Thai Sweet Basil: The Anise-Scented Curry Herb

Thai Sweet Basil — โหระพา (ho-ra-pha) — Ocimum basilicum.

Thai sweet basil — ho-ra-pha — is grown for its leaves. You eat them fresh, folded into a dish at the end of cooking. In cell-culture studies, basil oil killed Listeria and E. coli bacteria. The leaves also carry vitamin K, which helps blood clot normally and works with calcium to keep bones strong. In Thai cooking, fresh sweet basil goes into green curry right at the end, stirred through the coconut broth and served over jasmine rice or rice noodles. It also finishes stir-fried eggplant with roasted chili paste, folded in just before serving. Growing your own? Pinch whole stems just above a leaf pair so the plant branches out and bushes up. Single-leaf plucking slows that regrowth.

Authentic Thai Green Curry — แกงเขียวหวาน (gaeng-keow-wan)
Stir-fried Eggplant with Basil and Chili Paste — มะเขือยาวผัดพริกเผา (ma-kua-yao-pad-prik-pao)

Food and nutrients

Rich in: vitamin K

Research context

Sweet basil oil killed Listeria and E. coli in lab tests — Pharmaceutical Biology, 2010 (in-vitro)

Sources

Source: Hossain MA et al. (2010). Antibacterial properties of Ocimum basilicum. Pharm Biol 48(5). PMID 20645791

Narration transcript

Opening

Rub a leaf and it smells like licorice and cloves — that anise note is what sets Thai sweet basil apart. โหระพา, ho-ra-pa. Look for the purple stems and purple-tinged flower spikes. You eat the fresh leaves, torn in at the very end of a green curry so the perfume survives the heat, then spooned over jasmine rice.

Authentic Thai Green Curry (Gaeng Keow Wan / แกงเขียวหวาน)

Thai green curry finishes with fresh sweet basil. Stir the leaves into the coconut broth at the very end, then serve over jasmine rice or rice noodles.

Stir-fried Eggplant with Basil and Chili Paste (Makua Yao Pad Prik Pao / มะเขือยาวผัดพริกเผา)

Or make stir-fried eggplant sear the slices with roasted chili paste, then fold in sweet basil just before serving. Eat it hot with jasmine rice.

Nutrition summary

Weight for weight, these leaves are high in vitamin K and manganese, plus vitamin A and some vitamin C.

Vitamin K

Vitamin K contributes to normal blood clotting and helps maintain healthy bones, working alongside calcium in your body.

Closing

Growing your own? Pinch off a whole stem right above a pair of leaves and the plant splits into two new branches, bushing out fuller each time. Plucking single leaves only holds that regrowth back. Follow Longevity Biome, and LIKE this video for regular updates.

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