Pad Kra Pao

Combine oyster sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce, and sugar in a small bowl. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Taste and adjust: it should be intensely savory, salty, slightly sweet, and smell powerfully of fermented seafood and caramel. Set beside the stove. In pad kra pao, there is no time for measuring once the wok is hot — everything must be ready before you start.

Heat a wok or large cast-iron pan over the highest possible heat until it begins to smoke. Add the oil and heat for 15 seconds. Add the chilies and garlic simultaneously. Stir-fry, keeping everything moving, for 30-45 seconds. The garlic should be fragrant and just beginning to color at the edges — not burnt. The chilies will release intense capsaicin vapor; ensure ventilation. This step is fast and violent.

Add the ground pork to the wok in one addition. Press it flat against the hot surface and let it sear without stirring for 30-45 seconds until the contact side turns grey-to-caramelized. Then break it up and stir-fry vigorously for 2-3 minutes, pressing and breaking apart any clumps. Pour in the pre-mixed sauce and the water. Continue stir-frying over maximum heat for another minute until the sauce has reduced and coated every piece of meat in a sticky, dark glaze. The pan should sound like it is sizzling furiously — not steaming.

Remove the wok from heat. Add all the holy basil leaves at once and toss rapidly — residual heat will wilt the basil in 15-20 seconds. Holy basil releases its best aroma when it hits heat but is not overcooked: the leaves should be wilted but still intensely fragrant and not uniformly black. Serve immediately over jasmine rice, topped with a fried egg cooked in very hot oil until the edges are crispy and lacy.