Whole Roasted Eel Recipe

A Japanese Classic, From-Scratch

By
Chichi Wang
Chichi Wang: Contributing Writer at Serious Eats
Chichi Wang

Chichi Wang wrote a variety of columns for Serious Eats including The Butcher's Cuts, in addition to other stories. Born in Shanghai and raised in New Mexico, Chichi took her degree in philosophy but decided that writing about food would be more fun than writing about Plato.

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Updated March 20, 2025
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Recipe Details

Whole Roasted Eel Recipe

Prep 15 mins
Cook 25 mins
Active 10 mins
Total 40 mins
Serves 2 servings
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Ingredients

  • 1 whole eel, gutted and cleaned

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • 3 tablespoons oil for basting

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 375 F. Once eel has been cleaned of residual blood, pat the eel dry on the inside and out. Rub salt all over the eel. Place the eel into a pan or cast iron skillet and generously drizzle with oil.

  2. Roast until the skin is crispy and browned and the meat is tender, 25 to 30 minutes. Serve immediately with lemon, salt and pepper, or your choice of sauce.

Special equipment

Roasting pan

This Recipe Appears In

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
561 Calories
45g Fat
0g Carbs
38g Protein
×
Nutrition Facts
Servings: 2
Amount per serving
Calories 561
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 45g 57%
Saturated Fat 6g 31%
Cholesterol 256mg 85%
Sodium 1161mg 50%
Total Carbohydrate 0g 0%
Dietary Fiber 0g 0%
Total Sugars 0g
Protein 38g
Vitamin C 3mg 14%
Calcium 42mg 3%
Iron 1mg 6%
Potassium 555mg 12%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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