Basilic thaï

Coconut fat dissolves estragole and holds it through the simmer.

Rot-funk needs a green lid. This is the lid.

Capsaicin burns, anise cools. Same mouthful, two directions.

Thrown in raw at the end so the broth heat blooms it.

Acid re-sharpens the leaf after it has wilted into the pan.

Spongy aubergine soaks up curry; basil goes on top, uncooked.

Anise leaf wilts on contact with hot rice and releases everything.

Anise-basil against tropical acid: the standard Thai fruit-curry move, not a garnish.

Pine against liquorice. Neither backs down, both stay legible.

Brine plus anise; the shellfish liquor becomes the sauce.

Estragole under anethole: isomers one double bond apart, one green, one warm.

Botanical on botanical. Muddle it and the juniper reads Thai.

Berry esters and estragole share a lane nobody has bothered driving.