Thai Basil Chicken

My husband and I successfully completed "No Fast Food" February. We are going to attempt to not eat any fast food or eat out at any restaurants the entire month of March. We also are hoping to try some new types of cuisine at home each week. Here is our first attempt at doing this. We love Thai food but I have never made it myself. We always just go to our local thai restaurant, which is amazing by the way. This recipe was extremely delicious and not hard to make at all. It pairs well with some steamed brown rice or jasmine rice and some steamed stir fry mixed veggies.

Thai Basil Chicken
Serves 4
Adapted by: http://www.yourhomebasedmom.com/thai-basil-chicken/

Ingredients
1 tablespoon canola oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4  - 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (we used 1/2 teaspoon)
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite size chunks
1/4 cup oyster sauce
1/4 cup hoisin sauce (try to use lower sodium if you can find it)
2 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 bunch fresh basil, equivalent to about 1/2 cup, torn into bite size pieces
2 large tomatoes, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, sliced thinly (we added this because we thought it sounded good)

Directions:
Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes. Stir consistently for -about 30-60 seconds, until fragrant (don’t let the garlic burn!). Add the sliced onions. Cook until the onions are translucent, stirring every now and then, about five minutes. Add the chicken and cook for 3-5 minutes, until browned and cooked through.
-Mix together the oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, and sugar and add into chicken.  Stir until everything is well coated. Turn the heat down to medium low and sprinkle the tomatoes over the top of the mixture. Tear the basil by hand and sprinkle it over the tomatoes.  While still on the stove over medium heat, let the tomatoes and basil sit, without stirring, for about 5  minutes to allow the basil to wilt slightly and the tomatoes to warm. Stir the mixture until everything is well combined and heated through.
-Best when served immediately over rice

*Tip: This would be really delicious if you replaced the chicken with a lean, boneless sirloin beef. You would then have Thai Basil Beef, which is just as tasty I am sure.

Enjoy! :)