Win the battle of chicken versus fish with this lemon butter cod recipe. Whether it’s the kids or a partner who won’t take the bait, this easy-going, simple to put together, lusciously buttery and lemony fried cod dish will reel them in. With just 5 store cupboard ingredients and 10 minutes to cook, it means you won’t be devastated if they don’t bite. (But they will!!)
Or save the fight for another day and serve lemon butter chicken cutlets instead. Like lemon butter cod but with, yup, chicken.
Bonafide fish lovers looking for something more fancy, try sole Meuniere. Sweet-fleshed sole, a sauce that’s butter-rich and lively with lemon and capers make this a 5-star fish dish.
Fried cod
Cod is a solid starter fish. I mean, is there anyone who doesn’t eat fish sticks (fish fingers (UK))? Here are five reasons to choose cod fillets as a gateway fish:
- It’s nutritious.
- It’s accessible.
- The firm, white texture is not ‘fishy’ like an oily fish.
- It’s mild in flavour (and easily muted with say, plenty of butter and lemon).
- Stray bones are big enough to spot (thus avoiding future fish-fear).
This fried fish recipe could be the next baby step to your family’s pesca-ppreciation.
If you’re trying to promote a love of fish, after all it’s a welcome break from chicken, start the journey with a frying pan. And butter. It is actual science. Frying anything in butter leads to a Maillard reaction: the irresistible browning of food that gives that slight crisp and touch of gold. This recipe delivers exactly that.
Then add lemon to the brown butter and you have a sauce that is slick, mellow-tasting with toasty nuts clinging to the white flesh, but also a fresh splash of citrus to spark the seaside flavour of the cod.
Although I’m not a keen fryer, this is the best method for a lemon butter sauce.
Recipe tips and notes
- This quickfire fried cod recipe takes just 10 minutes from start to finish. Have all your ingredients and utensils at your fingertips.
- Fish fillets fry fast. My slim sides took 4 minutes in total to cook through. A thicker piece of fish will need a tiny bit longer.
- If you do have a chunkier portion, you can cook it in the oven. But that method is best avoided for thin fillets as they will dry out.
- The lemon butter sauce is just two ingredients. So there’s little room for error- use fresh lemon juice and don’t burn the butter.
- You will need a decent non-stick pan so you can flip your fish with ease. Cod is a delicate fish that comes apart easily- that’s the beauty of it. But you want that to happen on the plate, not in the pan.
Serving suggestions
If this dish is an attempt to convert your household to fish-eating, serve with familiar sides. Fish with chips and peas are failsafe. Air fryer fries or crispy potatoes are satisfying and crunchy and will keep the kitchen time to a minimum.
Less traditional diners might prefer their lemon butter cod over blistered cherry tomatoes and creamy butter beans, or with herb and garlic mashed potatoes, which bring a whipped texture to the plate, and lemon green beans for some more zest and crunch.
Storage and leftovers
Fish fillets are perfectly portioned per person so it’s unlikely you’ll have to deal with leftover cod, which is fortunate as there are few, if not no recipes that make use of cold cooked cod. This one should be eaten hot and fresh from pan to plate.
More recipes to try
- Crab Cakes with Lemon Garlic Aioli
- Perfect Baked Cod with Mustard Sauce
- Sea Bass is Brown Butter Caper Sauce
- Asian Salmon with Carrot and Cucumber Sauce
Lemon Butter Cod
Ingredients
- 4 cod fillets
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 4-5 tbsp butter I used unsalted
- 1 lemon
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
Instructions
- Dab the cod pieces with paper towel to get rid of moisture and season with salt and pepper.
- Preheat a frying pan and melt 2 tbsp of butter in it. Fry the cod in butter on medium heat for approximately 2 minutes on each side. Then remove from the pan and keep warm.
- To the same pan add the remaining butter and let it melt and watch it turn slightly brown, then add the juice of half a lemon and slices of the other half, cook for a few seconds, then return the fish back to the pan. Spoon the sauce all over the fish and take off the heat. Serve sprinkled with fresh parsley.
Notes
- This fried cod recipe takes just 10 minutes from start to finish. Have all your ingredients and utensils at your fingertips.
- Fish fillets fry fast. My slim sides took 4 minutes in total to cook through. A thicker piece of fish will need a tiny bit longer.
- If you do have a chunkier portion, you can cook it in the oven. But that method is best avoided for thin fillets as they will dry out.
- The lemon butter sauce is just two ingredients so there’s little room for error. Use fresh lemon juice and don’t burn the butter.
- You will need a decent non-stick pan so you can flip your fish with ease. Cod is a delicate fish that comes apart easily. But you want that to happen on the plate, not in the pan.
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