One Pot Rice with Minced Pork and Thai Basil

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You need to try making this One Pot Rice with Minced Pork and Thai Basil, inspired by a popular Thai dish called Pad Kra Pow. This meal is made in the rice cooker (or stovetop pot) and all you have to do is add all the ingredients (rice, meat, and aromatics) in the rice cooker (or stovetop pot) and wait for the magic to happen! This results in a savory & sweet rice from the marinated meat and freshness from the Thai basil!

Fried rice dish garnished with basil placed on white plate.

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Why You’ll Love this Recipe
Inspired by Pad Kra Pao
Ingredients:
How to Make One Pot Pad Kra Pao:
Alternative Cooking Instructions
Recipe FAQ:
Serve with these delicious appetizers:
One Pot Rice with Minced Pork and Thai Basil

Why You’ll Love this Recipe

So much flavor: This rice is loaded with aromatics like shallots, ginger and garlic. The marinade is also jam packed with sauces so you’ll taste the Thai inspired flavor!
Easy prep: Throw all your ingredients in the rice cooker and all you have to do is wait for the food to cook. No need to watch over the stove and stir!
Packed with nutrients: This dish has all the food groups – carbs, protein, vegetables for a filling and delicious meal.

Inspired by Pad Kra Pao

In Thailand, pad kra pao is a very popular dish among locals. The recipe calls for holy basil stir fried with ground chicken or ground pork. The dish tastes fragrant, smoky and spicy from the thai chili peppers. A fried egg is served on top of the dish and you eat the pad kra pao with a hot bowl of white rice. For our recipe we won’t be stir-frying the meat. Instead, we will be adding all these fragrant ingredients in the rice cooker. The rice will be infused with ginger, shallots, and chilis when cooking. If you’re interested in more one pot rice cooker meals, you can check out this pepper lunch inspired rice and my ultimate comfort meal, hainan chicken rice. You can also serve with Thai Basil Chicken for a complete Thai takeout meal!

Ingredients:

Here’s a look at what you need to make this One Pot Pad Kra Pow Rice at home. The highlights are here but the full ingredient list and quantities of each are in the recipe card.

Ground pork (or substitute with ground chicken) – ground meat is used for this recipe, which makes this dish easy & quick to cook!
Garlic – adds aromatic to the rice!
Shallots – adds sweetness and aromatic to the rice.
Thai red eye chili – this dish calls for lots of thai chilis but I can’t eat too spicy, so I opt for a jalapeno. If you like extra spicy, add a few more thai chilis (traditional method).
Ginger – when added, it will take out the gaminess of the meat.
Soy sauce – add this for flavor and savoriness for the meat.
Oyster sauce (can sub with vegan oyster sauce) – the taste brings umami and sweetness to your meat.
Fish sauce (can sub with soy sauce) – adds complex flavor to your rice where it will become sweet and aromatic. Traditionally used in Thai and Vietnamese cuisine.
Dark soy sauce – adds a nice golden brown color to your rice and doesn’t add too much saltiness.
Sugar – helps balance the saltiness of the rice. In addition, traditional
Light olive oil or avocado oil – makes the meat juicy!
Jasmine rice
Marinated meat – the meat doesn’t need to be marinated for certain length of time. Just as long as it takes for you to wash the rice and prepare the other ingredients.
Bell pepper – adds a nice color contrast to your rice and you can add a vegetable to your recipe!
Thai basil – add at the end so the basil doesn’t wilt too quickly and brings freshness & fragrance to the rice.

How to Make One Pot Pad Kra Pao:

Chopped red peppers, Thai chili, shallots, garlic, and ginger.

Step 1. Start by mincing garlic cloves, shallot, thai red chili, and 1 inch ginger (peeled). Dice ½ red bell pepper. Set aside.

Step 2. Marinate the ground pork (or ground chicken) with minced garlic, shallot, thai red chili and ginger. Add soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce, sugar, and oil. Mix well.

Straining water from bowl of white rice.

Rice, bell pepper, and soy sauce in rice cooker filled with a cup of water.

Step 3. Wash the rice in a strainer or bowl until water runs clear. Make sure your strain all the water to ensure that you add the right amount of water in the next step.

Step 4. In the rice cooker pot, add your rice, 1 cup water, diced bell pepper, dark soy sauce, and soy sauce. Mix well. Then, add your marinated meat in small balls in the rice.

Cooked rice and bell pepper garnished with basil in rice cooker.

Step 5. Place pot in rice cooker and press the cook button. When the rice is done cooking, add chopped thai basil. Mix everything together!

Alternative Cooking Instructions

I understand that not everyone has a rice cooker, so some of us might use pots on the stovetop to cook the rice. If that is you, get your medium sized pot ready. Add the rice, marinated meat, and pepper according to the recipe directions. Once your pot is filled with rice and all the ingredients…follow the instructions below and you can make your one pot beef and rice!

Heat pot to medium high and cook for 5-7 minutes covered with a lid. The water will start boiling. Make sure to watch over the fire because the water might boil over ◡̈
After 5-7 minutes, turn heat to low and cook for 10 more minutes covered. Do not open the lid during the entire cooking process.
Then turn off the heat and do not open the covered pot. Leave for 20 minutes covered. After the 20-25 minutes is up, mix the rice together and garnish with chopped thai basil. Hope you enjoy this one pot pad kra pao (thai basil pork)!

Recipe FAQ:

What rice cooker do you use?

Zojirushi rice cooker – this is the rice cooker I use and it works great! I bought it at Costco 8 years ago and it’s still reliable to this day. The rice always comes out delicious! I recommend checking Costco if they have this brand or you can buy it on Amazon.

Will my rice cooker work for this?

I’ve tried a few different rice cookers for this recipe: Cuckoo, Zojirushi, and Instant Pot. When I used these rice cookers, these were the cooking settings I used for delicious results:
Cuckoo: The settings are ‘pressure cook, high heat, gluten rice.’ I’ve found that this rice is stickier and more wet. I recommend to add ¼ cup less water (total water: ¾ cup water).
Zojirushi (the best result!): The settings are ‘white rice.’ Follow the recipe and the rice will turn out great!
Instant Pot: The settings are ‘rice setting, more, 15 minutes, high pressure.’ Then let the rice sit for 10 more minutes without opening. I’ve found the rice to be more soft and saucy. The flavor is still great and this recipe works well in the Instant Pot.

Can I use brown rice?

Yes, you can use brown rice. Keep in mind that the recipe I created is for jasmine rice and the water measurements may be slightly off. You may want to change the rice setting in your rice cooker as well.

Can I make this dish vegetarian friendly?

Yes, you can! I suggest substituting the meat with vegetarian meat like beyond or impossible. You can also substitute the oyster sauce with vegan oyster sauce. For the fish sauce, substitute with soy sauce.

Serve with these delicious appetizers:

Easy crab rangoons – cream cheese and crab make this classic Chinese takeout a perfect snack or appetizer!
The best avocado egg rolls – creamy egg rolls are fried to perfection in this Cheesecake Factory inspired dish!
Chinese scrambled eggs with BBQ pork – soft eggs fried with delicious Chinese BBQ pork.

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