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Baked Catfish Recipe
Tender white catfish fillets are baked in the oven with cherry tomatoes, garlic, lemon slices, and thyme. These baked fillets are utterly delicious and tasty with all the flavors absorbed into the flesh after a quick bake.
This is a light and healthy meal with easy spaghetti, steamed rice, or bread. The refreshing taste makes it such a delight to the palate.
Catfish fillets are one of the most popular fish you can find in groceries and they’re perfect for baking or pan frying. You may enjoy my other fish recipes, such as baked cod, garlic butter fish, lemon butter swai fish.
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Why This Recipe Works?
Baking catfish will only take 5 minutes to prepare and leaves the rest of the work to the oven. It’s the best recipe for those busy weeknights.
Baked catfish is not limited on flavors. You may also give the final dish a spicy kick with a teaspoon of paprika, although it is already great with only salt and black pepper.
It’s a healthy recipe for everyone in the family and benefits our body with all the nutrients from the fish.
Baked Catfish Ingredients
You just need these simple ingredients:
- Catfish
- Salt
- Ground black pepper
- Cherry tomatoes
- Lemon
- Garlic
- Thyme
- Olive oil
- Fresh parsley
You may choose either catfish or another white fish such as bass, sole, halibut, or cod.
Good herb substitutes are rosemary, marjoram, or oregano.
How To Make Baked Catfish?
First, season catfish fillets with salt and pepper.
Arrange fillets in the baking dish and follow with tomatoes, lemon slices, garlic, and thyme. Evenly drizzle olive oil over the top.
Bake catfish for 20 to 25 minutes at 400°F (or 205°C) until cooked through.
Serve immediately with freshly chopped parsley and more lemon juice if desired.
Cooking Tips
- You may either bake the entire fillets or cut them into small pieces. However, smaller pieces will cook faster.
- Make sure catfish fillets are fully cooked before serving. The cooked fillets will flake easily with a fork and be white throughout.
- Pat the fillets dry before seasoning to remove excess water so they won’t become soggy after cooking.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How to store leftover baked catfish?
Store leftover baked catfish in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 2 days. You may also freeze them for up to a month. To reheat, microwave for 1 to 2 minutes until warm.
Can I use frozen catfish fillets?
Yes, if using frozen catfish fillets, thaw them at room temperature and pat dry to remove excess water from the fish.
HOW MANY CALORIES PER SERVING?
This recipe has 382 calories per serving.
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Baked Catfish
Ingredients
- 1 catfish fillet (cut into four equal pieces)
- Salt (to taste)
- Ground black pepper (to taste)
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes
- 1 lemon (sliced)
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 sprigs thyme
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (207°C).
- Pat the fillets dry with paper towels and season them with salt and ground black pepper. Arrange the catfish fillets in a baking dish and follow with tomatoes, lemon slices, garlic, and thyme. Evenly drizzle olive oil on top.
- Bake the catfish fillets in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish. Garnish with freshly chopped parsley and serve immediately.
Notes
- You may either bake the entire fillets or cut them into small pieces. However, smaller pieces will cook faster.
- Make sure the catfish fillets are fully cooked before serving. The cooked fillets will flake easily with a fork and will be solid white throughout.
- Pat the fillets dry before seasoning to remove excess water so that they won't become soggy after cooking.
Best
Hello Bee,
Thank you kindly for this recipe. There is but one problem. We don’t have Catfish in Australia. What I might do is to try it out with Ling or Trevally. I suppose I can substitute any fish with the rest of the ingredients unless Catfish has any particular flavour that marries up with the other ingredients. I shall let you know how it goes but not having eaten Catfish before, I do not know whether it has a unique taste or not.
Sure you can use any fish you like. Cat fish has a taste to it and many people do not like it but with the right recipe, cat fish can be quite tasty.