Crispy Baked Fish With Tartar Sauce

I do something similar, but more basic: toss the 1/4-1/3 inch thick skinned fish chunks in a little lemon juice, then mayo, spread in a broiler pan, sprinkle w Italian herbs then bread crumbs/panko/crushed roasted almonds, and broil in the countertop around 400 for 5-6 minutes. The more mayo the more moist the results. My 'tartar': 1/2 C each lowfat yogurt and mayo, a T of dried dill, optionally add granulated garlic.

I have been making this (my own idea) for a while....I use rock fish and a great tartar sauce from the jar; I mix finely grated parmesan into the panko along with salt, pepper, dried thyme and some garlic powder. I mix olive oil into the panko mixture to hold the crumbs together and bake at 350 until almost done and then up the temp to 400 to get the topping golden. Yum! I make extra as it makes great leftovers.

Toast the panko first on the sheet pan. Extra 5 to 10 minutes but makes all the difference in getting a nice crispy crust. No need to broil at the end.

I learned the technique more than 45 years ago in a recipe found in the Food Section of the Washington Post. I've shared it many times over the years because it is reliable. When serving, sprinkle with capers, or add drained capers to any favorite Tartar Sauce recipe.

Made as directed three times using 1 lb. Cod fillet. Used convection bake at 375f, on a rack over a sheet pan. Then adjusting to broil at the end just to get a nice brown crust. Set rack in upper half of oven for the bake and broil. Works perfectly. The sauce makes the day. Don’t go skimping on the capers or use pickle relish (you know you want to). And yes, zest the lemon, then juice it (again, step away from the bottle of lemon juice). Try it as written at least once and see for yourself.

The tartar sauce is sublime & leftovers made great egg salad. Combine 2T with six hard boiled eggs, adjust for salt & pepper & top with fresh tarragon. Voila!

Made this with extra firm tofu. Very tasty. The tartar sauce is decadent and quick to prepare. I pressed the tofu, and cut two 1# blocks into thirds, to keep similar proportions to the fish. Made extra breading to handle the extra “fillets.” The only trick with the tofu is that it needs a longer bake time than fish. Probably 30 minutes @400F, before broiling. You can definitely eat it earlier, but it won’t be firm. Putting it into the rotation.

Chef Buck has a similar recipe which is one of my go-tos. His calls for placing the filets on top of sliced onions. I spray my onions with a little canola oil. Tartar is mayo, spicy pickle relish, dill, lemon and a squirt of dijon.

Used catfish. Coated both sides with the tartar then dredged in panko, both sides. Cooked on parchment paper, so easy to flip to brown both sides. Different from frying the fish but very good - a keeper.

I made this today with cod. I amped the panko with 1/4 t garlic powder (I like Cento), several shakes of cayenne and a t of herbs d’provence. Made the tartar as written. I agree with other posters; the tartar sauce is the best I’ve ever had. Hubby pronounced the tartar as transcendent which struck me oddly as he is mayonnaise adverse. Go figure. This riff on “filet o’ fish” is a keeper.

The same coating works well on chicken breasts. Just cook them longer.

Followed directions exactly. Fit perfectly in toaster oven. Delicious.

Followed the recipe as written. Used Monkfish as that’s what was available in reasonable size filets at the fish market. The tartar sauce is the best I’ve ever had, hands down. The fish was...wet. The crumb top got crisp-ish. The capers & pickles were well-drained, so no extra liquid in the sauce. Next time, we’ll fiddle with the temperature and/or use a rack. If that doesn’t work, we’ll ditch the crumb and keep the sauce!

This was delicious, and the recipe worked perfectly for me as written. The tartar sauce was a bit labor intensive but worth it. Next time I’ll make it ahead of time. And I’ll make less. I had about twice as much tartar sauce as I needed, and I love tartar sauce so didn’t skimp.

Charlee, re the experience you had with this recipe using monkfish, as fyi monkfish is a fish that cooks up pretty 'wet' as a character of the fish. You might want to try this again with a 'drier' white fish like cod or halibut. "Used Monkfish... The tartar sauce is the best I’ve ever had, hands down. The fish was...wet."