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Thai Basil Chicken Tortellini

Top view of white plate with Thai Basil Chicken Tortellini.

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Ricotta & spinach tortellini is combined with the classic Thai basil chicken stir-fry to create this mouthwatering 30-minute Thai Basil Chicken Tortellini dish! It’s high in protein and great for meal prep!

Ingredients

Scale

Sauce:

  • 45ml / 3 TBSP Oyster Sauce (preferably a Thai onenote 1)
  • 15ml / 1 TBSP Light Soy Sauce (preferably a Thai one, or use any low sodium light soy sauce – note 2)
  • 5ml / 1 TSP Fish Sauce
  • 3ml / ½ TSP Thai Sweet Dark Soy Sauce (or use kecap manis – note 3)
  • ½ TSP Sugar-free granulated Sugar (I used Wholesome Zero Sugar – note 4)

 

Thai Basil Chicken Tortellini:

  • 50 grams / ¼ medium Yellow Onion – finely chopped
  • 25 grams / 5-6 Garlic cloves – minced
  • 30 grams / 7-8 fresh Red Chilies (Thai Bird’s Eye or any hot type of red chilies), to taste* (note 5) – finely chopped
  • 5 grams / 4-5 small Prik Kee Nu Green Chilies, to taste (optionalnote 5)
  • 30 grams / 2-3 pieces Baby Corn – sliced in half widthwise, then again lengthwise
  • 20 grams / 1 cup Thai Holy Basil Leaves (note 6) – picked off stems, washed, pat-dried
  • 250 grams / 8.8 ounces fresh or frozen Tortellini (I used Ricotta & Spinach) – prepared according to package instructions
  • ½ TBSP Canola Oil (or any neutral flavored cooking oil)
  • 285 grams / 10 ounces Lean Ground Chicken
  • 23 TBSP reserved pasta cooking water, as needed

Instructions

Prep:

  1. Make the sauce: In a small measuring cup (for easier pouring) or bowl, mix together the oyster sauce, light soy sauce, sweet dark soy sauce, fish sauce and granulated sugar-free sweetener until combined well. Set aside.
  2. Prepare the fresh ingredients: Chop/prepare the yellow onion, garlic, chilies as indicated in the ‘ingredients’ section. Pick the holy basil leaves off the stems if they aren’t already. Wash and pat-dry, then set aside.

Thai Basil Chicken Tortellini:

  1. Cook the tortellini: Cook the tortellini in a pot of boiling water according to package instructions until al-dente. Reserve ¼ cup of tortellini cooking water, then drain into a colander and set aside. (I like to run water over the tortellini to prevent sticking and halt the cooking process but this is optional).
  2. Stir-fry the aromatics: Heat ½ tablespoon of canola oil in a large nonstick wok (or deep sauté pan/skillet) over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic and chilies and stir-fry for 30-40 seconds until fragrant.
  3. Cook the chicken: Add the ground chicken and cook for 2 minutes, breaking up the clumps with your spatula or a wooden spoon, until just cooked.
  4. Add the baby corn: Add the baby corn and stir-fry for 15-20 seconds to combine.
  5. Add the tortellini and sauce: Add the cooked tortellini and pour the sauce you prepared earlier over everything. Add 2 tablespoons of reserved tortellini cooking water and gently mix until the chicken and tortellini are evenly coated in the sauce and it thickens a little. If the sauce becomes too thick, add ½ to 1 tablespoon of the pasta water or as needed until it coats everything evenly.
  6. Toss through the basil: Toss through the holy basil leaves until just wilted – about 15 seconds. Switch off the heat.
  7. To Serve: Divide evenly onto plates or in bowls and serve immediately.

Equipment

Notes

  1. Oyster Sauce. Use a Thai oyster sauce if possible as it is less sweet and salty than Chinese oyster sauce. If using a Chinese oyster sauce, adjust the amount of granulated sweetener to taste.
  2. Light Soy Sauce. Thai light soy sauce is less salty than Chinese and Japanese soy sauces and is preferred for this recipe. If you don’t have it on hand, use any type of low sodium light soy sauce.
  3. Thai Sweet Dark Soy Sauce. This is a thick and viscous dark soy sauce which is less salty than light sauce. It is sweet in flavor due to addition of molasses. If unavailable, use kecap manis – an Indonesian dark sweet soy sauce that is used commonly in dishes like Nasi Goreng.
  4. Sugar-free Granulated Sugar. I used Wholesome Zero Sugar which is made from erythritol. Any sugar-free granulated sweetener made from monkfruit, stevia, etc. can be used. Alternatively, use regular granulated white sugar.
  5. Fresh Chilies. I used Thai Bird’s Eye red chilies and prik kee nu green chilies which are both quite spicy. Adjust the quantity of chilies you use based on your heat level preference and how spicy they are. Thai prik kee nu green chilies are tiny, but FIERY hot. They are listed as optional as they might be difficult to source outside of Asia and also because they are not for the faint hearted when it comes to spicy food. You can try finding them in your local Asian supermarket or Thai grocery store, but feel free to leave them out.
  6. Thai Holy Basil Leaves. Known as ‘kaprow’ or ‘gaprao’ in Thai and spicy or hot basil in English. This herb has a unique peppery flavor. Appearance wise, the stems are furry and leaves have ridges. Grab a bunch in an Asian supermarket or Thai grocer if you are based in the US or outside of Asia. In Asia, you can find holy basil at the Thai stall in your local wet market. If unavailable, substitute with Thai sweet basil (‘horapa’) or regular Italian basil. Italian basil is closer in flavor to holy basil than Thai sweet basil. However, either will work for this recipe.
  7. Meal prep option. Double the ingredients by clicking the ‘2x’ button at the top of the recipe card. Cook in a large wok or heavy bottomed deep sauté pan to make 4 servings. Divide evenly into containers and store in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
  8. Storing and reheating leftovers. Store any leftovers in a sealed airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. Reheat on high in the microwave for 1.5 to 2 minutes or until hot throughout.

Nutrition

Keywords: Thai basil chicken pasta, Thai chicken pasta, Thai basil chicken tortellini