Oven-Fried Parmesan-Panko Crusted Tilapia

by Erin

Even non-fish lovers will enjoy this oven-fried tilapia. Dressed up just like Chicken Parm with a Parmesan-Panko crust, you may not even be able to tell the difference!

Oven-Fried Panmesan-Panko Crusted Tilapia

Before I talk about this recipe I must add a little commentary about how sad yet excited I am for the finale of How I Met Your Mother tonight. I unfortunately won’t actually be watching it this evening as I have a couple other episodes to catch up on first, but either way cannot believe it is about to be over. It is time for it to end but I will miss it dearly. Now I’ll just have to wait for the boxed set to come out and then rewatch the entire thing!

For Secret Recipe Club this month, I was assigned to Mary Kay’s blog Homemade Cravings. With things such as Tortellini Pizza with Sausage and Alfredo, Cherry Lemonade, and Vanilla Souffle with Chocolate Sauce, I certainly had a fair amount of great recipes to choose from. Oddly enough I ended up picking a fish recipe in spite of my dislike for seafood in general. When I read the post about this tilapia and how all four of her kids enjoyed it despite only recently incorporating fish into the family meals, I knew I had to give it a shot. Mild fish coated in Panko and Parmesan cheese seemed like a safe starting point, and it turned out to be true. This fish-hater could not tell that it was fish. In fact the tilapia itself didn’t taste like much while the crust was the shining star – and Parmesan is delicious! Now if only all fish didn’t taste like fish.

Although I will continue to depend on the cheaper option of chicken most of the time, it’s good to know that I am capable of cooking and enjoying fish for the fish-loving people in my life and not needing to prepare something separate for myself. Thank you Mary Kay for opening my eyes to fish (even if only a sliver). Maybe I’ll get frisky and try another fish recipe such as the Root Beer Battered Fish which sounds like another I would enjoy. I do love root beer!

Three years ago: Orange Beef

OVEN-FRIED PARMESAN-PANKO CRUSTED TILAPIA

Serves 6

Ingredients:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 egg

2 oz. freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

1 cup plain Panko

1-1/2 lb. tilapia or other white flaky fish

Cooking spray

Marinara sauce for serving

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Arrange a wire rack on a large baking sheet; coat rack with cooking spray. Set aside.
  2. Place flour in a shallow bowl and season with salt and pepper. In another shallow bowl add egg and whisk well with a tablespoon of water until smooth. In third shallow bowl combine cheese and Panko.
  3. Dip each fish piece first in flour, then egg and finally Panko-cheese mix, pressing to help breading stick.
  4. Place on prepared baking sheet and lightly coat with cooking spray. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden.
  5. Serve with marinara sauce.

Source: Adapted slightly from Homemade Cravings.


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20 comments

Lighter Recipe Roundup January 4, 2023 - 9:10 am

[…] Oven-Fried Parmesan-Panko Crusted Tilapia […]

Reply
Couscous & Consciousness April 3, 2014 - 1:24 am

This is such a lovely way to prepare fish, and a particularly good way of getting it past a non fish lover. We don’t have tilapia in New Zealand, but I’m assuming it is a very mild flavoured fish.

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spiffycookie April 3, 2014 - 1:15 pm

Yes, very mild! Barely tastes like anything at all which makes it a good candidate for crusts and sauces haha.

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Kirstin April 2, 2014 - 12:51 pm

Yum! looks and sounds amazing.

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Karen @ Karen's Kitchen Stories April 2, 2014 - 12:14 am

Isn’t it funny how the DVR has changed our lives? I posted something the other day about the Good Wife and everyone I know that watches it had it DVR’d and so there was no one to talk about it with. Your tilapia looks delish!

Reply
Rebekah @ Making Miracles April 1, 2014 - 9:01 am

I love tilapia – this looks wonderful!! Great pick this month – thank you for sharing! :)

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Emily @ Life on Food April 1, 2014 - 6:35 am

My mom is obsessed with How I Met Your Mother. For weeks I swear she hasn’t stopped talking about this episode. This dinner looks amazing. Great pick! I would never have made fish like chicken parm.

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Traci March 31, 2014 - 8:36 pm

What a great looking recipe! I love eating fish and this looks like a wonderful recipe to eat it with. great src pick this month

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Melissa March 31, 2014 - 7:14 pm

I am also only just starting to eat fish, so something like this sounds like a no-fail way to start. This looks so delicious! (I can’t believe I just said that about fish!). Great pick this month :)

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Mary Kay @ Homemade Cravings March 31, 2014 - 6:45 pm

Thank you for such a nice write up! I was so excited to see who would have me and what recipe they would pick for my first SRC. Its so awesome that you tried out fish again with this tilapia, I haven’t made it in awhile, think I will add it to next weeks menu – but bake it – so much easier than a frying mess!

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Tara March 31, 2014 - 3:49 pm

I’m not a huge fan of fish, but this definitely makes me want to try it! I don’t have cable so we are waiting to watch HIMYM online tomorrow. I have been trying to tell myself that it would be a nice thing to wait until my husband gets home to watch it.

Reply
Jess @ Flying on Jess Fuel March 31, 2014 - 2:53 pm

I never would have thought to make a “Parm” dish out of fish…. what a great idea! I am always trying to eat more seafood and less meat, so this is a great way to enjoy a comfort food classic!

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Dorothy at Shockingly Delicious March 31, 2014 - 12:30 pm

Wonderful inspiration for the salmon I have in my fridge right now!

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Tracy March 31, 2014 - 12:24 pm

I had parmeson crusted halibut at a seafood restaurant and it was absolutely delicious. I’ve made parmesan crusted pork and now with this recipe and my pork recipe I think I can recreate the halibut.

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whatjessicabakednext March 31, 2014 - 12:00 pm

This looks divine, Erin!

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Bianca @ Confessions of a Chocoholic March 31, 2014 - 11:31 am

What a great idea! I actually haven’t had tilapia in a while. This sounds delicious.

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SallyBR March 31, 2014 - 10:11 am

Very nice take on crusted tilapia – I like to prepare it in the oven, avoiding the frying and messing up the stove… plus I am sure it is less oily this way

wonderful choice for your assignment!

Reply
Sarah E March 31, 2014 - 7:54 am

I’m pretty sure I’m going to bawl my eyes out with the finale of HIMYM. My husband found out some theories as to what’s going to happen and I’m not liking them because they make a great deal of sense :'(

Happy Reveal Day!

Reply
spiffycookie March 31, 2014 - 9:04 am

Oh yea I bet so too. I came up with a theory a few seasons ago that isn’t the happiest either.

Reply
Joanne March 31, 2014 - 7:17 am

Tilapia is definitely one of the blander varieties of fish, but that makes it a clean slate for whatever flavors you want to smother it in! Welcome to the fish world. :P

Reply

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