I love fried fish! I am always down for some fish and chips or fried catfish but we wanted to find a dish that was healthier so we have for you a baked version of our favorite comfort food! This was our first attempt at it and we nailed it! It was so delicious that my mouth is watering right now just thinking about it. So, if we can nail it the first time around then you will get it perfect too! It’s that easy! The best thing about this dish was that it only took 15 minutes to bake! It is perfect for your busy schedule because it is fast, easy, and you literally can’t go wrong with this one! This is not a dish you have to experiment with and you can rest easy knowing you conquered a healthy dish that is reminiscent of that beloved comfort food! In this recipe we used tilapia because it was on sale at our local grocery store but you can use it with any fish you choose. I hope you enjoy!
Let’s start things off by preheating the oven to 400°F. While that is warming up, we need to marinade the fish. In a medium sized mixing bowl mix together the olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Take your fish fillets and drop them straight into the bowl, cover completely with the oil mixture and set aside marinade for 20 minutes.
While you are letting your fish marinade, you can work on the breading! In a shallow dish combine the parmesan cheese, panko crumbs, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, paprika, red pepper flakes and parsley flakes. Mix all those ingredients together; I chose to put mine into a large, shallow Tupperware dish so I could put the lid on and shake all the ingredients together. It’s faster and way easier than trying to mix it all with a spoon.
Once your fish has marinaded, take one filet and press it onto the breading. Flip it over and press it into the breading on that side. Use your hand to rub breading on any spots that didn’t get enough on it and sprinkle a little on top, just for good measure. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spray it down with cooking spray. Place the breaded fillets on the greased sheet at least 2 inches apart.
By now the oven should be to temperature. Place the sheet with the fish on the middle rack of the oven and let bake for 15-20 minutes. The breading should be golden brown all over with just a little extra browning on the fringes of the fish. Cut open a part of the fish; if it is the same color of white all the way through, then you have cooked the perfect fish! Serve it up and tell everyone you’re welcome because they owe you some thanks!
Italian Herb Crusted Tilapia
Ingredients
- 2 Tilapia Fillets
- 1/2 cup Olive Oil
- 1 Tbsp Lemon Juice
- 1/2 Tsp Salt
- 1/2 Tsp Pepper
- 3/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
- 3/4 cup Panko Bread Crumbs
- 2 Tsp Italian Seasoning
- 1 Tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 Tsp Paprika
- 1 Tsp Crushed Red Pepper
- 1/2 Tsp Parsley dried
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F
- In a medium size mixing bowl mix together olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Place tilapia fillets in the mixture and cover completely; set aside to marinade for 20.
- In a shallow dish combine parmesan cheese, panko crumbs, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, paprika, red pepper flakes and parsley. Mix together completely.
- Take marinaded fillet and press firmly into breading mix. Flip over and press into breading on other side. Use hand to cover any missing spots with breading.
- Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray. Place fillets on sheet, 2 inches apart.
- Place sheet in oven on middle rack and bake for 20 minutes.
