Stir Fry Squid in Basil (Pad Kra Pao Pla Muek) recipe

The use of basil in the Philippines is not as common as how it is in Thailand where basil is an everyday staple incorporated in many well-loved Thai dishes. Over here, basil is mostly seen in pasta and salad dishes, pesto included.

Stir Fry Squid in Basil is one classic Thai recipe that uses basil in everyday cooking and is a good recipe to try especially if you have an abundance of basil leaves in your garden, or if you just want to try something new.

Pad Kra Pao Pla Muek or Stir Fry Squid in Basil is an easy to make dish and incorporates the flavorful basil.

You may also add this to your list of squid dishes outside of the usual calamares, inihaw and adobong pusit.

The laborious task in this recipe is in the cleaning of squid: while doing so, you may want to turn on your favorite podcast or catch up on your Netflix shows — it does take some time and can also be done ahead of time, like when you get your squid fresh from the market and before storing in the freezer. This way, it will only take a couple of minutes to whip up this dish.

Ingredients:

1 kilo of squid, cleaned and skinned

A few cloves of garlic

A small onion, sliced

A pack of young corn, sliced diagonally

Thai fish sauce

Chillies

Dark soya sauce (for color)

A bunch of basil leaves, maybe a cup

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Procedure:

1. Clean the squid: remove the ink sac (you can save this and make paella negra sauce later on) and set aside. In cleaning the tentacles, take out the hard plastic in the middle and remove the eyes. Lastly, peel the skin — this comes off easily. This process removes the black ink color in the dish.
2. In a pan, heat vegetable oil on medium-heat and sauté garlic and onion. You may add your chillies here as well.
3. Add the young corn (or any vegetables preferred, such as long beans or capsicums) and mix.
4. Add the squid and cook. Squid cooks quickly so keep an eye here.
5. Season the dish with fish sauce and dark soya sauce for color. Some add sugar to balance it off – this is up to you and is optional.
6. Lastly, add the basil leaves and cook for another minute or two.
7. Serve with Thai crispy fried egg, garnish with tomatoes and cucumber on the side.

Yield: Serves 4 to 5

Happy cooking!

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