Pad Ka-Prao

While Pad Thai or Tom Kha Gai, in my opinion, deserve a somewhat extensive tutorial, there really isn't much to say about Pad Ka-Prao (official transliteration: phat kaphrao). It's a dish that doesn't require many ingredients or demand the kind of skill that takes years to develop. And if this dish could talk, the only thing it would beg of you is that you use the ingredient without which it cannot be what it is: holy basil (Bai Ka-Prao ใบกะเพรา). Unfortunately, holy basil can be hard to find in many areas. Even those who want to grow it have a hard time finding quality seeds. Thai restaurants overseas struggle with this too. They know (at least one would hope so ...) that they're not supposed to use anything other than holy basil. Yet, some routinely use purple/sweet basil instead, because it's easier to find. As understandable as it is, one cannot pass off such a dish as Pad Ka-Prao -- literally "holy basil stir-fry" -- without being guilty of untruthfulness. [Added August 11, 2011: If you only have sweet basil, feel free to use it and call it Pad Bai Horapha.] Other than that, Pad Ka-Prao is very easy to make; to ruin it, you have to try pretty hard. [It must be pointed out that purists maintain that oyster sauce and soy sauce -- two ingredients that are almost always added to Pad Ka-Prao -- should not be used. You can certainly go that route in which case omit the dark soy sauce and oyster sauce in the recipe below and add to the stir-fry just fish sauce (and perhaps a tiny bit of palm sugar) to taste. However, chances are the Pad Ka-Prao which you have fallen in love with isn't made by purists. So, in order to come up with a homemade version similar to what you've had at a street food stall or restaurant, you're going to need soy sauce and oyster sauce. Your call.]

Unbalanced

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet