Crispy Baked Cod with Tartar Sauce
Crispy Baked Fish
Yield: 4
Ingredients
- Homemade tartar sauce
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- ½ cup panko bread crumbs
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing
- 4 (6-ounce) thick white fish fillets, such as halibut or cod (skin on or off)
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 400 degrees and set a rack in the upper part. In a small bowl, stir together the panko and olive oil; season with salt and pepper.
- Pat the fish dry on all sides and season lightly all over with salt and pepper. Transfer to a lightly greased or foil-lined sheet pan. Coat the top with a thin layer of the tartar sauce (a scant tablespoon per fillet). Sprinkle the panko evenly on top (about 2 tablespoons per fillet), pressing gently to adhere.
- Bake the fish on the top rack until almost cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes for fillets between ½- and ¾-inch-thick (though you should check earlier, if using a thinner fish). An instant-read thermometer should read somewhere between 125 and 130 degrees when inserted into the thickest part of the fish.
- When the fish is nearly cooked through, switch the oven to broil. Broil the fish on the top rack until the bread crumbs are golden and the fish flakes easily and registers 140 degrees in the thickest part, 2 to 3 minutes. Eat with a spoonful of tartar sauce, more black pepper and a squeeze of lemon. (Any extra tartar sauce will keep for up to a week in the fridge.)