Holy Basil Substitute: Best Swaps for Pad Kra Pao

Holy basil is kaphrao, the peppery “hot basil” that gives the Thai stir-fry phat kaphrao its name, and outside Asian groceries it can be hard to track down. Italian (sweet) basil and Thai basil can both stand in, though the Thai cooking writers we consulted don’t agree on how good each swap is. Pailin Chongchitnant prefers Italian basil and says it tastes closer. Thai basil works too, but the dish will taste quite different. And a limp bunch of the real thing may not beat a fresh substitute.

Quick answer

What holy basil is doing	Best substitute	Starting amount, per 1 cup holy basil leaves	Treatment
The herb in phat kaphrao or another stir-fry, wilted at the end	Italian (sweet) basil	1 cup	Attributed
The same, if you prefer a Thai basil flavor	Thai basil	1 cup	Attributed
Either, if you have both	Italian and Thai basil, mixed	1 cup in total	Method

How the ratios on this page are labeled

Computed: based on a measurable physical relationship.
Attributed: a named source publishes this ratio. We quote it as theirs.
Disputed: named sources give different answers to the same swap. You get each one, side by side.
Method: our starting point, based on how the two compare. Taste and adjust.

The one-for-one amounts here come from a single recipe that lists holy basil and its substitutes in the same quantity.

Try for the real thing first

Andy Ricker, in his Thai cookbook Pok Pok, notes that Indian grocers may sell true holy basil as tulsi. He also warns that “holy basil” labels sometimes end up on purple-stemmed Thai or sweet basil.¹ Pailin Chongchitnant, who runs the Thai cooking site Hot Thai Kitchen, adds that holy basil’s fragrance is milder than Thai basil’s and can be faint unless the herb is freshly picked from a healthy plant.² So a limp bunch of real holy basil may not beat a fresh substitute.

How the basils differ

In a 2018 Chiang Mai University study, holy basil’s oil was led by methyl eugenol and had a spice-like aroma, while Thai basil leaned toward anise, lime-like and fresh aromas.³ Italian basil varies more, but an Italian study of young ‘Genovese Gigante’ plants found methyleugenol as a main component.⁴ So some Italian basil shares holy basil’s leading compound, while Thai basil leads with the anise-scented estragole. That’s our read of separate studies with different methods, not a taste test, but it fits what Chongchitnant reports below.

Chongchitnant describes holy basil’s fragrance as less floral and more peppery than Thai basil’s.² Ricker calls it peppery too.¹

If holy basil is the herb in a stir-fry

In phat kaphrao, the basil goes in at the very end and gets stirred just until it wilts and turns fragrant.¹ Any substitute goes in the same way.

1. Italian (sweet) basil

Chongchitnant calls Italian basil her preferred substitute and says it tastes closer to holy basil than Thai basil does.²

Ratio (Attributed): Her pad kra pao recipe calls for 1 1/4 cups of holy basil or regular basil leaves, the same amount either way.² For comparison, SheSimmers’ version uses 1 cup of holy basil leaves, packed.⁵

2. Thai basil

Chongchitnant suggests that restaurants serving “holy basil” stir-fries may really be using Thai basil because they can’t get holy basil.² She says Thai basil works and the dish will be just as tasty, but its flavor is so distinct from holy basil’s that the dish will taste quite different.²

Ratio (Attributed): Chongchitnant’s ingredient note says Thai basil will also work, in place of the same amount of holy basil.²

What it is called. SheSimmers notes that some cooks routinely use purple or sweet basil because it’s easier to find. If sweet basil is all you have, she says, go ahead and use it, but call the dish Pad Bai Horapha.⁵ PROSEA gives horapha as the Thai name for sweet basil, Ocimum basilicum,⁶ the species that includes Thai basil.⁷ Phat kaphrao literally means “holy basil stir-fry,” as Chongchitnant notes.²

3. A mix of both

Ratio (Method): If you have both, mostly Italian basil with a little Thai basil gives you some of the Thai character without letting the anise take over. Start with about three parts Italian to one part Thai, in the same total amount as the holy basil.

Substitutes that don’t hold up

You’ll sometimes see oregano, rosemary or fennel suggested in place of holy basil. We didn’t find a credible source recommending any of them, or a ratio. Holy basil goes in as a fresh leaf wilted into a dish,¹ and none of these behaves that way.

What isn’t known

Basil oils vary with cultivar and growing conditions. The Thai study used plants from one site,³ and the Italian study found the balance of compounds changing as plants grew.⁴
The one-for-one amounts come from one cook’s recipe, not from a test.

Andy Ricker with J.J. Goode, “Stir-fried chicken with hot basil (kai kaphrao)”, from Pok Pok, via The Splendid Table. splendidtable.org · Publication ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴
Pailin Chongchitnant, pad kra pao beef recipe, Hot Thai Kitchen. hot-thai-kitchen.com · Publication ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸
Tangpao, Chung and Sommano, “Aromatic Profiles of Essential Oils from Five Commonly Used Thai Basils”, Foods, 2018. mdpi.com · Peer-reviewed ↩ ↩²
Miele, Dondero, Ciarallo and Mazzei, “Methyleugenol in Ocimum basilicum L. cv. Genovese Gigante”, Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 2001 (abstract). agris.fao.org · Peer-reviewed ↩ ↩²
“Pad Ka-Prao”, SheSimmers, 2011. shesimmers.com · Publication ↩ ↩²
N.O. Aguilar, Pham Truong Thi Tho and L.P.A. Oyen, Ocimum basilicum, Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA). uses.plantnet-project.org · Reference work ↩
Ocimum thyrsiflorum L. (synonym of Ocimum basilicum), Plants of the World Online, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. powo.science.kew.org · Reference work ↩

Holy Basil Substitutes: Italian Basil, Thai Basil and Why They Differ