Description
A quick, healthy, and flavorful weeknight dinner featuring tender cod fillets seared in a rich garlic lemon butter sauce. Ready in under 15 minutes with simple ingredients.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1.5 pounds fresh or thawed frozen cod fillets
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 large cloves fresh garlic, minced
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 cup dry white wine (optional, substitute with chicken broth)
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
- Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Pat cod fillets dry with paper towels and season both sides generously with salt and black pepper.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering.
- Sear cod fillets for 3 minutes undisturbed until golden brown, then flip and cook for 1-2 minutes more. Remove fish from pan and set aside.
- Reduce heat to medium-low. Add butter to the pan and let it melt and foam.
- Add minced garlic and red pepper flakes, stirring constantly for 30 seconds until fragrant but not browned.
- Pour in white wine (or broth) and lemon juice, scraping up browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Simmer for 1 minute.
- Stir in lemon zest and most of the parsley.
- Return cod fillets to the pan, spooning sauce over the top. Warm through for 30 seconds.
- Garnish with remaining parsley and serve immediately.
Notes
[‘Ensure cod is patted completely dry before searing to prevent steaming.’, ‘Do not overcrowd the pan; cook in batches if necessary to maintain a good sear.’, ‘Remove fish when it looks just underdone in the center as it will continue to cook (carryover cooking).’, ‘Use fresh garlic and lemon juice for best flavor; avoid bottled juice.’, ‘If using salted butter, reduce added salt in the recipe.’]
- Prep Time: 2 minutes
- Cook Time: 13 minutes
- Category: Main Course
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 fillet with sauce
- Calories: 375
- Sugar: 1
- Sodium: 400
- Fat: 22
- Saturated Fat: 10
- Carbohydrates: 2
- Protein: 30
Keywords: garlic lemon cod, healthy fish recipe, quick weeknight dinner, easy seafood, gluten-free dinner, low carb meal