Grilling tilapia is healthy, easy, and fast to cook. Add a simple homemade blackening seasoning for spicy fish tacos or a delicious dinner. This easy grilled blackened fish recipe can be adapted to other fish. You can even use Cajan, Creole, or any other seasoning.
🐟Ingredients
Tilapia
Butter
Blackening Seasoning—Paprika, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Dry thyme, Dry oregano, Salt, Black Pepper, Cayenne pepper
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Featured Comment by Douglas:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
"Great recipe! Both my wife and I loved the result. We will be grilling the blackened tilapia recipe again."
It is time to get some healthy fish in your diet with this quick and spicy recipe, which will become one of your favorites.
This tilapia recipe only needs a few minutes of prep and only about 5 minutes on the grill for a delicious low-fat main dish or tacos.
You can use fresh or thoroughly thawed frozen whole tilapia filets. But using other types of fish and seasoning are discussed.
👨🍳How to Grill Blackened Tilapia—Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
1. Preheat the grill to high heat.
2. Make blackening seasoning if using my suggested blackening rub.
3. Rinse and pat dry the tilapia. Brush with melted butter.
4. Coat with blackening, Cajun, Creole, or other seasoning.
5. Load the tilapia in the grill basket, grill pan, or on a preheated griddle.
6. Place the tilapia on a preheated grill. The lid may be open or closed—grill for only 2 minutes.
7. Flip and grill for another 2 minutes. Check the temperature (145°) and color. You may need a few minutes more.
8. Serve immediately; I suggest with Simple Tartar Sauce or making a spicy fish taco.
For more details, keep reading. See the Recipe Card below for complete instructions and to print.
⏰How long to grill fish
While thinner fish, like tilapia, are generally done in a grill basket in about 4-5 minutes, thicker fish may take 6-8 minutes or more.
Cook to good color and a minimum temperature of 145 °. A rough rule is to cook for 10 minutes per inch of thickness.
👨🍳Make it right every time
I cook on a gas grill, although charcoal or pellet grills can also be used.
Grill with no foil to get a nice crispy crust instead of in foil, which is more like steaming fish.
You can use fresh or thawed frozen tilapia. I like to move frozen tilapia to the refrigerator the day before cooking.
The thickness of whole tilapia filets can vary; cooking time will usually be 2-3 minutes per side, but thick filets may take 4 minutes per side.
Try to cook right to 145° for safety, but not much more, or your fish will dry.
🔥Spicing
The basic instructions for grilling fish don't change with the spicing, so you can use any spicing or flavor you want.
My homemade blackening seasoning is economical and easy to adjust. But you can use commercial Cajan, Creole, or blackening seasonings.
To adjust the heat in my homemade blackening seasoning, change the cayenne pepper.
- Slip the cayenne pepper if you want no added heat to the spice mix.
- Use ¼ teaspoon for 3 to 4 out of 10 heat.
- Use ½ teaspoon for 6 to 7 out of 10 heat.
- Use a full teaspoon for 9 to 10 out of 10 heat. I call this "manly man" level.
♨️Grilling tips
If you grill fish frequently, get a grill basket like the one pictured. It supports the fish, making flipping easy and painless. They are cheap and avalible at any big box store.
If you use a grindle, preheat it with the grill since it is heavy and needs a lot of heat. Grill pans will usually heat fast but may prolong cooking time a little.
Since the fish is thin and uses high heat, you can cook with the grill lid open or closed—it does not matter.
Can I grill other fish fish?
Other fish fillets, such as mahi mahi, halibut, cod, or even salmon, can be used and typically cook about the same with an easy thickness adjustment.
Generally, fish will need about 10 minutes per inch of thickness of the fish fillet. Check for a final internal temperature of 145° with an instant-read thermometer.
For more information, please see my discussion of the 10-minute rule for cooking fish.
🐟Fish Recipes
Check out these other great tilapia recipes, like baked parmesan tilapia or lemon butter tilapia. Or for salmon, try Baked Lemon Butter Salmon.
🍽️Serving suggestions
If you make fish tacos, my Pineapple Mango Salsa Recipe is a great compliment
If not making tacos, serve top with homemade tarter sauce and with smashed potatoes, scalloped potatoes, healthy biscuits, Cheddar Bay Biscuits, or cornbread biscuits.
❄️Storing leftovers
Leftover fish is never as good as freshly cooked, but sometimes there are leftovers.
Seal leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate for 4 days. You can freeze leftovers for three months, but they will lose their flavor and texture.
Leftovers may be reheated in the oven at 300° for about 10-15 minutes, lightly covered.
❓FAQs
Tilapia is a healthy, mild white fish commonly farm-raised but can also be caught in the wild. It provides economical, high-quality protein along with some healthier fats. It is available fresh or frozen in most of the world.
Please see my baked blackened tilapia for instructions.
📖 Recipe
Grilled Blackened Tilapia
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Ingredients
- 1 pound Tilapia - fresh or thawed frozen
- 1 tablespoon butter - melted
Blackening Rub-makes enough for 2 pounds
- 3 tablespoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dry thyme
- 1 teaspoon dry oregano
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the grill to high heat. If using a griddle instead of a grill basket, then place it on the grill to preheat.
- Combine 3 tablespoons paprika, one teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon onion powder, one teaspoon black pepper, one teaspoon dry thyme, one teaspoon dry oregano, and ½ teaspoon garlic powder. Also, add cayenne pepper ¼ teaspoon for normal (3/10 heat), ½ teaspoon for spicy (7/10), and one teaspoon for manly man 10/10 heat.
- Rinse and pat dry 1 pound of tilapia.
- Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a microwave—about 15 seconds.
- Brush both sides of tilapia with the melted butter.
- Coat both sides of the tilapia with a generous amount of the rub—you don't need all the rub. Other seasonings may be used instead.
- Spray a flexible grill basket with a generous amount of PAM.
- Load the tilapia in the grill basket. Alternatively, a grill pan will work. if using a griddle, then add a tablespoon or so of vegetable oil to the preheated griddle. Do not use olive oil since it smokes at high temperatures.
- Place the tilapia on preheated grill. The lid may be open or closed—grill for only 2 minutes. Flip and grill another 2 minutes. Check temperature (145°) and color. You may need few minutes or so more.
- While the thinner fish in a grill basket is generally done in about 4-5 minutes total time—thicker fish may take 6-8 minutes—to cook to good color and 145° minimum temperature.
- You can serve immediately or make tacos.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- You may be grilled with the hood open or closed.
- I use ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper here. This was a 7/10 hot. I suspect most people will want ¼ teaspoon, which is a 3-4/10 heat level. The original recipe used a full teaspoon which I did once. It was what I call manly man level of 10/10.
- Store extra seasoning sealed tightly for next time. This is enough for about 2 pounds.
- While the thinner fish in a grill basket is generally done in about 4-5 minutes total time, thicker fish may take 6-8 minutes—cook to good color, and 145° minimum temperature.
- Grilling other fish and seasonings are discussed in the post.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
© 101 Cooking for Two, LLC. All content and photographs are copyright protected by us or our vendors. While we appreciate your sharing our recipes, please realize copying, pasting, or duplicating full recipes to any social media, website, or electronic/printed media is strictly prohibited and a violation of our copyrights.
Originally published May 11, 2013. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Bill says
Your grilled blackened tilapia recipe was very good. Made it for dinner tonight and everyone loved it. I was looking fur other recipes, do you have any for grilled salmon or cod?
DrDan says
Hi Bill, thanks for the comment. I have done some other grilled fish but nothing worth publishing. Now it just might be my taste... from Iowa and all... if it doesn't moo, oink or cluck you don't eat it... I will keep trying.
Dan
Tami says
Thank you for sharing your recipe. My husband and I made this and it is the best blackened seasoning recipe we have ever eaten. The fish was so moist. Our grill only got up to 500 but it still worked perfectly. We will definitely eat our tilapia this way from now on.
James says
Can you do the same thing with salmon
DrDan says
Yes to the spice but no to the technique. I haven't grill salmon this way.
DrDan
RONALDO says
Congratulations, magnific fish.
Phil says
We tried this recipe this past Sunday and enjoyed it so much we repeated it on Monday.The baskets make this process effortless.Our filets were smaller but it still worked fine.Coming from someone who isn't a real fish lover.....this made a real delicious difference.Many Thanks!
Colton says
Is it possible to use olive oil or melt coconut oil, instead of butter, to brush the fish with? Or does that completely change the flavor and/or the way the fish cooks?
DrDan says
Any of them should work. The butter will firm up after applied and hold the spices well. There should be minimal effect on taste. Just handle them gently to keep the spice on.
DrDan
Rick says
You would probably not want to use olive oil past it's smoke point or beyond 365-410 degrees. At high temperatures the oil will tend to break down.
Sheryl says
I made this tonight. Used 1/8 tsp cayenne (plenty hot for us), smoked paprika, and kosher salt. Hubs is still picking at the leftovers instead of eating his usual bowl of ice cream. We all loved it!
Sheryl says
Forgot to mention - I cooked it in my Cuisinart Griller machine - took 2 to 2.5 minutes total, since both sides cook at the same time. Easy!
DrDan says
Thanks for the notes and comments. Glad it worked well for you.
DrDan
Douglas Evans says
Great recipe! Both my wife and I loved the result. We will be grilling the blackened tilapia reccipe again.
Thanks for the suggestion.
DrDan says
I do love this recipe.
Thanks for the note and rating.
DrDan
Steve says
I cooked mine for 3 mins per side since my grill would not close with the grill basket handle sticking out and they were perfect!
It's easy to use more Cayenne Pepper than needed. Used Mango Chutney on top and was wonderful!
Lisa says
Made these this weekend and there was nearly a fight to get the last bits. They are so amazing. I bought the weber fish grill basket as I have a gas grill and didn't want to deal with a wooden handle, worth every penny. I made this to be the fish in fish tacos and I have to share the sauce which complements the fish so completely!
½ cup mayonnaise
½ cup sour cream
1 tbsp sriracha sauce
1 garlic clove
1 t cumin
1/2 t chili powder
½ lime (juiced)
fresh salsa with cilantro
add shredded cabbage and OMG! Thanks so much!!!
Lisa says
Forgot to mention to everyone that I was able to coat 2 lbs of fish and had 1/3-1/2 of the blackening left. Also, next time I will lay all the fish on the basket and brush with butter and sprinkle with seasoning, flip and do the other side, to save time.
DrDan says
I do go a little heavy on the spice...
Dan
DrDan says
Great looking sauce. They are very tasty and your sauce looks like a great match.
Thanks for the comments.
DrDan
Jane says
We cooked it for 2 minutes per side and did not cook through on 700 on our grill :/
DrDan says
Humm... there are not many variables here. As long as the fish is fully thawed and the grill very hot, it seems to always work. The only variables would be thickness of the fish and perhaps an errant thermometer. Sorry it didn't work for you
DrDan
Carla says
AWESOME!!! So flavorful and spicy. Loved it!! Will be making again (and again and again)... Thank you!!
DrDan says
I do love this recipe. With summer here, I need to do it over and over also.
Thanks for the comment
DrDan
Unknown says
This is the best fish I have ever eaten.
Dan Mikesell says
I always like a good toy and a cheap toy like this grill basket is just fun. I think Home Depot owes me something...
The photos are my way of "telling the story" of a recipe. I'm trying to get people to say "I can do that". I'm a complete left brain guy so they are not artistic just functional.
Marc says
Is the big T table spoon and the little t teaspoon? Thanks looks so good
DrDan says
Yep. Old abbreviations. I spell them out now but didn't before and there are to many recipes to go back and edit. I cover it in the FAQ's but it does seem to confuse people.
rhfromfl says
Absolutely GREAT photographs. I'll be making this for dinner this evening (but not before I go out to purchase the Brinkmann grilling basket). Thanks for sharing!!!
Mythreyi says
Looks wonderful and delicious... Looks like the Grill Gadget is handy esp for Fish with out making it apart...
-Mythreyi
Yum! Yum! Yum!