Pad Kra Pao

Thailand's most beloved street food — minced pork or chicken stir-fried with holy basil, garlic and bird's eye chilli, served with a fried egg over rice.

Pad kra pao — stir-fried meat with holy basil — is the dish Thais eat when they want something fast, satisfying and deeply comforting. It is Thailand's equivalent of beans on toast: the thing you make when you don't know what to make. Street vendors in Bangkok cook it to order in 90 seconds. The holy basil used is not Thai basil or Italian basil — it has a clove-like, peppery flavour that is irreplaceable. When the basil hits the hot wok the fragrance is extraordinary. The fried egg on top — cooked in abundant oil until the edges are lacy and crisp — is non-negotiable. Mark Wiens, the American food vlogger who has lived in Bangkok for years, liked the dish so much he opened his own pad kra pao restaurant called Phed Mark.

Must use holy basil — not Thai basil or Italian basil. The fried egg must be cooked in a lot of oil until the edges are crispy and bubbly. This is Thailand's equivalent of a sandwich.