet within reach of Madeira Park · each reach is counted
4 cloves
garlic
minced
Your own market
2
Thai bird's eye chilies
minced
Your own market
3 tablespoons
fish sauce
nam pla
Your own market
15 ml
dark soy sauce
Not yet within reach of Madeira Park · each reach is counted
10 ml
palm sugar
Origin · IndonesiaNot yet within reach of Madeira Park · each reach is counted
1 tablespoon
fresh lime juice
Your own market
50 g
fresh holy basil leaves
or Thai sweet basil, roughly torn
Not yet within reach of Madeira Park · each reach is counted
1
red bird's eye chili
sliced thin, for garnish
Your own market
Scallions
sliced thin, for garnish
Your own market
Steamed jasmine rice
for serving
Your own market

Within reach counts in town, delivered, shipped and the nearest city. A staple counts once it has a local seller. Charted from each shop's own pages; not yet vouched by a cook who shops here.

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II

The Method

1
Heat oil in wok over high heat; add garlic and minced chilies, bloom 20 seconds until fragrant.
2
Add pork mince; break apart with spatula and stir-fry 4–5 minutes until cooked through with no pink remaining and meat begins to caramelize.
3
Add fish sauce, dark soy sauce, and palm sugar; toss constantly 1 minute until liquid is mostly absorbed and meat is glossy.
From the canon — Fish sauce — nam pla — is the universal salt of the Thai kitchen. Fish Sauce (Nam Pla): Selection and Use →
4
Remove from heat; add lime juice and fold in torn holy basil leaves gently.
5
Transfer to serving plate; scatter sliced red chili and scallions on top.
6
Serve immediately with jasmine rice, forming small mounds of pork-basil mixture on rice.
From the canon — Thai jasmine rice — khao hom mali (fragrant jasmine rice) — cooked by the absorption method: precisely measured rice washed to remove surface starch, combine… Jasmine Rice (Khao Hom Mali): The Absorption Method →
III

Sensory Tests

◇Where it lives or dies. The moment where pad krapao lives or dies is the fried egg. A Thai kai dao (fried egg) is cooked in a generous amount of hot oil — almost deep-fried. The egg is cracked into oil at 180-190C and the white puffs up immediately, blistered and lacy at the edges while the yolk remains runny. This specific egg — the crispy-edged, runny-yolked kai dao — is the companion that makes the dish complete. A standard fried egg is not the same.
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V

What to Pour

Pouring for Queensland ·

Pad krapao's flavour is built on the interaction between wok char and holy basil's peppery clove character — the heat of the wok is what activates the essential oils in krapao that make it taste like the dish it is.

The whole pairing
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The working kitchen
Cost this recipe
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