Easy Baked Cod with Panko and Parmesan

Name: 🐟 Easy Baked Cod with Panko and Parmesan
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 13 min
Total time: 28 min
Ingredients: cooking spray; 1 Pound cod, skinless and filleted ((or another white fish)); 2 Teaspoon salt; 3/4 cup almond flour; 1/4 Teaspoon salt; 1/4 Teaspoon black pepper; 3 eggs; 1 cup panko flakes; 4 Tablespoon parmesan; 1/2 Teaspoon onion powder; fresh parsley ((as garnish)); 6 lemon wedges

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Looking for a lighter meal that is packed with flavor and crunch? This Baked Cod with Panko is the ticket! Not only is it light and healthy (baked, not fried), my kids love it! Even better, this recipe can be made in 28 minutes or less!

Note: If you love baked cod, be sure to also try our delicious and light Baked Cod with Peach & Tomato Salsa!

plates of baked white fish with lemon, broccoli and fries

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👍 Why We Love Baked Cod with Panko
🛒 Ingredients
👩‍🍳 Instructions for Baked Cod with Panko
💭 Expert Tips and Tricks
❓ FAQ
📖 Customize Your Baked Cod
👶🏼Tips for Picky Eaters
✂️ Make a Fish Craft
🍽 Other Seafood Dishes to Check Out
🐟 Easy Baked Cod with Panko and Parmesan

👍 Why We Love Baked Cod with Panko

Quick and simple! Our Baked Panko with Cod takes less than 28 minutes to whip up. It's the most simple, quick dinner ever.

Perfect for families! It was a winner with our family for sure! Kids especially loved having the option to squirt extra lemon on top. Serve alone or with our delicious Lemony Garlic Pasta!

A healthy choice. Cod is nutrient-dense and is associated with many health benefits, including lower heart disease risk. Moreover, when you bake fish instead of fry it in oil, the dish is lower in fat and less greasy.

The crunch factor. The fish is so mild and light, and the panko gives it an awesome, complimentary crunch.

Customizable! Because cod can take on flavor so easily, you can adjust the seasonings and flavors to suit your family's tastes.

🛒 Ingredients

Notes on ingredients:

Flour - You can totally use an all-purpose / wheat flour instead of almond flour. But I will say that almond flour gives the fish a lighter touch and excellent flavor. Big fan of Bob's Red Mill flours.

Seasoning - Feel free to use whichever herbs/spices you like. Some options: Mrs. Dash, lemon pepper, garlic powder, garlic salt, cayenne (just a sprinkle), Cajun seasoning, Old Bay, and mustard powder.

Parsley garnish - Totally optional.

Lemon juice- A perfect finishing touch on top of the baked cod with panko. Check out how to juice a lemon without a juicer for this recipe.

👩‍🍳 Instructions for Baked Cod with Panko

Step 1: Heat oven. Dry, cut and season cod.

🥄 Kids Step: Help cut the fish.* We're big fans of these kid-friendly knives.

Step2: Prep your three bowls- flour, eggs and panko.

🥄 Kids Step: This is a good time to teach about measuring units. Grab your measuring cups and spoons and show your kids how to use them.

Step 3: Dredge the cod in each bowl and place on baking sheet.

🥄 Kids Step: If you have more than one kiddo, you can set up an assembly line. Each person can be in charge of dredging the fish in one bowl and passing it on. Have a towel nearby so you guys can wipe the egg off your hands in between cod pieces. This can get messy. Also, because of the raw egg, make sure nobody's hands go in their mouths!*

dipping cod into panko and seasoning in bowls

Step 4: Bake for 12 minutes.

🥄 Kids Step: The final kids step can be squirting the lemon and sprinkling the parsley on the baked fish.

We served our baked cod with panko dish with tartar sauce and bang bang sauce, which is basically a combo of mayo, sweet chili sauce and Sriracha. It was perfect.

*Note: For toddlers especially, these tasks require adult supervision and/or assistance, as items may be sharp, hot or otherwise dangerous.

💭 Expert Tips and Tricks

Remember to pat cod fillets dry before seasoning to ensure a crispy finish.
Don't overcook cod or it will be tough, dry and chewy. Your fish is fully cooked when it hits an internal temp of 145°F and is opaque instead of clear. A digital thermometer (like our fave, the Thermapen®) always comes in handy!
Serve with your favorite steamed green vegetable, like green beans, broccoli or roasted asparagus. You might consider a potato side, like roasted potatoes, with garlic or a side of veggies, like sliced cucumber, carrot sticks, or peeled celery sticks.
If you don't have panko bread crumbs, regular bread crumbs or crushed crackers will work but may not give you as much crunch as panko.

❓ FAQ

What is Panko?

Panko is a Japanese-originated type of breadcrumb that's extra crunchy. It's so mild that you can season it with any herbs and spices you'd like and it'll take on the flavor very nicely. It's also lighter and lower in calories than standard breadcrumbs. Panko is a great breading because it gives a nice crunchy topping to the fish.

How do I know when the fish is fully cooked?

Your fish is fully cooked when it hits an internal temp of 145°F and is opaque instead of clear. However, be careful not to overcook your fish or it will be tough and chewy. In my oven, 12-13 mins was the sweet spot. We recommend Thermoworks' Thermapen for the most accurate temps.

How do I store the leftovers?

Once cooled, put any baked cod with panko leftovers in a sealed tupperware and store in fridge. Personally, I wouldn't keep the leftovers past 2 days.

Can I use frozen fish?

You can. The first time I made this, I bought frozen cod and left it in the fridge a day to thaw before I cooked it. Another way to thaw frozen fish is to leave it (still in its packaging) in a bowl filled with cold water, a while before you're ready to cook.

Can I use a different fish?

Yes! You can use almost any Whitefish. I chose cod for this recipe because it's one of the more common Whitefish at seafood counters. Other options are: halibut, grouper, tilapia, haddock, catfish, flounder, etc. I do like to keep in mind which fish are sustainably sourced by practices that protect our oceans. The Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch is the best source of info for this.

📖 Customize Your Baked Cod

Swap the fish - this cod could easily be substituted with any other Whitefish, i.e. halibut, grouper, tilapia, haddock, catfish, flounder. I picked cod because I see it at most grocery markets' seafood counters, and I wanted this recipe's ingredients to be accessible to everyone.
Swap the flour - you don't have to use almond flour. I like it because it's super light and gluten free. But if you don't have it and don't wanna buy it, regular flour is great.
Add more seasoning - The only spices in this recipe are salt, pepper, and onion powder. But, because whitefish is so mild, you can use whatever you like. Other spices I considered: Mrs. Dash, lemon pepper, garlic powder, garlic salt, cayenne (just a sprinkle), Cajun seasoning, Old Bay, and mustard powder.
Make it Gluten Free! The only ingredient in this dish that's not gluten-free is the panko breadcrumbs. And never you fear! Kikkoman (and several other companies) make gluten- free panko.
Make it Dairy Free! If you can't do the cheese, take out the Parmesan and add in some nutritional yeast. The flavor will be a bit different, but honestly, I've never had anything with nutritional yeast that I didn't absolutely love.

👶🏼Tips for Picky Eaters

Lemon juice! The oddest thing is that my kids did not like this fish until they squirted some lemon juice on top...and then they loved it. I'll never understand! But if you're going to skip or swap any of the ingredients, don't ditch the lemon!
Kids pick the sides! Popular picks for our kids (that I think would also go well with the cod) are frozen peas, carrot sticks, steamed broccoli, mashed potatoes, rice, our sweet potato fries and sugar snap peas.