For my husband’s birthday one year, he randomly asked for Thai Basil Fried Rice. It seems like a pretty simple request, but to someone who had only eaten Thai food once, it was a challenge! As a vegetarian (and a paranoid one at that), I haven’t been the most comfortable ordering Thai food from restaurants. I didn’t trust the ingredients they use. For that reason, I have stayed away from Thai food for most of my life. So, I had never tried Thai Basil Fried Rice and had absolutely no idea how to make it.
I still remember scoping out various Thai restaurant menus to see if they offered this dish and to see what ingredients they had listed in the description. Of course, we could have just gone to a restaurant. But, as previously mentioned, I am a little paranoid. So, I decided to try making it at home where I could control the ingredients and ensure that they were 100% vegetarian.
I did a decent amount of internet research to identify what ingredients and vegetables are authentic to Thai cuisine. With a bit of trial and error, I came up with this aromatic and flavorful Vegan Thai Basil Fried Rice!
And guess what? My husband absolutely loved it! And so did I! I hope you all love my version too! Keep scrolling for my step by step recipe. VIDEO TUTORIAL included as well! 🙂
Thai Basil Fried Rice with Tofu
Cuisine: Thai4
servings10
minutes15
minutes350
kcalPan fried tofu and vegetables tossed with fragrant white rice and fresh basil
Ingredients
3 tbsp olive oil total
1/2 block firm Tofu (cubed)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
2 scallions (thinly sliced and separated into white bulbs and scallion greens)
1 medium yellow onion (thinly sliced)
1 medium carrot (thinly sliced)
1 medium green bell pepper (thinly sliced)
1 medium red bell pepper (thinly sliced)
1 Thai green chili (sliced into circles)
2 tbsp Thai red curry paste
2 tbsp soy sauce
A handful of Thai basil leaves
3 cups cooked jasmine or Basmati rice
Salt to taste
Instructions
- Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a sauté pan at a medium flame.
- Add 1/2 block firm Tofu (cut into medium sized cubes). Pan fry tofu cubes until golden brown. Then, take off flame and keep aside.
- In the same pan, add 2 tbsp more olive oil.
- Add 2 cloves garlic (minced). Sauté till aromatic.
- Then, add the white bulbs from 2 scallions (sliced into thin circles) and 1 medium yellow onion (thinly sliced). Sauté till translucent.
- Next, add your vegetables: 1 medium carrot (julienne), 1/2 green bell pepper (julienne), and 1/2 red bell pepper (julienne).
- Also add 1 Thai green chili (sliced into thin circles).
- Cover the pan with a lid and let the veggies cook (covered) for a few minutes. Note: You can increase to a higher flame to speed up the process, if you would like.
- Once the vegetables are mostly cooked, add 2 tbsp red curry paste and 2 tbsp soy sauce.
- Also add in a generous handful of Thai basil leaves.
- Then, add pan fried tofu cubes and cook for a few more minutes.
- Next, mix in 3 cups of cooked Jasmine or Basmati rice.
- Add salt to taste.
- Finally, garnish with scallion greens (from 2 scallions). Enjoy hot! 🙂
Notes
- You could use coconut oil instead of olive oil.
- If you don’t like tofu, you could easily omit it from this recipe.
- Firm or extra firm tofu is best to easily cut into cubes. If your tofu doesn’t come pre-cubed, strain the water and let sit for a few minutes before you cut it. You don’t need to press the tofu for this recipe, but you can for good measure, if you would like.
- Instead of minced garlic, you could use a pre-made garlic paste.
- Thai green chili adds to the authentic Thai flavor of this recipe. However, you could substitute with Indian green chili or even serrano peppers. Feel free to add more chilis for extra heat.
- Feel free to modify the vegetables as you wish. For the most part, I chose veggies commonly used in Thai cuisine. However, there are more that you could add. You could also omit a few veggie if you prefer.
- Thai basil adds to the authentic Thai flavor of this recipe. However, you could use Italian basil if needed.
- There are many versions of this recipe. This is my tried and true version that I came up with. I hope you love it!
- Vegan Option: This recipe is Vegan! 🙂
Did you make this recipe?
I hope you all try this recipe out! I would love to see your own adventures in cooking! Please take a pic and share them with me on Instagram/Facebook @chaitrascreations.
