Fish Sauce Roasted Chicken

Deliciously savory, a little bit sweet and spicy, this delectable fish sauce roasted chicken will have you licking your fingers and asking for more! 

Many years ago, back in my early days of blogging, I “met” a fellow expat who lived in Japan, then moved to Shanghai. I loved reading Nancy’s posts as she explored her new neighborhood and found seasonal produce to eat and dishes to recreate. 

She shared her version of this fish sauce roasted chicken which came from Australian chef and cookbook author Adam Liaw’s Asian After Work. After I made it once, I was determined to find myself a copy of that cookbook since Nancy said it was great! 

I saved the search on various used bookselling sites back in 2014 or 2015. Occasionally I got emails that a copy was available but always for some ridiculously high price and usually with shipping from Australia, which was also crazy high. But 2024 was finally THE YEAR. And I now have the wonderful Asian After Work! So I figured it was time to share my version. 

Fish Sauce Roasted Chicken 

Adam Liaw calls for a whole cilantro plant in his recipe, using even the roots which is common in many Asian recipes. Unfortunately, most of us can’t find whole plants with roots in our supermarkets so we have make do with just the stems and leaves. Still delicious! 

Ingredients

For roasting the chicken:

2.2 lbs or 1kg chicken thighs, trimmed of excess fat 

1 onion, peeled and cut into slices

For the marinade:

1/3 cup or 80ml fish sauce (I like Squid brand, if you can find it.)

1 small bunch cilantro, stems and all, chopped, plus extra for garnish

1 clove garlic, sliced

2 tablespoons sugar

3 birdseye chili peppers, finely sliced

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Method

Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C on the fan-forced setting or 375°F or 190°C if you don’t have a convection oven.

 

In a roasting pan, mix all of the marinade ingredients together, and stir well to dissolve the sugar. 

Add the chicken thighs to the roasting pan and spoon the marinade over turning them to coat. 

Tuck the sliced onion under the thighs and roast in the preheated oven, skin side up. 

Roast for 40 minutes, basting every 10-15 minutes. 

Remove the chicken when the skin is sticky and dark and the meat is cooked through. Garnish with a little chopped cilantro. 

Serve in a puddle of sauce with the onions. 

Enjoy!

Welcome to the 6th edition of Alphabet Challenge 2025, brought to you by the letter F. Many thanks to Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm for organizing and creating the challenge. Check out all the F recipes below:

• Jolene’s Recipe Journal: French Onion Soup 
• Blogghetti: Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas 
• Karen’s Kitchen Stories: Fluffy Focaccia with Garlic Oil and Herbes de Provence 
• Sneha’s Recipe: Firni/Phirni 
• Food Lust People Love: Fish Sauce Roasted Chicken 
• Mayuri’s Jikoni: Fattoush Salad 
• A Messy Kitchen: Fennel, Tangerine & Olive Slaw 
• A Day in the Life on the Farm: Roasted Vegetable Farro Bowl 
• Culinary Cam: Fig Leaf-Wrapped Cheese 
• Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice: Sausage Meatballs with Vodka Fennel Sauce

Here are my posts for the 2025 alphabet challenge, thus far:

A: Roasted Asparagus Soup

B: Blistered Sugar Snap Peas

C. Jersey Royal Chicken Chorizo Traybake 

D. Small Batch Dried Apricot Jam 

E. Whipped Espresso Cream 

F. Fish Sauce Roasted Chicken – this post!

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Norwegian Crispbread aka Knekkebrød #BreadBakers

Made with whole seeds and oats, Norwegian Crispbread aka Knekkebrød has a lovely nutty flavor with a bit more richness than the Finnish and Swedish versions.

And while Swedish and Finnish crispbread is traditionally round, with a hole in the middle for hanging, Norwegian crispbread is usually rectangular-shaped which seemed like a much easier thing to make!

What they all have in common is rye flour, which happens to be the main ingredient for this month’s Bread Baker’s theme. I used a dark rye. 

Norwegian Crispbread aka Knekkebrød

You can serve these plain or spread with butter. They are delicious topped with cheese, jam or chutney. 

Ingredients

1 cup or 135g rye flour

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon baking powder

¼ cup or 28g rolled oats

¼ cup or 32g pumpkin seeds

¼ cup or 34g sesame seeds

2 tablespoons golden flaxseeds

3 tablespoons olive oil

⅓ cup water or a little more if needed

Method

Preheat your oven to 400° or 200°C. 

Put all the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix them together well so that all the ingredients are evenly distributed.

Add the oil and water and combine well. 

It will be somewhat crumbly but if you take some and can press it into a firm ball that holds together, that’s probably enough water. 

If it’s too crumbly to stick together, add just a little more water, mixing well, until it does.  

Turn the mixture out onto a silicone mat or a piece of baking parchment the size of a half sheet pan (18 x 13 in or 46 x 33cm) and press the dough out to flatten it a little. 

Use a rolling pin to press it flat, pushing the sides in with your fingers to shape it into a rectangle.

My dough didn’t stick to the rolling pin but if yours does, you can use a second piece of baking parchment or cling film on top. 

Transfer the silicone mat or parchment to the baking pan. Score the top of the dough to make rectangles where you want to cut the crispbread into pieces.

Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for around 20-23 minutes until the top is dry and firm and the edges are just starting to become darker.

Leave them to cool a minute or two then cut along the score lines to break the crispbread into the rectangles. 

Because of all the seeds, you might be left with a small pile of seedy crumbs on the cutting board once you plate up the crispbread. These are the baker’s treat! 

Enjoy! 

It’s the second Tuesday of the month so that means it’s time for my Bread Baker friends to share their bakes. Many thanks to our host, Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Cam who asked up to explore the world of rye by making rye or pumpernickel recipes. Check out the link list below.

• Connie's Swedish Rye by Culinary Cam
• Marbled Rye Bread by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• New York Jewish Deli Rye by A Messy Kitchen
• Norwegian Crispbread aka Knekkebrød by Food Lust People Love
• Pumpernickel Rolls by Sneha's Recipe
• Swiss Onion Rye Batard by A Day in the Life on the Farm

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

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Fresh Tuna Meatballs with Creamy Avocado Dip

These fresh tuna meatballs are easy to make, delicious and healthy! Serve them with the creamy avocado dip for an extra special appetizer. 

While I love canned tuna fish, it is a completely different ingredient from fresh tuna steaks. Fresh tuna shouldn’t smell fishy at all. Like all fresh fish, it should have a nice clean smell and a nice clean taste. If you aren’t a fan of the canned stuff, consider giving fresh tuna a chance. 

If you are willing, look for bright pink flesh and choose the tuna steak with the least amount of white filaments running through it. Sushi grade tuna has none or almost none but who can find/afford that? 

We have a couple of ways we like eating fresh tuna. Most often, we like it sliced relatively thinly as sashimi. (Pop it in the freezer till it's almost firm and easier to slice.) A little wasabi and soy sauce for dipping purposes is all you need to make that fresh tuna a meal. But it’s also great packed with spices and seared on the outside, still a lovely pink on the inside. I serve it on a bed of greens. Delightful. 

The third way is in meatballs! 

Fresh Tuna Meatballs with Creamy Avocado Dip

These are really meaty so you can simmer them in a rich tomato sauce after baking to serve over pasta but they also make a great appetizer as below. This makes about 20 meatballs. 

Ingredients

For the fresh tuna meatballs:

1 1/4 lb or 560 fresh tuna fillets

1 large egg

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

½ teaspoon fine sea salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Zest 1 lemon

Olive oil for brushing on the meatballs before baking

For the creamy avocado sauce:

1 ripe avocado

1 clove garlic

2 tablespoons Greek yogurt

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Water (to thin, if needed)

Method

Preheat your oven to 400°F or 200°C and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone liner. 

Cut the tuna into small chunks.

In a food processor, pulse about 2/3 of the tuna along with the egg, minced garlic, parsley, Dijon mustard, salt, pepper, and lemon zest until the tuna is finely chopped but not pureed.

Add in the reserved tuna and pulse again briefly.

You want to have some nice pink bits still showing. 

Take about 1 tablespoon of the mixture and form it into a patty.

 Pan fry until just cooked through and taste it for salt and pepper. 

Add more and mix through thoroughly, if needed. 

With damp hands, form the mixture into small meatballs (about 1 inch in diameter) and place them on the prepared baking sheet. I use a small scoop to measure them out, then use my damp hands to roll them in to smoother balls. Brush with a little olive oil. 

Bake in your preheated oven for about 10-12 minutes, or until cooked through and slightly golden on the outside. You can use the broiler to add a little extra color if you’d like but you don’t want to overcook them or the tuna meatballs can become dry. 

While the meatballs are baking, combine the avocado, garlic, Greek yogurt, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a food processor. 

Blend until smooth. Add water a little at a time to reach your desired dipping consistency.

Serve the baked fresh tuna meatballs with the creamy avocado dip and some toothpicks to facilitate dipping. 

Enjoy! 

It’s Sunday FunDay and today we are all sharing meatball recipes. Many thanks to our host, Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm. Check out our WELL-ROUNDED (get it? I do crack myself up) list below.

• Amy's Cooking Adventures: Bacon Cheeseburger Stuffed Meatballs 
• Karen's Kitchen Stories: Coconut-Ginger Turkey Meatballs 
• Food Lust People Love: Fresh Tuna Meatballs with Creamy Avocado Dip 
• Sneha's Recipe: Keto Pan Fried Pork Meatballs 
• A Day in the Life on the Farm: Swedish Meatballs 
• Culinary Cam: Zuppa Maritata, a Misinterpreted Italian Wedding Soup 

 

We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.

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 with Creamy Avocado Dip!

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