Looking for a lighter meal that is packed with flavor and crunch?
Want to Save this Recipe or Activity?
Enter your email and we will send it straight to your inbox! You'll also get the latest posts from Platein28!
By submitting this form, you consent to receive emails from Platein28.
Jump to:
Note: If you love baked cod, be sure to also try our delicious and light Baked Cod with Peach & Tomato Salsa!
👍 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 a delicious pasta side, like Lemony Garlic Pasta or Cream Cheese 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
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!*
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 our Microwave Baked Potato 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
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.
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.
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.
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.
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, baked potatoes and sugar snap peas.
✂️ Make a Fish Craft
Looking for a craft that kids can play with? These adorable 3D Paper Fish Puppets are simple, sweet and so much fun!
❤️ Do you love this recipe? Please leave us a🌟5-star rating🌟 in the recipe card or comment section below.
❤️ Find us on Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook. And sign up for our newsletter for all the latest recipes and crafts!
🍽 You May Also Like
Follow Platein28 on Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook and Sign up for our newsletter for all the latest recipes and crafts!
🐟 Easy Baked Cod with Panko and Parmesan
Ingredients
- cooking spray
- 1 Pound cod, skinless and filleted (or another white fish)
- 2 Teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup almond flour
- ¼ Teaspoon salt
- ¼ Teaspoon black pepper
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup panko flakes
- 4 Tablespoon parmesan
- ½ Teaspoon onion powder
- fresh parsley (as garnish)
- 6 lemon wedges
Instructions
- Set your oven to 425°. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Take your cod fillet out of packaging and pat dry. Lay out the fish and cut into strips. Sprinkle salt over fish. Let fish rest while you prep the breading.
- Grab 3 bowls. (1) In the first bowl, mix together almond flour, salt, and pepper. (2) In the second bowl, whisk together the eggs. (3) And in the third bowl, pour the panko, parmesan and onion powder.
- Take a piece of cod and dredge it in the bowl of flour mix, coating all sides. Then dip the piece fully in the egg mix. Finally, roll the piece around in the panko mix until fully coated. Transfer cod to baking sheet. Repeat until all the fish is coated.
- Bake for 12-13 mins. Fish should be opaque (not clear) and internal temp should be 145°F.
Notes
- 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. We recommend the Thermapen for checking your fish temp!
- Serve with your favorite steamed green vegetable, like green beans, broccoli or roasted asparagus. You might consider a potato side, like a Microwave Baked Potato, 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.
Nutrition
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. While we are not certified nutritionists, we work with a Wordpress-integrated nutrition API to calculate our recipes' ingredient values.
Want more 28-minute recipes? Sign up and get recipes straight to your inbox!
Leave a Reply