Breaded Tilapia with Garlic and Parmesan

Tilapia is mainly a fresh water fish that is lean, flakey when cooked and has a very light muddy taste. To get rid of the potential muddy and fishy smell, I added lemon and various spices in this recipe.

Breaded tilapia is the most requested dish in our household as a weekend meal. Most of the fish menus I make are usually baked but for this kind of fish, I decided to fry it. Frying maybe not the healthiest option for a cooking process but as long as you do not eat this everyday, I think you will be fine.

I usually pair the dish with baked potatoes, roasted asparagus and cherry tomatoes. Left over breaded tilapia is great for fish sandwiches as well. It also tastes great with a homemade tartar sauce to go with it!

 

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cooking Time: 10 minutes

Serves: 4

 

Ingredients:

       Breading mix

• 2 tbsp. parmesan cheese – grated
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 tbsp. fresh parsley – finely chopped
• 1 tsp. Cayenne powder
• 1 tsp. paprika powder
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• ½ cup plain bread crumbs
• ½ tsp. ground black pepper

     Coating Mix

• 2 eggs – beaten
• 1/3 cup flour

 

• 1/3 cup cooking oil- for frying

     For fish marinade:

• 2 tbsp. fresh lemon – juiced
• ½ tsp. ground black pepper
• 2 cloves fresh garlic – finely chopped

 

Instructions

     To marinade:

1. Wash the fish thoroughly. Pat to dry using paper towel or kitchen towel.
2. Finely chop the fresh garlic. Set aside.
3. Put the tilapia in a shallow dish. Add lemon juice, ground black pepper and minced garlic. (Make sure all the fillets are covered with the marinade ingredients) Marinade for 20 minutes covered.

      Breading mix:

1. In a separate wide shallow dish, combine bread crumbs, grated parmesan cheese, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, paprika, garlic powder, ground black pepper, salt and finely chopped parsley.

Preparation:

1. Arrange in a line three wide shallow dishes. Put the flour in first, beaten eggs in second and breading mix in third.

2. Working with one fillet at a time, cover it with flour and shake off the excess. Then, dip the fillet in the egg and coat it with the breading mix.

           Note: In this recipe, I cut the fillet in half.

3. Set aside each fillet on a plate as you complete the dredging process.

4. Heat the cooking oil over medium in a wok or any ¼ deep inch skillets.

5. Fry tilapia fillet about 2 minutes each side depending on how thick the fish is

or until it looks crispy and golden brown.

6. Let fillet cool for a minute on a plate with a paper towel to allow excess oil to bead off.

7. Put on your serving plate, squeeze some fresh lemon on top. Serve immediately and enjoy!