This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my privacy policy.
Tilapia Recipes
I love all kind of fish recipes, for example: baked cod and swai fish.
There are many delicious and easy tilapia recipes you can make at home, for example: baked tilapia.
In this recipe, I will teach you how to bake tilapia fish in an oven with lemon and Parmesan cheese.
You will also learn the cooking tips to make the fish taste good, without the muddy and fishy taste.
Tilapia
Tilapia is one of my favorite white fish.
If you are wondering, tilapia is a real fish and not a processed fish product.
It’s a fresh water fish found in rivers, streams, ponds and lakes, but mostly farmed these days.
It’s packed with protein, non-fatty and low in calories.
When cooked properly, tilapia is flaky, mild tasting and light.
How to Cook Tilapia?
This is probably the most commonly asked question about the fish.
As tilapia fish is mild tasting, cook using ngredients that enhance the flavor and camouflage the potential “muddy” taste, for example: lemon, spices and cheese.
Cooking Tips
Oven baking is the preferred method to bake tilapia.
- Use lemon juice as it gets rid of any potential “fishy” or “muddy” smell.
- Garlic is another ingredient that would remove any potential smell in the fish.
- Use olive oil to keep the fish moist and tender.
- Generous use of salt and ground black pepper to add flavors.
- Cayenne pepper makes the fish mildly spicy and hence add flavors to the fish.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is It Healthy?
Yes, it is very healthy.
The oceans are over-fished, making farm raised tilapia a healthy alternative to its deep-sea counterparts.
How to Pick Good Tilapia?
If you have a fresh seafood market, you should definitely buy live ones.
The fish monger will clean and cut it into fillets for you.
Fresh tilapia has a sweet and fresh taste, without any fishy or foul smell.
If you don’t have live fish options, you can pick a good one by looking at the appearance of the fillet.
It should be firm, with a somewhat translucent flesh but not sticky or slimy to the touch.
The fillets should also be free of white or color spots.
For frozen tilapia, I recommend the ones imported from Indonesia or Mexico. Stay away from those farmed in China.
How Many Calories per Serving?
This tilapia recipe is 285 calories per serving, with only 13 g of fat.
What Dishes to Serve with This Recipe?
This meal is best served with side dishes. For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
For more great recipes like this, sign up for our newsletter. We’ll send daily recipes you’ll love!
Sign up for our newsletter!
Baked Tilapia (The BEST Recipe!)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs. tilapia fillet ( or cod, sole, halibut, etc. (4 fillets))
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- ground black pepper
- 3 dashes cayenne pepper
- 1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
- lemon wedges (for serving)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C).
- Rinse the tilapia fish fillets with cold running water. Pad dry with paper towels. Arrange them in a single layer in a baking dish. Add the olive oil, garlic, salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper and lemon juice.
- Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese evenly on top of the tilapia. Top with chopped parsley.
- Baked the fish in the oven for about 10 minutes, or until the fish is cooked through. Serve immediately with fresh lemon wedges.
Video
Nutrition
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
I used fresh parmigiana. And no salt since the cheese can be salty
I have made this fish several times and everyone love it, they even are surprised that I used Tilapia, they think is a better fish, cause the flavor is so good!
Awesome, please try more recipes on my site, they are all good: https://rasamalaysia.com/recipe-index-gallery/
This is awesome! We absolutely love it and it’s so easy! Perfect 10!
Thanks.
Under the broiler for a few minutes at the end! So good!
I happen to have frozen tilapia. Do I thaw it first, or bake longer? Thanks for the assistance.
Same!
I am going to change the recipe a little. I am on a ‘spice free’ diet. I might add a pinch of the heavy spices. I can’t wait to try this tomorrow. thanks for the recipe.
Very easy, tasty and healthy!
Will be part of my rotation.
Thank you for making healthy taste great!
Thanks.
This is a wonderful recipe! We love it! I wish that the Print option would include just the ingredients and instructions without the photos. Currently, it requires 4 pages of paper to print. Could this be updated for those of us who still like to have a print version? many thanks!
Thanks for trying!
Do a copy of just the recipe (place cursor at beginning and end of recipe), copy to blank page and print.M
This recipe is amazing. My husband loved it and he’s not usually a fan of fish unless it’s fried and breaded. He said it was great. Thanks for the wonderful recipe!!
Awesome!
This recipe is AMAZING. I’ve never enjoyed a piece of Tilapia as much as I did with this recipe. It’s super easy and quick with few ingredients. I opted for vegan parm shreds and some nutritional yeast because we’re dairy-free… it was DELICIOUS. The whole family enjoyed it with asparagus and sweet potato fries, even my 1-year old!
Awesome!
This recipe is perfect! My husband normally doesn’t like tilapia, he thinks it tastes “dirty”. I cut the recipe in half for the two of us and have made it several times, he loves it as much as I do! Yum
Awesome please try more recipes on my site they are all good!
I’ve made this twice and it’s delicious. The first time I only had grated parmesan and the 2nd I had shredded. The shredded definitely makes it better but it’s still good with either. I put it under the broiler for the last couple minutes to get the browning. Ithank you.
This is a great recipe. I give it a 5/5. Or a 10/10. The best. It really is easy and the ingredients and directions are clear and accurate. The only two “time consuming” tasks are pre-heating the oven and chopping the garlic. We are not “fish eaters”, but are working on better nutrition. This recipe is quick, well seasoned, and delicious.
Thanks Elizabeth!! :)
This is a great tilapia recipe. The Parmesan cheese rocks it! To make do used garlic powder instead of fresh Powder works for me so many dried up garlics I never use . The cayenne pepper adds a great kick and taste! Will be using this recipe from now on!
Thanks for trying.