Stir-Fried Chicken and Eggplant With Thai Basil
Updated June 7, 2021
Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
- Total Time
- About 1 hour
- Rating
- Comments
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Ingredients
1 pound eggplant, preferably long Japanese or Chinese eggplants, diced
Salt to taste
3 large garlic cloves, peeled, halved, green shoots removed
2 serrano chiles, stemmed and minced
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 tablespoon fish sauce
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil
¾ pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, rinsed and dried, cut into small dice or minced
1 cup Thai basil leaves, roughly chopped
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
10 grams carbs; 62 milligrams cholesterol; 210 calories; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 10 grams fat; 4 grams fiber; 541 milligrams sodium; 21 grams protein; 5 grams sugar
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.
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Preparation
- 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.
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
Comments
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.
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.
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.
I’ve made this numerous times, mostly as written. Today, there was no decent eggplant to be found…from my garden or in retail, so I grabbed a bag of coleslaw mix and used several other veggies in the fridge that needed eaten (mushrooms, red bells, edamame, scallions). We still love the eggplant in this, but still a very fast, satisfying dinner. Oh, and if you make a pile of the garlic/ginger/chile paste, it stores pretty well in freezer/fridge for super fast dinners!
I highly recommend using oyster sauce instead of fish sauce and rice cooking wine (or white wine) or chicken broth instead of water.
used jalapenos cut eggplant into half moons used tofu instead of chicken doubled recipe (and took advice-thank you- from comments to double fish sauce, soy and sugar) superb