Salt-Crusted Whole Tilapia with Lemongrass — Pla Pao Glua
An Isaan salt-crusted whole tilapia stuffed with lemongrass, kaffir lime, and pandan, packed in a thick salt shell and roasted over flame until the flesh steams to perfect doneness, plated with sticky rice and a fiery seafood dipping sauce.
Thai
Categories
Nutrition per Serving
Ingredients
For 2 servings
Instructions
Prep
Pat both tilapia dry. Bruise lemongrass stalks and pandan leaves; slice ginger into 5mm rounds. Tie pandan into knots. Pound bird chillies, garlic, and remaining lime leaves into a coarse paste. Whisk paste with lime juice, fish sauce, and palm sugar into a dip.
Stuff
Pack each tilapia cavity tightly with bruised lemongrass, knotted pandan, ginger, and lime leaves. Wrap head and tail of each fish in foil to prevent over-charring.
Build
Mix coarse sea salt with 100ml water off heat 30 seconds to a damp snow consistency. Press firmly all over each fish into a 1cm crust, covering everything except foil. You may need two trays or work with one fish at a time.
Roast
Heat oven to 220C. Lay salt-crusted fish on parchment-lined trays and roast 35–40 minutes until the salt crust turns pale yellow-brown and a skewer through the thickest part comes out hot.
Rest
Lift trays onto trivets and rest the fish in their salt crust 5 minutes off heat for residual warmth to finish cooking the flesh and redistribute juices.
Crack and plate
Break open the salt crust on each fish with a heavy knife to reveal steamed white flesh. Lift portions onto plates alongside sticky rice and serve the dipping sauce in a bowl.
Recipes use AI and Edamam. Always check for allergens before cooking. Spotted something wrong—email us at hello@grubplanit.com.