Thai Basil Chicken Bowls
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A 30-minute meal with less than 400 calories per serving? YES AND YES!!! It’s so quick to whip up, budget-friendly, and SO GOOD!
Guys, I get to share yet another cookbook recipe today!
Now this is just 1 of 115 recipes included in my meal prep cookbook, available February 5th! And yes, nutritional information is available for all 115 recipes!
But more importantly, this is hands-down my absolute favorite recipe in the entire book.
I’m not really sure why. I love all the recipes in the book – I do – but I make this at least once a week!
It doesn’t require too many ingredients and I can whip this up as quickly as 10 minutes on some nights. I cheat and use the Trader Joe’s 3-minute microwave jasmine rice on those days – but hey, we all got those shortcuts in the freezer, right?
Oh and guys, here’s the kicker. It’s meal-prep friendly and it’s less than 400 calories a serving. Boom.
Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iTunes / Indiebound
Thai Basil Chicken Bowls
Ingredients
- 1 cup jasmine rice
- ½ cup chicken stock
- 3 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoons light brown sugar
- 1 ½ tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 shallots, thinly sliced
- 1 red Thai chili pepper, thinly sliced
- 1 ¼ pounds ground chicken breast
- 1 ½ cups packed fresh basil leaves
Instructions
- Cook rice according to package instructions; set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together chicken stock, soy sauce, fish sauce, brown sugar and vinegar; set aside.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, shallots and chili pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add ground chicken and cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes, making sure to crumble the chicken as it cooks; drain excess fat.
- Stir in stock mixture and cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce has thickened, about 2-3 minutes. Stir in basil until just wilted, about 30 seconds.
- Divide rice into bowls. Top with chicken mixture.*
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
Very good subbed ground Turkey for chicken, sweet onions for shallots and added a teaspoon of cornstarch to thicken a bit. We loved it!Â
We love this recipe! My picky eaters love it & ask for it weekly. I use jalapenos thou since we are wimps.
Good flavor, but the sauce was kind of thin. I tried to salvage with cornstarch but still was thin. Also, it was not the prettiest dish to look at. Super easy and quick though, perfect for busy weeknights.
This is easy to make for a crowd and super yummy! Â
Damn delicious and crazy easy to make, thank you!
Excellent! Fast, simple and very delicious!!Â
Never having Thai food, I was excited to try this with my fresh Thai Basil. It was amazing!! Â My husband had 2 bowls! Â I will definitely make this again! Â Looking for more Thai recipes. Â
Quick, easy and delicious! Thank you!Â
This dish was delicious and fast to prepare. The family really enjoyed it.
The sauce’s consistency was a bit too watery. So, I added rice flour to thicken it.
Yes you have to use Thai Basil and Thai Chilis … you asked for a Thai food recipe didn’t you? swapping ingredients changes the dish drastically, which isn’t always wrong, but you won’t be making (good) Thai food.Â
Made this for dinner last night and we loved it! I didn’t have fish sauce so I substituted gochujang (which I know isn’t Thai or anything like fish sauce lol) and it came out super delicious! I will definitely make this again! Really healthy and filling!
I made this for dinner for my husband and 1 year old, swapping in red bell pepper for the Thai chili to make it less spicy for the little one. Added lime wedges, thinly sliced jalapeños and a fried egg on top. So tasty and everyone enjoyed it. We’ll be adding this to our regular rotation.Â
SO GOOD! Tastes like take-out and is super easy to make!
Hi! How spicy is this? Like on a scale of 1-5? I usually order a 1 at Thai restaurants, so maybe I should reduce thai chili pepper quantity in half? Or should I use the whole pepper? Thank you!!!
I would love to try out this recipe. Can I substitute regular basil since I do not have thai basil readily available?
i mean you can, but it actually changes the outcome a lot …regular basil doesnt pair as well with these other ingredients as thai basil does.Â
Can’t wait to try this!
Can you sub regular basil for Thai basil?
no
OMG!  This was so delicious…  I did, however add more vegis to make it a complete meal!  I stir fried red pepper strips, onions, broccoli  florets, snap peas and mushrooms.  Doubled the sauce recipe and added 1 tsp of cornstarch to thicken it. The flavor was awesome!  I will say I added 2 more Thai peppers because we like a little spice!  Leftovers are even better because they incorporate the flavors. I actually made the leftovers with rice noodles ( not authentic ) but still yummy!
My kind of recipe tweaked!
Our family’s new favorite bowl, I reduced the sugar and loved it!
I have been trying out recipes from Damn Delicious and they have all been freaking phenomenal! However, this is my first review because it was such a hit. My family, from kids to adults, loved this! This will be a regular in our house!
This is amazing. I used ground turkey instead of chicken because that’s what I had. My husband and I just LOVED it. A keeper for me for sure. I love Thai basil, and bought a plant at my farmer’s market. I have been looking for recipes to use it in. Keeper!
Delicious – I’ve made several times as written, served with steamed broccoli. Everyone in my family loves it!
This is an amazingly good recipe. I did not omit any ingredients but added 1 cup sliced cabbage because I only had 1lb. of ground chicken. Came out great. I will be saving and making again. Using the number of chili peppers in the recipe, the dish comes out mild. Which is good if someone doesn’t like spicy. So you can adjust up if you want.
This is an amazingly good recipe. I did not omit any ingredients but added 1 cup sliced cabbage because I only had 1lb. of ground chicken. Came out great. I will be saving and making again. Using the number of chili peppers in the recipe, the dish comes out mild. Which is good if someone doesn’t like spicy. So you can adjust up if you want.
This recipe is NOW my favorite.  I did not omit anything. But added onion, red peppers and green peppers.  It was absolutely DAMN DELICIOUS.  My husband even said it tasted  better than the Thai restaurant(s) that we frequent.  Im purchasing your cook book(s).Â
Delicious and easy. My picky 9 year old actually made this and loved it!
Thank you for the best recipe! It’s dammdelicious ! I did omit the fish sauce and used a serrano instead of the Thai  pepper , it was a hit with the picky bf . I’m sending to my mom for her to try !Â
Mmmm. Easy and tasty. Even my three year old loved it.Â
I’ve grown Thai Basil at home, several years ago and during the summer, it grows really well. But in January, I had to go out looking and finally found a Thai Market that sold a “bunch” of Thai Basil for a couple of bucks. I’ve fixed this at home several times in the last month, but this was started when friends treated me to lunch for my birthday. My friend had their Thai Basil Chicken and it looked so good that I went back to try it,… and it was delicious.
They included mushrooms and eggplant and they used jalapeno peppers, but it all works for a positive eating experience. I have an electric wok at home, and fixing this, and the clean-up is quick. Cooking the rice was my problem. Came out too sticky the first time, and I don’t have a rice cooker. I just saw a trick on “the Kitchen” where they cooked rice like you do pasta, and it turned out almost perfect without measuring rice & water. Cook for about 11 minutes and the rice turns out as individual grains.
Simply delicious! I used half an onion instead of the shallots. That’s the only change I made. I will make this again for sure. Thank you!!
This looks delicious! What brand of fish sauce to do you recommend?
I don’t use fish sauce very frequently, so we buy smaller bottles to be able to use most of it up before the flavor changes too severely. I like Red Boat, but have used 3 Crabs brand and Squid brand in the past.
Excellent, straight forward, clean eating meal. I agree…I could (and just may!) eat this every week. Bring on the basil!
This dish was amazing! We already made it twice. I love how easy it is and how rich it is in flavor.
I just really wish you could implement a US to the metric system converter on your recipes so I didnt have to google everything every single time. Huge fan of your blog!
Comfort food!!! So yummy! I did substitute thai chili paste for the Thai chili pepper, and used fresh Thai basil from my herb garden. FANTABULOUS!
Fresh herbs are always the best. Thanks, Tina!
Excellent recipe! I used Thai basil from our farmers market (ah-mazing) and I used chicken breasts and made this in the instant pot. I cooked the chicken in the pot and set on a plate while I made this recipe in the pot on sauté mode. Then added the chicken back in and did the recipe as directed. One pot! Came out so good.Â
That sounds amazing, Amy!
This recipe was super easy and tasted DELICIOUS! Adding this to my weekly rotation AND buying your cookbook NOW! 🙂
We love it! Thanks so much for your feedback, Turkessa!
I made this recipe with cubed chicken breasts and without the fish sauce or chili pepper – it was still SOOOO YUMMY!! Will definitely make again… And again… And again!
Great modifications, Carly! 🙂
So GOOD!…I doubled the sauce and added corn starch to thicken.
Looks excellent! I’m ready to make it 🙂 question on the nutrition information, is that including the rice ( counting calories/macros so I won’t be using any rice ).  Thanks!
Yes, that includes the rice.
I also wasn’t sure how this would turn out, but it was so good!! And easy!! And it gets a thumbs up from my kids too! Thank you for helping us cook simply and eat healthier!
You are so welcome, Teresa! We are happy you found us! 🙂
This was SO GOOD! I reduced the basil a bit. Oh, and I used sliced boneless, skinless chicken breasts instead of ground chicken. Had to cook a little longer, but no draining fat! I used a red Thai chili pepper which was very small and packed plenty of heat. Delicious!
Those are great modifications. Thanks for sharing, Kate!
Love this recipe, it’s great for meal prep. The flavors in your sauces are always so delicious that making substitutions here & there or adding veggies is STILL always yummy!! Can’t wait to eat this for lunch tomorrow!!
Awesome!
So delicious! Mariano’s was out of red chili pepper so I just used red chili pepper seasoning, also used sweet onion and Dorot frozen basil since that’s what I had at home. I live in Wicker Park next to my favorite restaurant in Chicago- Silli Kori.  We used to order from there multiple times a week, but now after finding your site we’re down to once a month! Would love if you posted a pad Thai recipe!
Great recipe! So easy and tastes like my favorite dish at my favorite Thai restaurant.
Thanks for sharing.
We loved this meal, but heating the chilis totally smoked us out of the kitchen! We were both coughing and wheezing and it was a whole event (kind of funny, then really frustrating, and then funny again). Do you have any suggestions on how to avoid this? We’d love to make this again!
Oh no! I’m so sorry to hear that! Have you tried cooking the peppers on a lower heat?
As I was making this, I was like, yeah this might not be so good. But then I tasted it, and YES! It really is delicious! I added some mushrooms and broccoli around the end of the chicken browning, since I wanted some more veg in there. I also added a tsp of cornstarch in the sauce but not sure it made too much difference. My husband and I ate this all up! Delish!!
We are so happy you liked it! Great additions with the extra veggies! 🙂
This is the best chicken basil recipe out there and simple too – with easy to find ingredients. I made this last night and it’s definitely going into our easy weeknight rotation. The pepper adds just the right amount of heat, not too much, just a little zing and lovely thai flavor. I would have liked the sauce to be just a tad thicker. This one did not thicken. Next time I’ll add a touch of cornstarch to the sauce to get it a bit thicker.
Thanks so much for your feedback, Amy!
I can’t find Thai chili peppers – is there a substitute
for this?
You can substitute cayenne peppers, which is at least half the heat of a Thai pepper. Hope that helps, Monika!
Thank you for your help, Chungah!
Amazing! I love making this for a quick dinner!
Great!
Hi Chungah,
I made this before your new cookbook was released. It really was damn delicious. The only thing we changed was adding shredded chicken as we had that on hand. My five year old daughter adored it as well! I own both of your cookbooks now. I think I went through the meal prep book Feb 6th nearly cover to cover! The day after it was released!
Keep up the great work!!!
From you biggest fan,
Laura
Thank you so much, Laura!
We made this Saturday night, and it was delicious!! I used cayenne instead of the Thai pepper, mainly because that was what I had. I think next time I’ll use chili garlic paste and omit the garlic, and maybe brown the chicken with the chili paste.
Great idea!
This looks delicious but I am allergic to seafood and can’t use fish sauce. Do you have a good substitute?
Here are some possible substitutes: https://food52.com/blog/22057-how-to-substitute-for-fish-sauce-in-a-pinch.
How spicy are thai chili peppers? Looks delicious, can’t wait to try it!
Thai chili peppers are spicy, but you can always omit from the dish to suit your spice tolerance levels.
This was fantastic! My picky husband and 6 year old son both ate it all! My son loved it! I only had chicken thighs so I just diced them and cooked it the same way. I used a banana pepper since I couldn’t find the thai chili and it was great. This will be added to my rotation!
Great!
OMG it was delicious! I didn’t have shallots so substituted a yellow onion. Added a bit more garlic and used diced chicken breast instead of ground. Served over brown rice. This will become a regular dinner. Loved It!
Great way to improvise!
Thai Basil Chicken is one of my all time favorite things to order when eating out! Can’t wait to try this! I use your recipes on a regular basis and have loved everything! Question- I only have apple cider vinegar on hand. Is that an okay substitute for the rice vinegar for this dish?
Yes! I find that the best substitute for rice vinegar is apple cider vinegar, but as always, please use your best judgment when making substitutions and modifications.
This looks delicious! Â Do you recommend Thai basil or will regular basil do?
Thai basil is truly best in this dish. 🙂
I lived in Thailand for a year and this was hands down my FAVORITE comfort food while I was there. This was my first attempt at making it on my own and it was fantastic. Couldn’t find Thai chili or holy basil at any of our local stores so opted for regular and added in a bit of Thai chili paste and it still turned out perfect. In northeast Thailand they always served with a fried egg on top which I added and HIGHLY recommend! Even my picky boyfriend loved this dish. So easy and inexpensive and I definitely see this becoming a regular dinner in our home. Thank you so much for this!
Thank you so much for your feedback, Lucy! We’re so glad this was a winner for you!
I LOVE that you now have nutritional information including calories per serving. Thank you Chunga!