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Crispy Baked Fish With Tartar Sauce
![Crispy Baked Fish With Tartar Sauce](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2021/06/17/dining/as-oven-baked-fish/merlin_188895618_496972ec-76eb-4cf1-91fc-895ac13b1fdf-articleLarge.jpg?width=1280&quality=75&auto=webp)
- Total Time
- 25 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- 1cup mayonnaise
- 5tablespoons capers, drained and coarsely chopped
- ¼cup finely chopped pickles (such as cornichons or half sour)
- 2tablespoons finely chopped tarragon, dill or parsley
- 1teaspoon Worcestershire or soy sauce
- 1small garlic clove
- 1large lemon
- Salt and black pepper
- ½cup panko bread crumbs
- 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing
- 4(6-ounce) thick white fish fillets, such as halibut or cod (skin on or off)
Preparation
- Step 1
Heat the oven to 400 degrees and set a rack in the upper part. In a medium bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, capers, pickles, herbs and Worcestershire sauce. Using a Microplane, finely grate the garlic into the bowl, then grate in the zest of the lemon. (Hold on to the lemon; you’ll use the juice later.) Stir to combine and season the tartar sauce to taste with salt and lots of pepper.
- Step 2
In a small bowl, stir together the panko and olive oil; season with salt and pepper.
- Step 3
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.
- Step 4
Bake the fish on the top rack until almost cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes for fillets ½- to ¾-inch thick (though you should check earlier, if using a thinner fish). An instant-read thermometer should read 125 to 130 degrees when inserted into the thickest part of the fish.
- Step 5
Meanwhile, add 1 tablespoon juice from the lemon to the tartar sauce and cut the remaining lemon into 4 wedges for serving.
- Step 6
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.)
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
I do something similar, but more basic: toss the 1/4-1/3 inch thick skinned fish chunks in a little lemon juice, then mayo, spread in a broiler pan, sprinkle w Italian herbs then bread crumbs/panko/crushed roasted almonds, and broil in the countertop around 400 for 5-6 minutes. The more mayo the more moist the results. My 'tartar': 1/2 C each lowfat yogurt and mayo, a T of dried dill, optionally add granulated garlic.
I have been making this (my own idea) for a while....I use rock fish and a great tartar sauce from the jar; I mix finely grated parmesan into the panko along with salt, pepper, dried thyme and some garlic powder. I mix olive oil into the panko mixture to hold the crumbs together and bake at 350 until almost done and then up the temp to 400 to get the topping golden. Yum! I make extra as it makes great leftovers.
Toast the panko first on the sheet pan. Extra 5 to 10 minutes but makes all the difference in getting a nice crispy crust. No need to broil at the end.
I learned the technique more than 45 years ago in a recipe found in the Food Section of the Washington Post. I've shared it many times over the years because it is reliable. When serving, sprinkle with capers, or add drained capers to any favorite Tartar Sauce recipe.
Made as directed three times using 1 lb. Cod fillet. Used convection bake at 375f, on a rack over a sheet pan. Then adjusting to broil at the end just to get a nice brown crust. Set rack in upper half of oven for the bake and broil. Works perfectly. The sauce makes the day. Don’t go skimping on the capers or use pickle relish (you know you want to). And yes, zest the lemon, then juice it (again, step away from the bottle of lemon juice). Try it as written at least once and see for yourself.
The tartar sauce is sublime & leftovers made great egg salad. Combine 2T with six hard boiled eggs, adjust for salt & pepper & top with fresh tarragon. Voila!
Made this with extra firm tofu. Very tasty. The tartar sauce is decadent and quick to prepare. I pressed the tofu, and cut two 1# blocks into thirds, to keep similar proportions to the fish. Made extra breading to handle the extra “fillets.” The only trick with the tofu is that it needs a longer bake time than fish. Probably 30 minutes @400F, before broiling. You can definitely eat it earlier, but it won’t be firm. Putting it into the rotation.
Chef Buck has a similar recipe which is one of my go-tos. His calls for placing the filets on top of sliced onions. I spray my onions with a little canola oil. Tartar is mayo, spicy pickle relish, dill, lemon and a squirt of dijon.
Used catfish. Coated both sides with the tartar then dredged in panko, both sides. Cooked on parchment paper, so easy to flip to brown both sides. Different from frying the fish but very good - a keeper.
I made this today with cod. I amped the panko with 1/4 t garlic powder (I like Cento), several shakes of cayenne and a t of herbs d’provence. Made the tartar as written. I agree with other posters; the tartar sauce is the best I’ve ever had. Hubby pronounced the tartar as transcendent which struck me oddly as he is mayonnaise adverse. Go figure. This riff on “filet o’ fish” is a keeper.
The same coating works well on chicken breasts. Just cook them longer.
Followed directions exactly. Fit perfectly in toaster oven. Delicious.
Followed the recipe as written. Used Monkfish as that’s what was available in reasonable size filets at the fish market. The tartar sauce is the best I’ve ever had, hands down. The fish was...wet. The crumb top got crisp-ish. The capers & pickles were well-drained, so no extra liquid in the sauce. Next time, we’ll fiddle with the temperature and/or use a rack. If that doesn’t work, we’ll ditch the crumb and keep the sauce!
This was delicious, and the recipe worked perfectly for me as written. The tartar sauce was a bit labor intensive but worth it. Next time I’ll make it ahead of time. And I’ll make less. I had about twice as much tartar sauce as I needed, and I love tartar sauce so didn’t skimp.
Charlee, re the experience you had with this recipe using monkfish, as fyi monkfish is a fish that cooks up pretty 'wet' as a character of the fish. You might want to try this again with a 'drier' white fish like cod or halibut. "Used Monkfish... The tartar sauce is the best I’ve ever had, hands down. The fish was...wet."
Was introduced to this at a dinner party. Quietly terrific. Best tartar sauce ever.
Not a huge pickle fan, so I just subbed chopped cucumber. Super delicious. I halved the tartar sauce and there was still plenty. Next time I’ll try half mayo half Greek yogurt in the tartar sauce.
I followed the recipe exactly, but I made it with frozen tilapia filets. I cooked them directly from the freezer, for 15 minutes + broil, It was so good! We couldn’t believe it! The best results with frozen fish I have ever had.
To add to my previous note: I could as per recipe but without any salt. It was salty enough with the tartar sauce!
Very tasty. I used halibut fillets and used another commenter's suggestion of toasting the panko ahead of time, thereby skipping the broiling step.
I made this for dinner tonight and it was fantastic! The fish was so flavourful (I used frozen haddock fillets that I defrosted before cooking) and the tartar sauce was the perfect accompaniment, don't skip it! I didn't have capers on hand, and I was a bit skeptical about using soy sauce in place of the worcestershire sauce, but it turned out delicious. I had some chives I needed to use up so I added them to the sauce as well. Will absolutely be making again!
The fish was good, but the tartar sauce is great -- five stars,, the best we've ever tasted. Definitely worth the time and 'extra' ingredients. We've started making it just to keep on hand as a condiment for other fish meals and also fried potatoes, sandwiches, meatballs, etc ("House Tartar" :).
Yikes! Each servings has 1236 milligrams sodium. Don't salt the panko, the fish or the tartar sauce (which is plenty salty on its own with soy or capers!)
The Godfreys served this tonight. Very tasty, crispy, healthy tasting tartar sauce. Great with the caramelized parsnip, carrot and red pepper.
Crispy? Hardly! Tasty enough but nothing like its buildup
This recipe is fantastic! Comes together really easy, esp if you make the tartar sauce ahead of time (the sauce is soo tasty!) I made this recipe for a dinner party and it was a huge hit. Made it with wild caught cod and everyone ate it all. 10/10
Amazing! I followed directions exactly.
I’ve never left a review on a NYT cooking recipe before but I am appalled at the amount of people loving this tartar sauce. I didn’t add any salt or worcestershire sauce and it was IMMENSELY salty, I had to add extra mayo/yogurt to compensate. Be careful with the amount of capers you add if you’re watching your salt. Otherwise great recipe…
This is delicious and takes plain white fish to a whole new level. I didn’t have any little pickles so used some sweet pickle relish instead . The mayo mixture keeps the fish moist while the panko adds crunch. My husband scarfed this down😀
I made this just as written and it was really great! The tartar sauce is super good! Will make again!
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