Create allergy card
← Browse ingredients

Holy Basil

Holy basil is an aromatic herb used fresh or cooked in Southeast Asian dishes, especially stir-fries and curries.

Holy Basil — illustrative ingredient image

About Holy Basil

Holy basil is an aromatic basil used as a culinary herb in parts of South and Southeast Asia. The name covers related cultivated forms with green or purplish leaves and a strong fragrance that can be peppery, clove-like, minty, or slightly anise-like. Fresh leaves and tender shoots are the usual culinary portions, while dried leaves are less delicate.

It is added raw or cooked to savoury dishes, including stir-fries, curries, soups, sauces, and herb garnishes. In cooking, the leaves are often added near the end or briefly fried so their aroma remains prominent. The flavour is strong and aromatic, while texture varies between tender fresh leaves, shoots, and more delicate dried material.

It is sold as fresh bunches, separated leaves, tender shoots, or dried material, and flavour varies among regional types and growing conditions. Fresh leaves may remain leafy when used raw, wilt or soften during cooking, and become crisp at the edges when briefly fried. Dried leaves are more brittle and less delicate than fresh material.

Ingredient type
whole food

FOLLOW IT TO THE PLATE

Where will you meet it?

Explore the dishes that use this ingredient and their country and cuisine connections.

Explore linked dishes

ON A MENU OR LABEL

Find local names and written forms to help recognise this ingredient.

See local names

Where holy basil appears

1 linked foods

Find foods to recognise by country and type. Recipes and products vary; these are recorded ingredient connections.

Showing 1–1 of 1

Main dishes

Ingredient connections awaiting review · Coverage is still growing, including packaged snacks.

Name examples awaiting language review. Confirm the specific food or product.

Local names for holy basil

Names and romanised forms to recognise on menus and labels.

English

holy basil

English

holy basil leaf

Search alias · Not a confirmed translation

English

holy basil leaf (dried)

Search alias · Not a confirmed translation

English

holy basil leaf (raw)

Search alias · Not a confirmed translation

Available names only. Languages may be spoken in other countries; a name alone does not identify every ingredient in a dish.

Holy Basil nutrition & diet

Holy Basil nutritional value

Reference: Holy basil, leaves, raw

Per 100 g of the edible portion in the named reference form.

Calories
41.90000000000006kcal
Protein
3.3g
Carbs
4.0g
Fat
0.5g

Per 100 g edible portion. Rojroongwasinkul et al. (2013), Mahidol University and Wageningen University, SMILING Thai Food Composition Table. Energy is the source-calculated energy; carbohydrate is available carbohydrate by difference. Original 2013 reference values, not a current product label or a universal recipe.

Portions & preparation

Confirm holy basil identity and distinguish fresh leaves, tender stems, dried herb, tea, extract, or prepared paste. Use the edible portion actually consumed, since leaves added to a stir-fry differ from strained infusions. Record oil, sauce, salt, or other ingredients in cooked dishes.

Compare the right form: Match references to holy basil species and identified leaf or stem portion, fresh or dried, whole, cooked, infused, or pasted.

Diet considerations

Holy basil is plant-derived when the species and plant part are established. Stir-fries, curries, pastes, and teas may include fish sauce, shrimp, meat, dairy, egg, oil, sugar, or cereal ingredients. Compatibility and carbohydrate patterns therefore depend on the recipe, preparation form, sweeteners, accompaniments, and portion.

AI-authored reading notes · Awaiting editorial review. Measured values, where available, have a separate source above.

Dietary compatibility

  • Vegan
    Not established
  • Vegetarian
    Not established
  • Pescatarian
    Not established
  • Keto
    Not established
  • Paleo
    Not established
  • Low-carb
    Not established
  • Halal
    Not established
  • Kosher
    Not established
What these diet assessments mean
Vegan · Not established
The available profile does not establish the full composition or processing for this dietary pattern.
Vegetarian · Not established
The available profile does not establish the full composition or processing for this dietary pattern.
Pescatarian · Not established
The available profile does not establish the full composition or processing for this dietary pattern.
Keto · Not established
A defined serving and sourced carbohydrate data are needed before assessing this dietary pattern.
Paleo · Not established
The ingredient form and processing have not been assessed against this dietary pattern.
Low-carb · Not established
A defined serving and sourced carbohydrate data are needed before assessing this dietary pattern.
Halal · Not established
Sourcing, processing and any applicable certification have not been verified. A food name alone does not establish halal status.
Kosher · Not established
Sourcing, processing and any applicable certification have not been verified. A food name alone does not establish kosher status.

For the plain ingredient · Awaiting review. Diet compatibility is not allergy suitability or halal/kosher certification. Keto and low-carb depend on the portion.

Reviewed ingredient entryIngredient reference · Preparations vary

AI-generated illustration for visual context. It does not identify a particular product or establish allergen content.

Sources & review

Nutrition reference: Thai Food Composition Table, SMILING 2013 — 04050 ↗. Values are scaled from 100 g of the recorded edible form. Individual portions have no assumed fixed weight.

Expanded overview, name examples and nutrition notes are database drafts awaiting editorial review. Numeric nutrition values, where shown, have their own source and food-form reference.

The ingredient description and dish connections come from the draft catalogue and may change after review.

Last recorded verification: .