Vegan Thai Basil Fried Rice Recipe
Each grain of this vegan Thai basil fried rice is infused with the aroma of sweet Thai basil, satisfying umami, and an intensely fiery heat from homemade chilli paste. You won’t be able to put your fork (or chopsticks!) down — and if you need more persuading, it’s vegan and takes just 15 minutes to cook. That’s quicker than a takeaway 😯.
This vegan Thai basil fried rice recipe unites the best of two dishes.
Firstly, Thai basil fried rice with tofu. Secondly, kao pad nam prik pao (or Thai chilli paste fried rice). I love both dishes so much. So, the natural conclusion? Combine them! The result was better than I could’ve ever imagined.
Each bite is packed with the flavour of our aromatic, piquant, and moreishly tasty chilli paste. It’s enough to knock your socks off (but in a good way, of course). To make the dish more nourishing, we’ve also got golden-brown tofu — fried to perfection — and crunchy rainbow veggies. That makes it a complete meal.
Surprisingly, this authentic vegetarian Thai fried rice recipe comes together in no time at all. If you’ve already got leftover rice, that’ll cut down your cooking time even more, so the whole dish takes less than 15 minutes.
Just like vegetarian pad krapow (Thai basil tofu), it’s almost impossible to believe you can have something so full-bodied on the table so quickly, but it’s true. I can’t wait to share the recipe with you!
🍚 Thai Basil Fried Rice Ingredients
Cook my Asian recipes regularly? You’ll likely have all these ingredients in stock. Most of the Thai basil fried rice ingredients are pantry staples.
Let’s explore what each element brings to the table!
- Rice is, of course, a must! I prefer a short or medium-grain aromatic variety, like jasmine rice — for that typical Thai flavour — or sona masoori. It’s worth using specialist rice varieties vs. the standard stuff in the supermarket.
- Extra firm tofu provides all the plant-based protein we need. Use homemade tofu or buy any extra-firm tofu from the supermarket. If it’s packed in water, you’ll need to press it.
- Vegetables such as carrots, broccoli, and green bell peppers add colour and texture to this authentic vegetarian Thai fried rice recipe. You could also use baby corn, water chestnuts, or mushrooms.
- Vegetarian oyster sauce gives the rice a richness and robust umami boast.
- Light soy sauce is salty and pungent.
- Sweet Thai basil is sweet and liquorice-flavoured, with a strong herbal aroma and gorgeous, irreplaceable flavour.
You’ll Also Need a Spicy Chilli Paste
This unique chilli paste is known in Thai as “nam prik pao.” It’s filled with fresh and dried chillis, but that’s not all. Expect plenty of aromatics and seasonings, taking this from a bog-standard chilli paste to the kind that will blow your socks off — not just with spice, but with FLAVOUR.
This paste will be doing 80% of the work in this recipe.
Although you can buy nam prik pao in Asian markets, I prefer to make Thai chilli paste at home, as I can fully control the ingredients and ensure it’s 100% vegan.
- Red chilis are sharp, peppery, and citrusy. I use fresh bird’s eye chillies as my number one choice, as they pack some serious heat while still delivering flavour.
- Garlic is potent when raw, but will cook down with the paste to a mellow and buttery after note.
- Shallots are delicate and peppery, transforming to a distinctive naturally sweet flavour once cooked. You can substitute for red onions.
- Palm sugar balances out the other flavours. You can use white or brown sugar, but palm sugar is the most traditional.
- Sea salt helps grind everything and provides vital seasoning.
- Red chilli flakes are made from dried chillies (you can also use whole dried chillies) and boost the heat level.
- Tamarind is sour and tangy, with caramel-esque notes that complement the palm sugar.
- Vegetarian fish sauce adds an element of salty umami.
- Oil helps bring the paste together.
🔄 Allergies and Substitutions
As the name suggests, this vegan Thai basil fried rice recipe is 100% vegan! If you’ve been eating vegan and vegetarian food for long, you know that’s a big deal. Thai food often has hidden ingredients like fish sauce — which makes hunting for plant-based meals hard, especially if you don’t live in a country with a big vegan population. But don’t worry, I’ve got you!
This vegetarian Thai fried rice recipe is also nut free.
Although the recipe isn’t naturally gluten free, it’s easy to adapt. Soy sauce is the culprit here — You’ll have to swap it for tamari, an incredible gluten free alternative. It tastes just as delicious, with the same umami punch.
Furthermore, the Thai basil fried recipe isn’t suitable for anyone with a soy allergy. The soy sauce (or tamari) is essential to our layers of flavour.
Can’t find fresh Thai basil? As with my vegetarian pad krapow, you can use any variety of basil in a pinch. Just don’t expect it to have quite the same flavour or hold up so well under heat.
😍 Variations for Thai Basil Fried Rice with Tofu
Want to infuse this recipe with your own touch? I’m all for it!
Here are some ideas:
- Use a different protein. I’ve opted for tofu, a traditional ingredient used in Thai cuisine with high protein content and a neutral flavour. However, you can use vegan scrambled egg, tempeh, or seitan as other plant-based alternatives.
- Adjust the spice levels by adapting the chilli paste to your taste. Reduce or omit the dried chilli, or, alternatively, use a milder fresh chilli.
- Switch up the veggies and try incorporating baby corn, pak choy (or other greens like gai lan (Chinese broccoli)), water chestnuts, beansprouts, bamboo shoots, or mushrooms.
🧑🍳 How to Make Vegan Thai Basil Fried Rice
Making this authentic vegetarian Thai fried rice recipe is incredibly easy — even if you don’t have experience with cooking Asian food.
The key is to have all your ingredients prepped beforehand, so you can focus all your attention on wok frying.
In just a few simple steps, your kitchen will be full of the tempting aromas of this spicy, fragrant vegetarian Thai fried rice recipe!
- Make the nam prik pao (chilli paste) by smashing everything in a mortar and pestle until it makes a rough paste.
- Stir-fry the tofu until golden brown with crispy edges. You can also bake the tofu!
- Fry the chilli paste in a hot wok until aromatic,
- Add the vegetables and cook until just tender.
- Add the rice to the wok along with the liquid seasonings and toss everything until coated. Turn off the heat.
- Finish with Thai basil, which will wilt in the residual heat.
💡 Expert Tips
Making a restaurant-worthy rendition of vegan Thai basil fried rice might be easy as can be, but rice can be a big hurdle for some people — and if you’re new to stir-frying, these tips can definitely come in handy.
- Use old rice. Whenever I make stir-fried rice dishes like chilli garlic fried rice, I always use leftover rice. Fresh rice is fluffy and sticky, making it easy to break while stir-frying and more likely to steam rather than fry. Day-old cold rice works best here. It’s not just a time saver — it’s also crucial for that irresistible texture.
- Prep everything in advance. Cooking can be stressful (trust me, I know!). One easy way to eliminate stress is by cutting all your vegetables in advance, making the Thai chilli paste in advance, and getting any seasonings ready to go. It makes the whole process effortless.
- Wok hei, wok hei. VITAL for getting the Asian restaurant flavour in your food, wok hei literally translates to “breath of the wok.” The technique is mostly used in Cantonese recipes — but works equally well here. Getting the wok steaming hot infuses extra levels of smoky flavour.
- Use a mortar and pestle to grind the Thai chilli paste. Blending it to a smooth paste just isn’t what we want — that coarse texture you get from grinding by hand is desirable. Don’t worry, it doesn’t take long!
🍽️ Serving Vegan Thai Basil Fried Rice
I like to serve vegan Thai basil fried rice alone — because it’s loaded with crispy tofu, fresh vegetables, and carbs in the form of rice, it’s a complete meal.
However, you can serve this authentic Thai basil rice alongside other dishes for a family-style feast that’s bound to impress even the harshest critic. Consider my citrusy tofu tom yum, nutty and creamy tofu satay curry, plain chow mein, plus spring rolls.
Moreover, tofu Thai basil fried rice is an amazing recipe for meal prep since the rice, tofu, and even vegetables can be cooked in advance.
Once the dish is done, it can be refrigerated for three days in an air-tight container, or you can freeze it for two months. There’s nothing better than having a homemade meal just ready to grab and go!
✨ This Recipe Is …
Vegan Thai Basil Fried Rice
Ingredients
For the Nam Prik Pao (Chilli Paste)
- 2 red birds eye chillies
- 4 cloves garlic
- 50 g shallots
- 1 teaspoon palm sugar
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt coarse
- 1 teaspoon dried chilli flakes
- 1 teaspoon tamarind
- 1 teaspoon vegan fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon oil
For the Stir Fry
- 200 g extra firm tofu cubed
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 60 g carrot diced
- 60 g broccoli florets finely chopped
- 40 g green bell pepper capsicum in the U.S., diced
- 1 teaspoon vegan oyster sauce sometimes called vegan mushroom sauce
- 1 teaspoon light soy sauce
- 20 g sweet Thai basil
Other Ingredients
- 300 g leftover cooked jasmine rice
Instructions
- Make the nam prik pao (chilli paste). In a large mortar and pestle, first begin to pound 2 red birds eye chillies, 4 cloves garlic, and 50 g shallots. Once that's coarsely ground, add 1 teaspoon palm sugar, ¼ teaspoon sea salt1 teaspoon dried chilli flakes, and 1 teaspoon tamarind. Continue to pound until the paste becomes broken down. Add 1 teaspoon vegan fish sauce and 1 teaspoon oil, then mix well.
- In a frying pan, cook 200 g extra firm tofu until golden brown on all sides. You can lightly sauté (my preference) or cook without oil.
- In a large wok, heat 1 tablespoon oil. Once it begins to smoke, stir-fry the chilli paste. Once it becomes aromatic, add the vegetables (60 g carrot, 60 g broccoli florets, and 40 g green bell pepper) and cook until just tender, around 2 minutes. Add 300 g leftover cooked jasmine rice to the wok along with 1 teaspoon vegan oyster sauce and 1 teaspoon light soy sauce, then toss to combine until the rice is coated.
- Turn off the heat and add 20 g sweet Thai basil. Stir to mix through — the basil will wilt from the residual heat.
Anything with basil is popular in our house but we’ve not had it with rice before so a new recipe to add to our favourites. Cooked it for our vegetarian neighbours who were very impressed. Loved that it was so quick to make too. Excellent well thought out recipe.
I bet you’re a very popular neighbour, Steve! So glad it went down a storm.