Usually when I go out to eat, I love sharing. It makes the meal delightfully communal and also means that I get to try a variety of different dishes. But every once in a while, I encounter a dish so spectacularly tasty that I need to have it all to myself. The crispy tilapia with spicy basil sauce at my neighborhood Thai restaurant, Beau Thai, is one such dish. When it first showed up on their rotating specials, my boyfriend and I thought we’d give it a try. We were amazed by the perfectly cooked fish, crunchy fried crust, and fragrant and flavorful sauce. Luckily, it has since been moved onto their regular menu. These days, we’ll stop by for dinner, take a look at their menu (as though we might order something else), and then each get an order of this. So finally I decided I had to try my hand at recreating the dish. I did a simple panko-crusted and fried preparation for the fish itself and modeled the sauce off of my Thai basil stir fry. The end result was like hitting jackpot – now I can get my fill of this dish at home! And maybe I’ll finally try some new dishes the next time I’m at Beau Thai.
Crispy Tilapia with Spicy Thai Basil Sauce
Yield: 4 – 6 servings
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 lbs tilapia fillets
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1 egg, beaten with 1 Tbsp water
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
- 1 Tbsp + 3 Tbsp coconut oil
- 6 – 8 shallots, minced
- 4 – 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 6 – 8 chile peppers, sliced*
- 1 bell pepper, chopped
- 1/4 cup stock
- 1/4 cup fish sauce
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce**
- 2 Tbsp palm sugar***
- juice of 1/2 lime
- 1 tsp cornstarch, mixed with 1 tsp cold water (optional)****
- 1 cup Thai basil leaves
*Adjust quantity based on your spice tolerance. Use bird’s eye chiles for authenticity and extra heat.
**As always, using a good-quality soy sauce is best – personally, I like Kimlan “Super Special” soy sauce – but you can also do okay with the low-sodium version of a more ubiquitous brand, such as Kikkoman.
***Brown sugar is an acceptable substitute.
****Use if you like a thicker sauce, more like a glaze.
Method:
- Pat dry 1 1/2 lbs tilapia fillets with a paper towel.
- Set up a plate with 1/2 cup flour, a bowl with 1 egg, beaten with 1 Tbsp water, and a plate with 1 cup panko breadcrumbs. Dredge each fillet in the flour, followed by the egg wash, followed by the panko breadcrumbs, and set aside.
- In a sautee pan or medium pot, heat 1 Tbsp coconut oil over medium-high heat, then sautee 6 – 8 shallots, minced, 4 – 5 cloves garlic, minced, 6 – 8 chile peppers, sliced, and 1 bell pepper, chopped until the shallots start to darken and the bell pepper is softened, about 5 minutes.
- Add 1/4 cup stock, 1/4 cup fish sauce, 2 Tbsp soy sauce, 2 Tbsp palm sugar, and juice of 1/2 lime, and stir together thoroughly. Bring to a boil, and let simmer until slightly reduced, about 3 – 5 minutes.
- Stir in 1 tsp cornstarch, mixed with 1 tsp cold water, if using, and let simmer until thickened, about 1 – 2 minutes.
- Stir in 1 cup Thai basil leaves, and cook until fragrant, about 1 – 2 minutes, then lower heat to lowest setting to keep warm until ready to serve.
- In a large sautee pan, heat 3 Tbsp coconut oil over high heat, then add the coated fish fillets, being careful not to crowd the pan (you will probably need to do a couple of batches).
- Cook the fish until the bottom is crispy and browned, about 3 – 5 minutes.
- Flip the fish, and continue cooking until the other side is crispy and browned, and the fish can be easily flaked with a fork, another 3 – 5 minutes. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels.
- Serve the crispy fish fillets topped with the Thai basil sauce.
Just made this last night, and it tasted great, despite having to make a number of substitutions. (Oops, no Thai basil, regular instead! Oops, out of Panko, good thing we’ve got these other bread crumbs!)
I fully support substitutions/changes to recipes as needed (or wanted!) – glad to hear it turned out well!
Hi Claire,
I’m excited to try the spicy thai basil tilapia but I’m wondering since I’m having a hard time finding fresh thai basil locally could I use dried thai basil I found in the seasoning section of my local market and how much should I use to give me the flavor of a cup of fresh thai basil?
Hi Gretchen! I don’t have any experience with dried Thai basil but if I were you, I’d use a couple tablespoons of the dried Thai basil along with maybe 1/2 a cup of fresh Italian basil. I think the fresh basil has a more herbaceous flavor that you’ll be missing if you just use dried. If you have a Whole Foods near you, I recommend checking there next time or looking for an Asian market – but I know not everyone has access to those stores so I’d love to hear how your substitute turns out!
What kind of stock did you use? This sounds delish!
Hm, I can’t remember now what kind I used – most likely vegetable stock, but any kind will do, or you could even substitute water in a pinch!
I made this last and was just so tasty! I had adapt the recipe as I am a pescatarian and there were few ingredients I couldn’t get hold off….I Also made the stock from the fish I deboned and it just made a big different in flavour! It was very delicious!
Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Sounds great but I believe your ratio of fish sauce to stock is way off. Fish sauce is very strong and pungent seasoning agent. With nearly half of the sauce being made up of fish sauce it would be inedible. It should be more like a tsp or tbsp.
I certainly agree that fish sauce is quite pungent (a good word to describe it!), but the ratio in this recipe is not off, to my taste buds, at least. Keep in mind that this is a very flavorful sauce, intended to be served over the fish fillets, to taste, not eaten plain. I use similar proportions in my other Thai recipes (like the dressing for my Thai steak salad http://www.seletsucre.com/thai-steak-salad/). That said, others may choose to cut back on the fish sauce, but I definitely wouldn’t recommend going down to a tsp or Tbsp (2 Tbsp may be more reasonable) – especially not if you want something that tastes like what you would get in a Thai restaurant. It may be an acquired taste, as I (and many Thai people) have no hesitance with using Nam Pla Prik (http://www.seletsucre.com/nam-pla-prik/) on my food, which is basically pure fish sauce with chilies.
Really enjoyed this dish. Thank you much so the recipe.
Great! I’m so glad to hear you liked it!
Your Crispy Tilapia with Spicy Thai Basil Sauce sounds so delicious! I will have to make it so soon! Thank you for sharing!
Reviving an old one…as I do, looked in fridge yesterday, saw some Thai basil on its way out, googled and found your recipe. Put this together in about 20 mins while the rice was cooking, and have to say it was REALLY great. Thanks! I don’t do measuring cups or spoons and this one fits that bill, the ingredients above are like a guide, work with the guide.
Delicious and holy easy batman!
Oh my gosh! This recipe is fabulous. My husband doesn’t normally like fish but this was instantly put on our list of favorites.
Regarding substitutions – my grocery was out of bird’s eye chilis, so we used 2 habaneros. Perfect!