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Christina Holmes
  • Active Time

    15 minutes

  • Total Time

    12 hours plus 45 minutes

“When I was getting married, I couldn’t think of a caterer I wanted to use,” says chef Naomi Pomeroy, Expatriate, Portland, OR, “and I didn’t want to ask my staff.” Her solution? Cook for her guests herself. She went with super-simple chicken, powered by a throw-together marinade.

Ingredients

4 Servings

10

garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

4

serrano chiles, with seeds, thinly sliced

1

3½” piece ginger, peeled, finely grated

1

cup olive oil

½

cup reduced-sodium soy sauce

¼

cup apple cider vinegar

¼

cup sugar

3

tablespoons fish sauce (such as nam pla or nuoc nam)

1

tablespoon kosher salt

2

lemons, sliced, plus wedges for serving

6

sprigs thyme

8

skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs (about 3½ lb.)

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Whisk garlic, chiles, ginger, oil, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, fish sauce, and salt in a medium bowl until sugar and salt dissolve. Add lemon slices and thyme. Place marinade and chicken in a large resealable plastic bag. Turn to coat, and chill at least 12 hours.

    Step 2

    Heat oven to 450°. Remove chicken from marinade, shaking off excess, and place, skin side up, on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast until cooked through and an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thigh registers 165°, 25–30 minutes. Serve chicken with lemon wedges for squeezing over.

    Step 3

    DO AHEAD: Chicken can be marinated 1 day ahead. Keep chilled.

Nutrition Per Serving

Calories (kcal) 1060 Fat (g) 74 Saturated Fat (g) 18 Cholesterol (mg) 510 Carbohydrates (g) 8 Dietary Fiber (g) 0 Total Sugars (g) 5 Protein (g) 87 Sodium (mg) 1610
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Reviews (1231)

Back to TopTriangle
  • This is so delicious and has been a staple in our house for years. We make extra marinade and freeze it to use later. That makes it a quick weeknight meal.

    • marie

    • Tampa, fl

    • 3/16/2024

  • I went and looked in the September issue of 2014 and could not find this anywhere. If someone knows what issue this is actually in please let me know!

    • Logan Clevenhee

    • Ann Arbor, MI

    • 6/30/2023

  • This marinade is so delicious. It has a teriyaki flavor profile. We loved it.

    • Heather

    • Chicago

    • 11/1/2021

  • Delicious!!

    • Julie

    • Baltimore

    • 6/12/2021

  • Just a question. When you are using 3 TBSP of fish sauce, why do you specify low sodium soy? There is nothing more intensely salty (barring salt itself) than fish sauce. So I presume there is something about low sodium soy sauce that is important for another reason. This has always confused me about many of your recipes.

    • Tobie

    • Berkeley, CA

    • 1/25/2021

  • This recipe is an amazing balance of sweet, spicy and savory. For those that are reluctant due to the fish sauce, it isn't as strong of a flavor profile as it may seem. If you're not keen on fish sauce or don't have any around try Worcestershire sauce.

    • CocoaLoco

    • Texas

    • 4/10/2020

  • It’s cool not sure how I feel about the fish sauce flavor Marinade into the chicken . It’s not a bad recipe just not sure it’s for me and my family ...I made this with Parmesan green beans & -a grape tomato salad w olive oil & garlic

    • Jasmin3062

    • Houston

    • 4/8/2020

  • Anthony J it’s salty /sour -anchovies or tamarind or taste it and see if the balance of sweet sour hot salty fresh is right for you

    • Anonymous

    • 3/6/2019

  • great marinade ingredients!

    • hollis5

    • Vero Beach, FL

    • 2/24/2019

  • Is there a substitute that can be used for the fish sauce in the Wedding Chicken recipe?

    • Anthony J

    • N.J.

    • 1/4/2019

  • Delicious!

    • Anonymous

    • Santa Fe

    • 10/28/2017