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.
Penny says
Wow! Served at family dinner and you got thumbs up from everyone. Followed recipe to the T except I didn’t have dried parsley and substituted Italian seasoning. Used shelf parm although fresh would have been amazing I’m sure!
Julia Marple says
Turned out great! I had all of the ingredients on hand. We will have it again. Needed longer to cook in a conventional oven. Thanks.
Matt says
Made this with fresh Parm. Must have been too moist as it did not stick to the fish at all. Not sure what could be done for this to make it stick better. Perhaps using grated parm rather than fresh would produce better results in terms of adhesion?
Alicia says
It did not come out crispy at all, nothing like the picture! But it’s flavorful.
Carolyn Godfrey says
Thank you for this tasty recipe! I didn’t have parsley, so I used Oregano. I also used some cayenne sprinkled over each piece of tilapia. I added garlic powder, because we love garlic and it was delicious!
JuneJ says
This is such a wonderfully flexible recipe. I have also used THAWED fish from Walmart with wonderful results. My husband was die hard grudingly an eater of frozen battered fillets and sticks. I added just a bit of Pablo crumbs to this & he happily ASKS for this now. It can easily handle varying the herbs and come out delicious every time. I have also made it in bigger amounts for groups of the family. Easy, heart healthy & delicious!! Thanks for posting it.
Toots says
This came out super crispy and flaky. It was super easy...The fish cooked perfectly and the fam LOVED it! Definitely a keeper.
Danielle says
This is very delicious, ( especially if my picky daughter) says “they’re the greatest”!!.. it’s our 4th time making them both with a side salad and rolls. Thank you for posting your recipes.
Renea Lee says
I'm sorry, but it was nasty. I couldnt eat it. I bought the tilapia at Walmart. The pieces were individually wrapped in its package.
I followed the instructions. There was no crust and too much paprika.
Marty says
DrDan.
This is the second recipe I’m trying (can’t get enough of your baked filet mignon’s).
What would help me, a beginner trying to cook for my very experienced wife, would be side dish pairing suggestions for each recipe.
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Marty,
Welcome to the blog.
I have done that a bit with special occasion posts like Thanksgiving and other holidays and recipes targeted at those holidays (who really does sweet potato casserole in the summer?).
I'm on an aggressive blog rewrite (about 25% done) and I will try to do better with suggestions. I did put all the veggies, salad and potato recipes all in the "side dish" category that may help some. https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/category/vegetable/
Dan
James says
Good as is ....used smoked paprika instead and added a pinch of cayenne.... awesome dish
JB says
Dr. Dan,
I just found your fabulous website! You describe directions so precisely and easy to read. I made your baked chicken breasts last night and they turned out so yummy delicious. I am going to try this baked fish recipe, however, only have frozen cod in the freezer. I will defrost first, but am wondering if the cod texture will hold up to 425 conventional oven. Please advice.
Thank you!
JB
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi JB,
Welcome to the blog.
Glad you are enjoying it.
The cod should work fine. I have never done this with cod. But if you read the 10-minute rule discussion in the post, you will see that the tilapia is fully or even overcooked a bit to get the crust right. So I would expect the cod to cook well. As you point out, it may be a bit more "fall apart" so handle with care.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Barbara Karr says
Just made and waiting to eat now. So refreshing not to use bread crumbs! Just wonderful. Only ever use fresh parm. That stuff in the can is not real food, smells awful too. Thanks for
the great recipe! Barb
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Barbara,
Sorry for the delayed response.
I do love my fresh parmesan. You are right about breading on fish. I do it a bit but prefer something like this.
Thanks for the note and rating.
Dan
Pam says
Hi. Happened upon your site today looking for a new way to cool tilapia. Great find! Plan to make it for company this week. Can you suggest a light red wine that would go with this? Friend are not white drinkers. Thanks!
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Pam,
Welcome to the blog.
I'm a red wine person normally but with this, we always do a white. I would compromise at a rose but I just don't see a red with this.
Dan
Linda says
What is the equivalent of 400 degrees convection, if you don't have a convection oven?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Linda,
Welcome to the blog.
400 convection or 425 conventional oven. For more discussion on ovens see https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/abbreviations-salts-and-oven-temperature/
Enjoy your fish.
Dan
Mary Beth says
Loved this recipe and the fact that it is very carb friendly without breadcrumbs in the coating. Even my picky toddler and husband loved it! Served it with some roasted broccoli and it was a hit. I will definitely be making this tilapia again!
DrDan says
Hi Mary Beth,
Welcome to the blog.
This is one of my favorite recipes.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Kathy Bailey says
I made it tonight for my family and it was a hit. It was very good. Thanks so much.
Jay Howat says
I’ve always preferred a box grater to any of the other fancy gadgets around. I actually own the Oxo Good Grips standard box grater and have been using it for around 4 years. It still looks as good as new and hasn’t rusted at all (a pet peeve of mine) and whilst it does cost a bit more, it is well worth the investment.