Stir-Fried Chicken and Eggplant With Thai Basil
- Total Time
- About 1 hour
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:Serves four
- 1pound eggplant, preferably long Japanese or Chinese eggplants, diced
- Salt to taste
- 3large garlic cloves, peeled, halved, green shoots removed
- 2serrano chiles, stemmed and minced
- 1tablespoon minced ginger
- 1tablespoon fish sauce
- 2teaspoons soy sauce
- 1teaspoon sugar
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil
- ¾pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, rinsed and dried, cut into small dice or minced
- 1cup Thai basil leaves, roughly chopped
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
210 calories; 10 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 10 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 5 grams sugars; 21 grams protein; 541 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Salt the eggplant generously and leave in a colander to sweat for 15 to 30 minutes, while you prepare the remaining ingredients. Rinse and drain on a clean kitchen towel.
- Step 2
Place the garlic in a mortar with ¼ teaspoon salt and mash to a paste. Add the ginger and chiles, and continue to mash with the garlic. In another small bowl, mix together the fish sauce, soy sauce, sugar and pepper. Set aside.
- Step 3
Heat a large, heavy skillet or wok over high heat, until a drop of water evaporates immediately upon contact. Add 1 tablespoon oil, turn the heat down to medium-high, and add the garlic paste. Stir-fry for 30 seconds, and add the chicken. Stir-fry for three to four minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and no traces of pink remain. Transfer from the pan or wok to a plate or bowl.
- Step 4
Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pan. Add the eggplant. Cook, stirring, until the eggplant is lightly browned and almost cooked through, about 10 minutes. Stir the chicken back into the pan, and add the fish and soy sauce mixture. Add ¼ cup water, cover the wok or pan, turn the heat down to medium and steam for five minutes. Uncover, and stir in the basil leaves. Stir for 30 seconds to a minute, remove from the heat and serve with rice.
Tip
- Advance preparation: I have made the dish, refrigerated it for a few hours, then reheated it and served it with warm rice. The leftovers, which will keep for a couple of days in the refrigerator, make a great filling for lettuce wraps or spring rolls. Martha Rose Shulman can be reached at martha-rose-shulman.com.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Heather
This recipe is one of our favorites. It's incredibly flavorful and satisfying. We usually make it with ground chicken or ground turkey to simplify preparation, and we always double the recipe.
Geoff G
I added a dash of black sesame oil to fry the garlic paste. It was great - next time, I'll add another dash with the eggplant.
Laura
I made this tonight with chicken breast and Chinese eggplant. I didn't have fresh chiles, so I added dried chiles and some chile flakes. I added some slivers of sweet red pepper and dressed it at the end with both scallions and chopped fresh mint. I thought the garlic and ginger cooked too fast in the hot pan and will use lower heat when I repeat the recipe.
Turkinator
I always double or triple the amount of sugar, fish sauce, soy and basil leaves. Plus an extra teaspoon or two of brown sugar. This way it tastes more like the Thai food I had in Thailand.
Jennifer
had to use red pepper flakes instead of fresh
used tofu instead of chx and added cherry tomatoes and a few chives
Gary
I liked this dish, but found it to be grossly underseasoned. Next time I'd at least double the amounts of soy sauce and fish sauce, and omit the water at the end.
Derek
My Thai wife makes a very similar dish often. Pork shoulder is almost always used in Thailand instead of chicken. It is often sold by Thai street food vendors. Thai food is generally eaten using only a spoon and a fork so the pork is sliced into bite size portions or less commonly ground. I am surprised that chopsticks are included in the pictures for this recipe. Usually only boiled noodle dishes in Thailand are eaten with chopsticks (and a spoon).
george
This was delicious. Whole family enjoyed it including 2 boys (aged 9 and 11). We will make it again.
Deborah R.
We used orange Thai chiles, four of them. Those worked great, but I had trouble macerating the garlic and chiles. In the end I minced them with the ginger in a small chopper/food processor, which was better.
Rashmi
This recipe is truly underrated! So delicious and great for the gym rats and diet conscious. There’s a few things I did differently. I created a mixture of the ginger garlic fish sauce brown sugar and soy sauce and poured half of it in with the chicken. Once cooked and the chicken was shedding water, I added the eggplant and the remaining sauce - I left the mixture on medium-high in the wok for about an hour stirring occasionally. It turned out GREAT!
Chris
Martha Rose Shulman, thank you for always including notes on advance preparation. I appreciate this so much and wish other recipe authors did the same!
Sharon B
This turned out beautifully, though I did tweak it a bit. I didn't want to stir-fry eggplant for 10 minutes, so I tossed it with a small amount of oil and broiled it, tossing it around every couple minutes. Worked like a charm. I added mushrooms, a bit of red bell pepper, a handful of snap peas. I will absolutely make it again.
anonymouse
I doubled the sauce and used firm tofu in place of chicken. Followed the steps otherwise. Delicious. Definitely would make again
Lisa S
Really good! I didn't double the sauce & we were happy with it, especially after adding the water and letting it sit a few. I think of this as one of those more authentic less saucy Thai dishes, so less sauce didn't bother me. Agree it would be great leftover in lettuce wraps. Since not too saucy, served with Trader Joe's frozen fried rice with some chili garlic crisp & would do again. I like jasmine rice for soaking up good sauces like curry, etc., but not necessary with this one.
TL
I subbed red and yellow bell peppers for the eggplant, which made for a very colorful dish. Everyone but the picky 3-year-old liked it.
jenn
Doubled the sauce, added 3 chopped scallions and substituted sablefish for chicken. Delish!
Steve Blair
Load it up in ginger, garlic and used 6 Thai peppers.
SteveD
Fabulous dish, a keeper. My loved ones can’t handle Serranos so I use jalapeños, sometimes with a bit of a Thai chili if I have them on hand. Absolutely make this with Chinese eggplant, not globes, and as much as I dislike the hassle, the salting step is very important. I up the sauce by about a half and put soy and fish sauce on the table if anyone wants a kick.
Elizabeth H
Made this with tofu instead of chicken. Marinated the tofu first in the sauce, and made more sauce for the dish even after doubling as some suggested. Very flavorful dish that comes together easily. However, it’s monochromatic and has no crunch. Served it on arugula instead of rice, which I think works much better for many tofu dishes, never mind that it’s healthier. Next time I would serve a side of mandarin oranges, scallions, and sliced almonds of a bed of arugula.
Glenn R.
Highly recommend slicing the eggplant a little larger, coating it with cornstarch, and charring each side. Cook the chicken and add the eggplant at the end as directed. This adds a rich, smoky flavor to the dish!
Karen
I have made this 4 times now and it is delicious. The important thing is to use low sodium soy sauce--otherwise it is extremely salty. The fourth time I made this I added 1/2 of a (chiffonade) green cabbage instead of the water at the end. It added a little extra veggie and melted right into the dish.
Mo in SF
Really tasty. I was craving eggplant and this did not disappoint (even though I could only find Italian basil). I upped the garlic, left the seeds in the chiles, and went generous with the ginger. It was fantastic. Highly recommend.
David
this was very tasty. However, I did not add the water and steam for 5 minutes. Seemed like that would have made the eggplant too mushy. I doubled the sauce for extra sauce.
Monica
I made it as written, using coconut oil, and it was scrumptious! Tip-top way to end the summer gardening season by harvesting all of the Thai basil I had left and using it in this dish. Worth growing the herb just for this dish!
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