Perfect Pairings & Recipes for
Thai Basil
Top flavour pairings and recipes for Thai basil, according to analysis of thousands of recipes.
Aromatic herbalness and liquorice notes are at the forefront of Thai basil's flavour profile, but identifying its perfect partner requires exploring its subtle nuances. We must examine the complex interplay of notes within its bouquet, like fennel, camphor, and hints of eucalyptus. We need to understand how these notes affect each other and which complementary flavors they harmonise with.
To map these harmonies, we analysed thousands of ingredients, breaking each one down across 150 flavour dimensions, identifying which notes complement and contrast. Our analysis reveals, for example, how mackerel's oceanic tones enrich Thai basil, and how anchovy's oceanic notes create a surprising synergy with its aromatic herbalness.
Flavour Profile Of Thai Basil Across 150 Dimensions Of Flavour
Flavour wheel chart showing the dominant flavour notes of Thai basil: Basil, Anise, Fennel, Camphor, Eucalyptol, Resinous, Chlorophyll, Clove, Tea-Like, Menthol, Poivre, Grassy
An ingredient's flavour profile is determined by its core characteristics (e.g. herbal, vegetal, and spice) enhanced by layers of subtle aroma notes (outer bars). When pairing ingredients, aim for a mix of core traits to build balance, and select complementary aroma notes to create harmony.
The Secret Language of Flavour
To understand how flavour notes harmonise, we analysed more than 50,000 popular ingredient combinations. By exploring these pairings, we identified specific flavour notes that frequently occur together, indicating they share a harmonious relationship.
The Flavours That Harmonise With Basil Notes
Strength of Association Between Flavours
The flavours most associated with basil notes are: Oceanic, Fishy, Dried Porcini, Saline, Olive, Seaweed, Tomato, Glutamic, Oyster, Acetic, Proteolytic, Chanterelle, Copper, Sulfurous, Starch.
Our analysis reveals a strong connection between basil and iodine flavours. Since Thai basil has a distinct basil-like flavour, try pairing it with the oceanic flavours of anchovy.
The recipe below provides inspiration for pairing Thai basil with anchovy.
Harmonious Flavours Of Thai Basil
Just as our analysis found that basil and oceanic flavours are harmonious, we can identify the full profile of flavours that harmonise with each of the flavours present in Thai basil. For instance, the liquorice notes of Thai basil are strongly associated with copper and oystery notes.
The aroma accents complementing the various notes of Thai basil can be seen highlighted in the pink bars below.
Flavour Profile Of Thai Basil And Its Complementary Flavour Notes
Flavour wheel chart showing the dominant flavour notes of Thai basil: Basil, Anise, Fennel, Camphor, Eucalyptol, Resinous, Chlorophyll, Clove, Tea-Like, Menthol, Poivre, Grassy
Matching Flavour Profiles
The flavour profile of mackerel offers many of the notes complementary to Thai basil, including oceanic and fatty aromas. Because the flavour profile of mackerel has many of the of the features that are complementary to Thai basil, they are likely to pair very well together.
Prominent Flavour Notes Of Mackerel Are Represented By Longer Bars
Flavour wheel chart showing the dominant flavour notes of Mackerel: Oceanic, Adipose, Fishy, Saline, Seaweed, Glutamic, Oleic, Iron, Smoky, Lactic, Copper
The chart above shows the unique profile of mackerel across 150 dimensions of flavour, while the recipes below offer inspiration for bringing these flavours together with Thai basil.
Recipes That Pair Thai Basil With Mackerel
Linked Flavour Notes
Looking at the notes that are most strongly associated with the various flavours of Thai basil, we can identify other ingredients that are likely to pair well.
Thai Basil's Harmonious Flavours And Complementary Ingredients
Thai basil's Strongest Flavours
Complementary Flavours
Ingredients with Complementary Flavours
Flavour groups:
Nectarous
Acidic
Floral
Herbal
Spice
Vegetal
Earthy
Woody
Carnal
The left side of the chart above highlights the aroma notes of Thai basil, along with the complementary aromas associated with each note. While the right side shows some of the ingredients that share many of the aroma notes complementary to Thai basil.
What To Drink With Thai Basil
The fatty notes in pecorino make it a perfect pairing with thai basil. Likewise, the oceanic flavours in manzanilla sherry create a match made in heaven. Explore a variety of ingredients below that beautifully complement the unique character of thai basil below.
Which Seafood Go With Thai Basil?
Choose seafood that resonate with its pungency or embrace its aromatic herbalness. Mackerel and salmon offer vibrant, clean counterpoints, their verdant freshness lifting the palate. Sea bream add a gentle, oniony brightness, while sea bass introduces a sophisticated, anise-tinged elegance.
Alternatively, embrace seafood that harmonise with Thai basil's turpentiness. The addition of fish, with its subtle glutamic notes, can complement the resin beautifully, while langoustine lends a marine aroma.
How Flavonomics Works
We've pioneered a unique, data-driven approach to decode the intricate art of flavour pairing. Our goal is to move beyond intuition and uncover the science of why certain ingredients harmonise beautifully. This rigorous methodology allows us to provide you with insightful and reliable pairing recommendations.
Our analysis begins with over 50,000 carefully selected recipes from acclaimed chefs like Galton Blackiston, Marcello Tully, and Pierre Lambinon. This premium dataset ensures our model distils genuine culinary excellence and creativity.
Each ingredient from these recipes is deconstructed across 150 distinct flavour dimensions, creating a unique numerical "flavour fingerprint." This quantification allows us to apply advanced analytical methods to identify complex patterns between flavour notes.
We identify popular ingredient combinations that frequently appear in our recipe database. Regression analysis is then performed on these pairings to statistically validate and pinpoint truly harmonious flavours.
These insights drive our predictive model, which allows us to take any ingredient (e.g., Thai basil), analyse its detailed flavour profile, and accurately reveal its complementary flavours and perfect ingredient partners.
Explore More
Discover more ingredient profiles and expand your culinary knowledge. Each ingredient page offers detailed analysis of flavour profiles, pairing insights, and culinary applications.
The content on our analysis blog is semi-automated. All of the words were manually written by a human, but the content is updated dynamically based on the data.