Thai Recipe - Thai Holy Basil Stiryfry - Pad Garpo?

Question

I need help making a recipe called Thai Holy Basil, or Pad Garpo. It is a stirfry dish. I know all the main ingredients just not the sauce. I've searched all over the internet for this but cannot find any info. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

I know that there is: chicken, bamboo, peppers, onion, basil leaves, but the sauce is what I am stuck on.

Answer 1

The recipe I have - Gai Paht Bai Graprao - sounds similar, but minus the veggies.  Ingredients are chicken, chopped garlic, fresh chili or peppers, holy basil leaves.

Sauce:

2 Tbs (40mL) fish sauce (I agree, Golden Boy is a good brand)

1 Tbs water

1 tsp (10mL) dark soy sauce (regular soy will do fine, Kikkoman brand is good)

1 Tbs (20mL) sugar

Add the sauce when you have about one and a half minutes of time cooking left.

Answer 2

I love Thai food and this dish in particular is one of my favorites.

Thai Chicken Stir Fried with Holy Basil (Gai Pad Graprow)

Ingredients

1 lb boneless chicken thighs, coarsely chopped, or cut into small bite-size pieces

4-6 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2-3 shallots, thinly sliced (or substitute with 1/2 cup sliced onion)

2-3 tbsp peanut oil for stir-frying

2 tsp black soy sauce (the semi-sweet kind, siew dohm)

1-2 tbsp Thai fish sauce (nam bplah), to taste (Golden Boy brand is recommended)

1 cup fresh Thai holy basil (bai gka-prow), or substitute with: 1/4 cup dried holy basil, soaked to soften plus 1/2 to 1 cup fresh Thai sweet basil (bai horapa)

2 small kaffir lime leaves (bai ma-gkrood), very finely slivered (optional)

5-10 Thai chillies (prik kee noo), chopped and pounded with a mortar and pestle; or 2-3 fresh jalapeno or fresno peppers, cut into large slivers

1/2 cup bamboo shoots, well drained

1/2 cup red bell pepper, cut into strips

Dash of ground white pepper

Preparation

Prepare the ingredients as indicated. Leave the fresh basil leaves whole; the flowers may also be used. The dried holy basil will soften when soaked in tap water for 10-15 minutes. Pull off and discard the hard stems. Drain.

Heat a wok until the surface is smoking hot. Swirl in the oil to coat the wok surface. Wait a few seconds for the oil to heat, then stir in the garlic, followed a few seconds later with shallots. Stir another few seconds before adding the chicken. Stir-fry a minute or two, or until most of the chicken has started to change color on the outside and is no longer pink.

Toss in the chillies, slivered kaffir lime leaves and reconstituted dried holy basil (if using). Add the red peppers and bamboo shoots.  Sprinkle black soy sauce over the mixture and stir-fry another 15-20 seconds. Then add fresh basil leaves and fish sauce to taste. Stir and mix well. Stir-fry another half a minute, or until the basil is wilted and the chicken is cooked through. Sprinkle with white pepper. Stir and transfer to a serving dish, or spoon directly over individual plates of plain steamed rice.

Notes and Pointers:

This is a good and easy stir-fried dish and one of the favorites among Thai people. It is served over rice as a one-dish meal, for breakfast or for lunch, often topped with a crispy fried egg. Of course, it also appears frequently as one of the courses in a shared family-style meal.

If you are not able to find fresh holy basil, this recipe can be substituted with any fresh basil. I have also tried it with a mixture of fresh Thai sweet basil (bai horapa) and fresh mint leaves with good results.

The smaller the chicken is cut, the greater the surface area to coat with the flavors of the aromatic herbs and sauces, and the more flavorful the stir-fry will be.  Many friends have reported good results using ground turkey or chicken.

Try the above recipe also with fresh seafood (in this case, no need to chop) - shrimps, scallops, mussels, clams, crab and firm-flesh fish, such as fresh halibut and salmon.