Do you love garlic bread as much I as do? Then you’re going to LOVE this Easy Garlic Butter Baked Cod recipe. I used the same buttery garlic spread that I use for my garlic bread to top these tender and mild cod fillets. I added a little lemon for brightness and the end result is a super simple weeknight main dish that I can make on a moment’s notice.
The mild, slightly rich flavor of cod is the perfect base for the zesty fresh garlic and creamy butter. And as if this Garlic Butter Baked Cod wasn’t already perfect, it also happens to be incredibly fast and easy to make. Weeknight dinner perfection!
What’s In Garlic Butter Baked Cod
For this recipe, I took my basic Garlic Bread recipe and changed it up ever so slightly to make it more fish-friendly. Here’s what you’ll need to make this easy baked cod:
- Cod: Frozen cod is usually the most economical option, and it thaws quickly so you can make this dinner without any forethought! Try to get fillets that are about 4oz. each.
- Butter: This is the vehicle for all that good garlicky flavor! The richness of the butter pairs wonderfully with the light and flakey texture of the cod.
- Olive Oil: A little oil helps make the butter mixture more spreadable, and slows the browning just a bit.
- Fresh Garlic: The star of the show! Fresh garlic brings big punchy flavor to the fish.
- Paprika & Salt: A little seasoning is all you need here because we want to keep the flavors light, fresh, and simple. Paprika also helps add color to an otherwise pale palate.
- Fresh Parsley: Parsley adds a little freshness and color to this dish, which is always welcome, but it won’t be a deal breaker if you don’t have any. You can also use one teaspoon of dried parsley in place of the fresh.
How to Thaw Frozen Cod
Frozen cod is not only convenient, but you can usually get a better price than buying fresh. Frozen cod is usually sold in bags that have individually vacuum-sealed pieces, which makes thawing super fast and easy. Here is how to thaw frozen cod:
- Place vacuum-sealed fish in a bowl of cold water. If your fish is not vacuum sealed, place it in a tightly-closed zip top bag with as much as squeezed out as possible.
- Leave the fish in the cold water for 10-15 minutes, or until thawed. The total time will depend on the thickness of the fillet. Once thawed, transfer to the refrigerator until ready to use.
How to Know When Cod is Done Baking
The time needed to bake your cod will depend on the thickness of the filet and the type of baking dish you use, but cod should be baked until it reaches an internal temperature of 145ºF. At this temperature, the flesh will be opaque and will flake easily with a fork. If you continue baking too long past this point the cod can get tough or rubbery.
My filets were a little on the thick side and I used a thick ceramic baking dish that takes a little longer to heat, so I baked them for about 20 minutes at 400ºF to reach an internal temperature of 145ºF. If you have thin filets or are using a thinner metal baking dish, it may only take 15 minutes of baking. A simple electronic instant-read meat thermometer is really helpful for determining when the fish is finished baking.
What to Serve with Garlic Butter Baked Cod
I served my Garlic Butter Baked Cod with Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes, but it would also go great with:
Garlic Butter Baked Cod
Servings 4Ingredients
- 4 Tbsp butter (room temperature) ($0.50)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced ($0.32)
- 1/4 tsp paprika ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 2 Tbsp finely chopped parsley ($0.22)
- 1 lb. cod (4 4 oz. filets) ($5.99)
- 1 fresh lemon ($0.69)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF. In a small bowl, combine the butter, olive oil, garlic, paprika, salt, and chopped parsley. Stir until it forms a fairly smooth paste.
- Add the cod filets to a baking dish, add the garlic butter mixture on top of the fish, the spread it until the fish is evenly coated.
- Cut half of the lemon into slices and add the lemon slices on top of the fish. Cut the remaining 1/2 lemon into wedges for serving.
- Bake the cod for 15-20 minutes, or until it flakes easily with a fork and the internal temperature reaches 145ºF (total baking time will depend on the thickness of the filets and the material of your baking dish). Spoon any juices from the bottom of the pan over the fish. Serve the cod immediately with the remaining fresh lemon wedges for squeezing juice over top.
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Pictured with Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes.
How to Make Easy Baked Cod – Step by Step Photos:
Preheat the oven to 400ºF. In a small bowl, combine 4 Tbsp room temperature butter, 2 Tbsp olive oil, 4 minced cloves of garlic, ¼ tsp paprika, ¼ tsp salt, and about 2 Tbsp of finely chopped fresh parsley. Mix the ingredients together until they are fairly smooth (a few small lumps of butter are okay).
Place the cod fillets in the dish, then spread the garlic butter mixture over each piece.
Slice half of a lemon and add the lemon slices to the baking dish. Cut the rest of the lemon into wedges to serve with the finished fish.
Bake the Garlic Butter Cod for 15-20 minutes, or until it flakes easily with a fork and reaches an internal temperature of 145ºF. If you’re using a thin metal baking dish or have thin filets, the fish will cook faster. If you are using a thick glass or ceramic baking dish or have thicker filets (as I did here), the fish will take slightly longer to bake. Spoon any of the juices in the pan over the fish (that will spread the lemony flavor).
Serve immediately with some of the baked lemon slices, and a couple of the fresh lemon wedges to squeeze over top.
I paired my Garlic Butter Baked Cod with Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes. It’s a great easy no-brainer side dish that you can serve with anything from fish to steak!
Awesome! Trying new recipes for fish and I came across this one. It was great 👍
I didn’t have fresh garlic so I use Jared garlic, and no fresh parsley so I used crushed parsley. If it taste this good I can only imagine how it would taste with the fresh ingredients. Thanks for posting your recipe.
Delicious! My family loved it and so did I! My oven set off the fire alarm from the smoke but that’s my oven’s issue. I used dried parsley and added some fresh Basil from my plant and it was fantastic! Yummy, Yummy, Yummy!
Delicious and easy! My husband-who often asks why I don’t cut recipes to feed just the two of us—was disappointed that there weren’t leftovers. I usually am not a fan of cod because it’s hard to cook it without drying it out. This delicious recipes keeps it moist and adds a ton of flavor.
Made this tonight for dinner and it was not only quick and easy, but absolutely delicious as well! Adding this recipe to my collection as I’ll definitely make it again.
Great ever! I did it for my wife weekend and she is so surprise! Thank you much for sharing!
Contrary to some of the negative comments posted by others, I loved it. Hence, chacun à son goût! It was excellent! I previously used a Southwestern recipe for cod and didn’t care for it. I was delighted to find this one and that too, the paste was ready in minutes as it was 8:30 before I got home to cook. I look forward to trying it on Salmon as others have done, and will consider chicken … even though others discouraged it. Thank you!
Made exactly per directions and it was soooo bland! My fish was also fully cooked after about 11 minutes; 20 would have been wayyy too long. I think this is the first recipe from this site that hasn’t been good.
I LOVE this recipe. I make it once a week. The cod comes out moist and flavorful. It does work with salmon too :)
I made this recipe with salmon and added a little crushed red pepper and Cajun seasoning to spice it up a bit. It was amazing and is a regular meal in my household.
Hi, I’m sorry to say this but it was horrible. I was apprehensive about cooking this very mild fish with garlic at a high heat- 400 degrees. But I did it anyway. Burnt garlic fish never tasted good. I’m sorry but 400 is the best temp for Cod but not for garlic. I’m wondering what the palate is for the 50 positive reviews? Again, sorry, but not going to even do it again. I should have known better- and I do. Very dissatisfied but my is my fault for not employing what I know of cooking great fish. TOO BITTER! Lol, not my attitude, however, just the fish flavor. Once more, apologies but this does not do justice to fish, garlic, butter, or paprika. Apologies food. I didn’t mean to make you bad.
Garlic is very commonly roasted at 400F. Problem is with the oven or with the chef.
Check your garlic also. If it is older and sprouted and you don’t take out the yellow/ green sprout in it (a bit of a pain), your garlic will taste bitter no matter how you cook it.
Interesting… I made it today and baked it for 24 minutes and then broiled for 2 minutes. Fish was perfect – moist and flavorful. Garlic wasn’t burnt either. Maybe you’re not putting enough butter or oil in it? Or something is wrong with your oven.
I will never make Cod any other way.
This is so good, hubby and I went crazy for it.
Instead of garlic, we had Toum at home (Lebanese garlic sauce) and I used it for the paste. If you’re a garlic lover, I highly recommend that.
Delicious.
I’m a bachelor and survive by randomly pulling recipes off the cell phone
This was great- easy, moist and really tasted like garlic bread
Thank you
This has rapidly become my husband’s favorite cod recipe. He’s from New England and is very particular about cod. Excellent recipe and easy to double or triple as needed.
We absolutely loved this recipe, I used cod loins as they are a bit meatier. I also used this recipe on chicken breasts, delicious. I urge you to try it, it’s a keeper.
Easy recipe but not a keeper ): The chicken — I didn’t have cod — was bland and not anything special. It was moist though. I was looking forward to trying this with fish but now I doubt I will tbh.
It’s a recipe for FISH.
As you can see by the comments, people have tried it with chicken or other non-fish options with success. That’s why I mentioned my — sadly unsuccessful — attempt.
Two– I used the leftover chicken for grilled sandwiches since I didn’t want to waste it and it was a huge hit! I don’t even like grilled sandwiches lol. Very delicious. Try it sometime!
Easy but not my favorite. Think I would like it better on salmon.