Are you looking for a delicious and easy dinner recipe? This Parmesan-crusted tilapia recipe has a crispy Parmesan coating flavored with paprika on a tender and flakey fish fillet.
An easy weeknight recipe that takes only 20 minutes to prep and bake in the oven. It uses fresh or thawed frozen tilapia fillets.
🐟Ingredients
Tilapia—fresh or thawed frozen fillets
Olive oil—or butter
Parmesan cheese—grated, fresh is preferred.
Pantry ingredients—paprika, parsley, salt, black pepper
Optional—Panko breadcrumbs, other herbs and spices
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Featured Comment from Sue :
"This recipe is amazing! I've made it several times using 3 different kinds of fish."
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I find stovetop frying a pain, as I have to stand there and deal with the splatter. So, I will not pan-fry tilapia or other fish; I will oven-bake or grill every time.
This tilapia recipe has become a standard in our home. It's an excellent fit for any gluten-free or low-carb diet. It also fits healthy and low-calorie diets.
Check out these other easy tilapia recipes, like Baked Blackened Tilapia, Grilled Blackened Tilapia, or lemon butter tilapia. And don't miss my Baked Lemon Butter Salmon.
👨🍳How to Bake Parmesan Crusted Tilapia—Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
1. If frozen, thaw the tilapia completely. Wash and pat dry the tilapia fillets.
2. Prepare a baking tray with a coat of oil or PAM cooking spray.
3. Grate Parmesan if needed.
4. Mix Parmesan cheese, paprika, parsley, salt, and black pepper in a shallow pan. Optional—use Panko breadcrumbs for half the Parmesan.
5. Brush tilapia with oil or melted butter and dredge in the Parmesan mixture.
6. Bake in a preheated 400° convection oven for 10-12 minutes until flaky.
For more details, keep reading. See the Recipe Card below for complete instructions and to print.
⏰How long to cook tilapia in the oven?
It will turn very nice brown and take 10-12 minutes. If you check, the fish will also be flakey. If you are unsure, the internal temperature should be 145°plus.
Options and variations
Sweet paprika is commonly used, but try hot or smoked paprika for a different flavor. Try other spice mixes like lemon pepper, Old Bay, or cajan seasoning. Try some thyme, basil, oregano, or other herbs or spices you love—I frequently add a touch of garlic powder and cayenne pepper.
Change the Parmesan cheese to a mixture of half Parmesan and half Panko breadcrumbs for a breadier texture.
For a buttery flavor, replace brushing the fillets with oil and use melted butter instead.
Using cod, salmon, or other fish
This recipe can be used to make Parmesan-crusted cod, salmon, or haddock. The cooking time should be the same as long as the fillet thickness is under 1 inch.
Other firm white fish may be used, but if the fish is thicker, please see the 10-Minute Rule for Cooking Any Fish.
🍽️What to serve with tilapia?
Serve tilapia with a lemon slice or tartar sauce. For side dishes, try a fresh salad or a hot vegetable, like roasted asparagus, roasted cauliflower, or bacon-baked green beans.
Add a starch, such as Parmesan Baked Potatoes, baked rice, baked French fries, or roasted red potatoes. Then, round it out with bread, like healthy biscuits, Cheddar Bay Biscuits, or cornmeal biscuits.
Storage of leftovers
This dish is much better served fresh. The coating will not be as crispy and may fall off. But you can store leftovers by carefully sealing them in foil for 3 days. Then, to reheat, open the top of the foil completely and reheat in a 350° oven or air fryer.
❓FAQs
Yes, frozen is fine if fully thawed. Thaw frozen fish in the refrigerator overnight.
Yes, an air fryer is a small convection oven. But the fillets need to be cooked in a single layer and should not be crowded. Preheat to 400°. Flip after cooking 4 minutes. They will cook faster, so start checking at 6-7 minutes.
You need a good Parmesan since so much of the flavor is the cheese—quality matters.
I use a wedge of Parmigiano-Reggiano and shred or grate as needed. I use lots of Parmesan, which will last me at least six months.
First, be sure to dry your fish entirely before coating.
Second, thoroughly preheat the oven before cooking, and do not cook at a lower temperature.
Third, do not overcook. If thinner fillets, use a temperature of 140° and an instant-read thermometer to get it right.
Follow the instructions about mushy fish, dry thoroughly, use a preheated oven, and cook at the recommended temperature.
However, due to the structure of the oven, some will not brown as well as others. Then, turn on the broiler for a minute or two.
🐟What is Tilapia?
Wild tilapia are usually freshwater fish inhabiting shallow streams, ponds, rivers, and lakes. Although native to Africa and the Middle East, they've been distributed worldwide and farmed almost everywhere.
Tilapia is frequently called "the chicken of fish" due to its mild taste and ease of mass production on farms.
While you can attack any farm-raised fish for the method, the facts still support farm-raised tilapia fillets as a good source of low-fat quality protein. Tilapia is lower in omega-3 than some other wild fish but lower in mercury.
📖 Recipe
Parmesan Crusted Tilapia
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Ingredients
- 1 pound Tilapia, fresh or thawed frozen - 4 fillets
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese - grated fresh if possible
- 1 tablespoon olive oil - or melted butter
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ cup Optional Panko breadcrumbs - to replace half the Parmesan
Instructions
- If frozen, thaw the tilapia completely. Wash and pat dry the tilapia fillets. Preheat the oven to 400° convection. A 425° conventional oven may be used.
- Prepare a baking tray with a coat of oil or PAM cooking spray. Use aluminum foil for easier cleanup.
- Grate Parmesan if needed.
- Mix Parmesan cheese, paprika, parsley, salt, and black pepper in a shallow pan. Optionally, you may replace half the Parmesan with Panko breadcrumbs.
- Brush tilapia fillets with oil or melted butter on both sides and then dredge in the Parmesan mixture, patting the coating on. Place on the baking sheet. Take some of the remaining Parmesan mixture and pat it on top of the already-coated fish.
- Bake for about 10-12 minutes until flaky and an internal temperature of 145°.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- Be sure to dry the tilapia well with paper towels before coating.
- Air fryer discussion is in the FAQs of the post.
- The quality of the Parmesan cheese matters a lot in this recipe.
- I like to add a little extra topping just before going into the oven.
- If unsure, fish is done at 145° internal temperature in the thickest part.
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
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This fast recipe is a modification of a Rachel Ray recipe that's easy for a weeknight dinner but with weekend eloquence.
Editor's Note: Originally Published on December 18, 2010, the blog's first year. The blog has grown 1000X since that time. Now updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Sallie says
Made this tonight and my husband and I loved it. Mine didn't get brown like in the picture, how do you get it to brown more without over cooking
DrDan says
Hi Sallie,
No real secret on the browning. The foil helps by reflecting so shiny side up. And one of my two convection ovens seems to brown better. They run at exactly the same temp (checked with an oven thermometer) but I think the Kitchenaid has more fan movement with the convection than the Jenn-Air.
You could "cheat" and do the last couple of minutes with the broiler.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Marti says
Made this today it came out great! Added some panko bread crumbs, garlic, and lemon pepper!
Yolamda says
Made it today it was so easy amd even my picky 3 1/2 yr old loved it. Best of all its not breaded or fried. Highly recommend making it and defenetly adding this to my cooking often recipe. Thankyou so much
Heather says
You are saying preheat oven to 400 degrees convection . I do not have a convection oven
Unfortunately we have a gas oven because it came with the house. So what would be the
temperature to preheat a gas or
Electric oven ( for those who have one)
Can these ingredients work for any type
Of edible fish that I want to bake?
Please let me know by e-mailing me at
DrDan says
Hi Heather,
First, the temperature for the non-convection oven is generally 25 degrees higher. Gas vs Electric shouldn't matter. See https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/oven-temperatures-abbreviations/ for more details.
Next about there fish. In a different recipe https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/oven-baked-blackened-tilapia/ I discuss the 10 minute rule about cooking fish which should answer those questions.
I emailed this reply but I have removed your email address from the comment for your privacy.
Dan
Ethel says
In the oven right now. Made some creamy coleslaw and baked fries to go with it. Thanks for the recipe.
DrDan says
Hi Ethel,
It is a nice fish.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Derek says
Awesome dish. I added a little cayenne pepper and garlic then did half regular half smoked paprika and it really enhanced the flavor.
Barbara Karr says
This was so easy!!! Do you have other fish recipes? The reason I don't eat more fish is that I don't know how to cook it. This was Excellent. Made it for me. Didn't even use the expensive parm. (Need to get some) Used real parmesan though. More fish recipes if you have them PLEASE. I have MS and need to eat healthier. Thanks for a great dinner!
DrDan says
Hi Barbara,
Check the fish category, that is all I have for now. I grew up in Iowa so fish was not the most common dish. I have been experimenting this summer but have not had results I love. Recipes others sware by just don't work well for me. I guess I'm too dense. But I will keep trying.
Dan
Pamela Gail says
Definitley trying this Tonight! Im a huge Fanatic about Fish. Love it! Did Yall know that Talapia is alao referred to as The JESUS Fish? Yes..how Marelous!
DrDan says
Thanks for the note. I hope you enjoyed it.
Dan
Sue says
5 Stars! This recipe is amazing! I've made it several times using 3 different kinds of fish. So far flounder is my favorite. It's so simple and so flavorful. Paprika happens to be one of my favorite spices. I was happy to find that you can buy parmesan cheese that's already grated. It's so much better than the powdered parmesan cheese. Thank you so much for sharing this fabulous recipe.
Cynthia Evans says
This is one of our favorite recipes! 5 Stars!
Cynthia Evans says
I've made this several times. It's one of our favorite tilapia recipes. 5 Stars!!
Teri says
Made this last night. It was easy and very good. I did have to cook it about twice as long but that may be my convection oven. Thank you for the recipe!
halfadime7 says
Thank you, Dr. Dan, for bringing seafood back to our attention. It's a very healthy and tasty way to improve our diets and hearts. You ROCK!
DrDan says
Hi halfadime7, I know you would like it. Thanks for the note.
Dan
Mar.ms says
Amazing! I was just wishing for some crispy fish while driving home but had to make do with a salad and leftover chicken for supper. '
This. Tomorrow.
Oh the PUPPYISH. They look so huggable.
Kelly says
I loveed this recipe. Thanks so much. :)
Trees Mills says
Made it for dinner tonight - it was a hit! My husband said he could eat it every night. Will definitely make again. Maybe next time try on parchment paper so I don't lose the yummy coating that stuck to the aluminum foil.