Looking for a great baked cod recipe? This quick and easy recipe for Baked Lemon Herb Cod is simple but yields a rich, flavorful dish everyone will love.
Sometimes, you taste something – just a little bite of it – and it blows you away. That was the case with this dish. It was rich, buttery even (although there is no butter in the recipe), and absolutely mouthwatering.
This was a dinner that the kids devoured so fast that I did a double-take. Really, this Baked Lemon Herb Cod was just that good.
The fish itself is good and full of flavor. I used thin wild-caught cod fillets that were on sale at my local grocery store. (Any cod will work for it.) But that alone isn't amazing.
It's the pan sauce that you drizzle over everything that knocks this up a notch. Rich, garlicky and a little tart thanks to the lemon juice, it takes good fish and makes it extraordinary.
Another thing I love about this Baked Lemon Herb Cod recipe?
It takes less than 25 minutes to make, which makes it absolutely perfect for those busy evenings when dinner needs to get on the table fast. I think you know the ones I'm talking about.
I served this with Basmati Rice Medley from Trader Joe's (love that!), which I season with salt, pepper and sometimes some barbecue seasoning (it's found in the spice aisle). The dish would go really well with a side of roasted broccoli.
And one more thing ... this is totally economical too. This meal -- including rice and a vegetable -- can be made for well under $10. High flavor at a low cost? Love it.
Baked Lemon Herb Cod Recipe
Quick, easy and delightful, this Baked Lemon Herb Cod recipe is a crowd-pleaser.
Ingredients
- 1 lb cod fillets
- 1 ½ tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed and minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, lightly chopped
- sea salt
- pepper
- Sweet Hungarian Paprika
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Get out a 9×13 glass baking dish.
- Rinse the cod fillets under cool water and place in the baking dish. Drizzle with lemon juice and olive oil. Then sprinkle with garlic, thyme, salt, pepper and paprika. Try to divide the seasonings as equally as possible between the fish.
- Bake for 13-17 minutes until the flesh is opaque in color. Serve with rice, spooning the juices from the pan over the fish and rice.
- Devour.
Notes
recipe adapted very slightly from EatBetterAmerica @ Tablespoon
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This looks terrific - I'm going to make it soon!
Looks like a deliciously light dish - yum!
love the simplicity - yet the perfect balance of flavors from what I can tell.
Made this for my husband's supper. Used bottled lemon juice and regular paprika as that's what I had on hand. He liked the balance of flavors and it was nice and quick. I did not bother to chop the thyme--just pulled the leaves off the stem and left them whole.
So glad you enjoyed it, Emily!! Thanks for letting me know.
Can this be broiled?
If so how long?
Thanks!
Hi Emily,
I haven't broiled this, so I can't speak to how well it would do under a broiler. Sorry!
Best,
Sarah
Hi Cod fish tends to separate when it is broiled it is best to bake it!!
Hi i'm sorry I meant to say yes you can broil Cod fish basking is the best way to me,
Delicious! And so easy. I added fresh parsley and mint too. Thank you for posting!
I will be trying this tonight. I have some thawed cod fillets in the fridge that I got from Costco. They actually sell WILD cod fillets there. I was pretty stoked to find them. I'm a little worried as I don't have any "fresh" thyme at the moment... going to try dried and see how that works.
I love cod and was glad I found this recipe, it was delicious!! I' m plan on making it again when I pull the extra cod from the freezer .
Can you cook this straight from frozen cod?
Hi Sarah: I've never tested this recipe using frozen fish, and am not sure how that would impact the outcome from a flavor standpoint since the flavors of this bake into the fish. However, in general, fish can be cooked from frozen. There's a great set of instructions here on that: http://cookthestory.com/how-to-cook-fish-from-frozen/ -- Hope that helps! Best, Sarah Walker Caron
This is a very good recipe, however, I found it easier to mix all the sauce ingredients together in a little bowl, and then drizzle the sauce with a teaspoon all over my cod. It's just a different technique, but the outcome was the same: delicious!
Nice change from the usual fried cod.
I made it today and we loved it !!!
This is the best cod recipe I have ever tried.
Delicious blend of flavors. Love the fresh garlic.
Thanks!
YAY! Thanks, Sue!! So glad you liked it.
Looks great! Will try it tonight
It's in the oven now!
I bought a FROZEN package of wild caught cod loins - per the package it says not to thaw them. Is that your suggestion for this recipe?
Made this earlier in the week after getting cod on sale at Whole Foods. I was slightly skeptical as it seemed just too simple. But it was really great. My wife thought it was so good that she asked that we make it again for her parents who are in town visiting. My only semi-changes were to use smoked pimento instead of sweet paprika and I had a Meyer lemon handy so I used that instead of a regular lemon. Thanks for a great and super easy recipe.
Russ, so glad it was a hit! I love dishes to be simple -- it makes them so much more doable on busy nights, which we have a lot of. But I totally get how that can make you a little skeptical. 🙂 Also, I've made it with both Meyer lemons and regular lemons -- personally, I like the little extra tartness regular lemons have. But if you liked the Meyers, that's great too!
Your recipe just landed in Devon England. The weather means that our local fishermen have been stuck in port so deep sea cod seemed a good call. And it was. The recipe has just the right degree of sharp and sweet. Thank you and best wishes from a soggy Britain.
LOVE IT! Thank you so much, Alan!