Thai Basil Broccoli Stir Fry

 I love the flavors of Thai Basil Dishes. I usually make Thai Basil dishes with meat or seafood, but I was curious to see if I could do the same for a vegetable only dish.  Now this isn't vegetarian friendly because it does contain fish sauce.  If you want to make it vegetarian friendly you can either substitute soy sauce or see if you can find Vegetarian Fish Sauce (I know that's an oxymoron, but it does exist).  The key component is the Thai Basil leaves.  They are close to the Italian Thai Basil, but still exotic and different. If you cannot find Thai Basil, substitute regular basil.  Now I made 4 pounds of broccoli for a party so I will do my best to give you approximations for a one pound broccoli dish instead.  The most important thing to remember about cooking Thai food is to balance the flavors of salty, sweet, spicy, sour all together.

Ingredients:
l pound of broccoli florets (tops only)
1 medium onion chopped
1 handful of Thai Basil leaves
1 red bell pepper or red chilies sliced
Fish sauce to taste (about 1Tbs)
brown sugar to taste (about 1tsp)
red chili flakes to taste
1 Tbs of canola oil
2 cloves of garlic grated
2 tsp of grated ginger
2tsp of cornstarch and 1 Tbs of water


Directions:

Heat oil on high.  Then add your onions and red chilies.  Saute for 1-2 minutes.

Note:  I recommend a flat bottom skillet/pan that has a lid.  Eventually you want to put a lid on the dish to allow the broccoli to steam. 

Next add your grated ginger, garlic and red chili flakes. Saute for 1-2 minutes.






Now add your Thai basil leaves and give it a quick saute.

Next add your broccoli florets and stir fry for a minute.

Then mix your fish sauce (or soy sauce), water, cornstarch and brown sugar together.  Pour over the broccoli and stir fry for a few minutes.  Taste for seasoning.  If you like your seasoning, then turn the stove off and put a lid on the dish to allow the broccoli to steam in the juices.  Steam until you reach your desired tenderness.  I like my broccoli to be tender-crisp so it's not soggy. 

Serves 4.  Enjoy with fried rice or as part of a Thai meal. 


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