Hi there! I hope you all are having a great summer so far. I’ve made it into my third week of culinary school, and I’m having a ball! We started with knife skills on day one, stocks and broths for session two and last week we focused on sauces. Oh, how I love sauces. They have the ability to enhance all types of meats, pastas, vegetables and more. I was had so much fun making the sauces in class, that I thought I try whipping up something of my own for some tilapia I had purchased for the weekend.
Along with some beautiful baby heirloom tomatoes, lemons, fresh basil, and a few other refrigerator/pantry items I had laying around, I was able to create Pan Fried Tilapia with Tomatoes, Basil and Capers. Tilapia is a flaky, mild and affordable white fish that I cook with all summer long. It’s pretty thin, so it cooks pretty quickly in a pan or oven, plus it’s also light and delicious so win-win.
I made this tilapia recipe with two filets for my husband and I, but there is enough breading to cover up to four fish fillets. I like extra topping on mine, but you could probably stretch the tomato topping to four fillets, too, or just add an extra handful of slice tomatoes to my recipe. The acidity from the lemon and the herb freshness from the basil really compliment the hearty flavor of the Parmesan cheese and the saltiness of the capers for the relish. Also, I used a combination of baby Heirloom tomatoes and grape tomatoes, but you could also substitute cherry tomatoes.
My Pan Fried Tilapia with Tomatoes, Basil and Capers is easy, delicious and perfect for summer dinner. If Tilapia goes on sale at your local grocery store, be sure to buy at least four fillets, because you’ll want to make this fish dinner again. Also, this meal is ready in under 30 minutues. How can you go wrong ;)
1. Make the relish. Add sliced tomatoes, capers, basil and lemon juice into a medium-sized bowl and toss. Add salt and pepper to taste.
2. Season the tilapia with seasoning salt. Next, pour the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese and smoked paprika onto a paper plate and mix with a fork. Spray both sides of your fillets with an olive oil or Pam-style cooking spray and then coat each side with the breadcrumbs.
3. Heat a pan to medium high for and add olive oil and butter. Once melted, add both fillets to the pan and brown on each side for about 3-4 minutes. Remove fish from pan and place on a paper towel-lined plate to absorb excess oil.
4. Plate fish and top with relish. If there is any juice from the relish left in the bowl, pour it over the fish – it’s delish!
