Pad Kra Pao (Thai Basil Stir-Fry)
Pad kra pao (ผัดกะเพรา — stir-fried holy basil) is the default Thai street food — the dish that every Thai cook can make and that no outside interpretation fully captures because of the specific character of Thai holy basil (bai kra pao), which is not Thai sweet basil (bai horapa), which is not Italian basil. They are different plants with different aromatic compounds and they are not interchangeable.
The most eaten dish in Thailand, sold from every street stall for every meal including breakfast — minced pork or chicken (or whole prawns or sliced beef) stir-fried with garlic, bird's eye chillies, fish sauce, oyster sauce, and a massive quantity of Thai holy basil (bai kra pao), served over jasmine rice with a fried egg on top. Pad kra pao is deceptively simple and technically demanding: the entire preparation takes 3 minutes, and the quality of those 3 minutes determines everything.