EAT IN ASIA / Destinations / Thailand
Stir-fried seafood with spicy Thai basil leaves
Squids, prawns, mussels, local herbs and vegetables and a lot of spiciness. As long as you like all these ingredients, this stir-fried dish is good for you.
It includes mainly Thai ingredients and is a very popular meal here in Thailand. This seafood dish allows you to try something refreshing, something spicy and something very traditional.
Apart from that, the seafood you get is extremely fresh. The same applies to the Thai basil, garlic, and hot peppers. In every bite you can taste both the freshness of ingredients and their extremely aromatic notes.
Although you might select different types of meat, like pork, chicken, crab meat or seafood, I would strongly recommend you going either with one type of seafood, with its mix or just with the crab meat. Of course, another option is to choose tofu curd in case you are vegan or prefer to avoid meat dishes, but if only you like seafood, just take it.
Pork or chicken is what you can have almost everywhere. That is true, that it will taste differently, but going with squids, prawns or with a crab meat, is according to me, the best option and way better than any regular meat. That is something that is the best in that area. Remember that when it is delivered to other countries that do not have their local seafood, these ingredients get worsen with every hour. Not only they are very often frozen or stored in a very low temperature, but also, they are pumped with artificial colorants, preservatives, and other stuff like that. So, whenever you have an option to eat them in their country of origin, do so! Try these seafood dishes in Cambodia, Vietnam, Japan or in North and Central America - in Mexico, Costa Rica or in Dominican Republic.
Thai style spicy seafood
Selecting seafood mix is the best method for trying Thai specialties and deciding which one of them is the best for you. Whether that are clams, or prawns, or squids. Apart from them, here, in Thailand, you can also get crab meat for a reasonable price, so if you like it, or if you would like to try it for the first time, do it and enjoy it as much as you can.
What is also worth mentioning is that squids are wonderful here. The same applies to freshly fished prawns and clams. You can easily taste their delicate and soft flesh. Their texture and color are perfect. Each ingredient is perfectly prepared. Neither it is over-fried, nor it is raw. Although it is just put on the frying pan for a short moment, the seafood mix gets an ideal texture. And that is surprising because cooking each of them should take another time. But no, it is not like that, and although they are stir-fried the same time, all of them have an ideal tenderness. Prawns are delicate. Squids are a little bit tougher. With every bite you can feel the texture of their meat and their slight chewiness. Clams are soft and are almost melting in your mouth.
Spices and herbs in the Thai stir-fired seafood with basil leaves
Here, the key element is the composition of hot peppers, garlic, and basil leaves. They are well balanced, thanks to what none of them is over-dominating. The most important role play here two ingredients - garlic and fresh Thai basil leaves. Even they are not in an excessive amount, their flavor is very strong.
Add to that hot chili peppers that nicely tune the dish and you will get a wonderful meal. As these herbs are added in a very good quantity, they do not kill the delicate flavor of the whole seafood.
Rice
The dish is served with plain white rice that creates a great balance for all flavors and aromas that you get from the main stir-fried seafood serving. Although this rice it is slightly bland, it is a nice contradiction to an extremely aromatic seafood.
Is a stir-fried seafood with spicy Thai basil leaves and rice worth trying?
Yes, definitively it is. It is a great opportunity to try something very aromatic, something typical for the Thai cuisine and something that basis only on fresh ingredients prepared just at the moment you order it. If you like seafood dishes, a Stir-fried seafood in a yellow curry would be another great option to try Thai seafood prepared according to the regional cuisine. And what is more, this dish is really delicious and it id definitively not spicy.
