This Baked Fish recipe comes with a Lemon Cream Sauce and is made in ONE baking dish! Yup, just throw it all in one pan, bake it, and you end up with a tender juicy fish in a creamy lemon sauce. The the juices of the fish mingles in with the sauce while it’s baking, as if made from the best fish stock!
This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook “Dinner”!
Baked Fish
If the idea of baked fish conjures up the words pale, colourless and bland, then this one’s going to be a game changer for you!!
It’s an effortless 15 minute recipe one pan recipe where fish is baked with a creamy lemon sauce. It’s the sort of recipe you can make no matter how hectic your household is, or on a lazy Sunday night because it’s this easy:
Mix butter, cream, garlic, mustard and lemon;
Pour over fish; and
Bake – no flipping required.
And out comes this – tender baked fish fillets with a beautiful lemon cream sauce that’s perfect with fish!
This recipe will work for most fish, but is especially great for white fish fillets
When you bake fish, you just can’t get colour on it like you can with pan frying, and this means loss of flavour. So I like to either have a flavoured crumb, like I do for my other Emergency Fish recipe, Parmesan Crusted Fish (10 minutes, no messy dredging!) or a Sauce.
The Lemon Cream Sauce for Fish
This recipe really is all about that Lemon Cream Sauce for fish which is made in the same pan while the fish is baking. It’s a simple sauce which actually tastes pretty unimpressive when you first mix it up.
But once it’s baked and the fish juices mix in with it, it transforms into an incredible sauce. It’s basically like making a sauce with real homemade fish stock – just like fine dining restaurants do!
What this tastes like
The recipe name implies that the sauce is rich but actually, it is not! I describe it as kind of light and fresh, yet a bit creamy. You will be thankful there is a decent amount of sauce because it’s perfect for mopping up with bread or spooning over mashed potato!
What you need
Not very much!
White Fish fillet – any fairly flat white fish fillet is fine here, about 2 cm/ 4/5 ” thick or less. Any thicker, and the fish will take longer to bake which will thicken the sauce too much so you’ll need to thin it with a splash of water.
Escallot/French onion – those small onions, they’re more delicate than normal onions so they work well in a quick fish recipe like this. Use the white part of green onions as a sub, or really finely minced normal onion.
Dijon Mustard – sauce thickener. Can sub with other non seedy mustards.
Garlic – goes in almost everything in my world!
Cream – use heavy / thickened cream if you can, to help with sauce consistency. Low cal sub – evaporated milk. It’s not quite the same, but I’ve been known to use it when I’m trying to be “healthier” 😂
Butter – there is no substitute! 😂
Lemon – lime would work in an emergency situation. Sub: 1/3 cup white wine simmered to reduce to 2 tbsp, use in place of lemon in recipe.
Really QUICK Baked Fish Fillets
I say this is a quick recipe – and I mean it. It takes longer to heat up the oven than it does to prepare this recipe! Watch the video and see!
Dinner on the table in just 15 minutes. Tender, juicy fish with a creamy lemon sauce. A really fantastic way to make baked fish – it’s so, so good! – Nagi x
Try these on the side:
Everyday Cabbage Salad, big juicy Greek Salad
Fresh Garden Salad with Balsamic Dressing, French Dressing or Italian Dressing
Potatoes au Gratin, Easy Creamy Potato Casserole or Mini Potato Gratin Stacks
And more fish recipes:
Watch how to make it
This recipe features in my debut cookbook Dinner. The book is mostly new recipes, but this is a reader favourite included by popular demand!
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Baked Fish with Lemon Cream Sauce (One Baking Dish!)
Ingredients
- 4 x 150- 180g / 5 – 6 oz fish fillets , about 1.5cm / 1/2″ thick, skinless and boneless (Note 1)
- 50g / 4 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup cream, heavy / thickened (See Note 2 for sub options)
- 1 – 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
- Salt & pepper
- 1 1/2 tbsp eschallots (French onion) , finely chopped (Note 3)
- Fresh parsley and lemon slices , to serve
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200°C / 390°F (all oven types).
- Place fish in a baking dish – ensure the fish isn’t crammed in too snugly. See video or photos in post. Sprinkle both sides of fish with salt and pepper.
- Place butter, cream, garlic, mustard, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a microwave proof jug or bowl. Microwave in 2 x 30 sec bursts, stirring in between, until melted and smooth.
- Sprinkle fish with shallots, then pour over sauce.
- Bake for 10 – 12 minutes, or until fish is just cooked. Remove from oven and transfer fish to serving plates. Spoon over sauce, and garnish with parsley and lemon wedges if using.
Recipe Notes:
- salmon (too fatty, sauce splits)
- very thin delicate fish like flounder, Dover Sole
- small whole fish like sardines or mackerel
Nutrition Information:
Originally published October 2016, updated with much needed new photos, brand new video and updated writing. No change to recipe, it’s a firm reader fave that I wouldn’t dare change!
Life of Dozer
Yesterday was a day of experimenting with slow cooked curries. So there was plenty of downtime spent doing THIS!
And from when I originally published this recipe in October 2016:
From a little camping trip last weekend – getting smashed in the waves at beautiful Jimmy’s Beach, NSW Australia. He’s a sucker for punishment, that one. I really have to keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn’t get swept away by a rip!!
This was my favorite way I’ve ever prepared fish! I used cod and it still turned out delicious, just cooked it about 5 minutes longer. And I dared to make it on weeknight after work! It was so fast and easy. Thanks for the great recipe, definitely will be in my rotation from now on!
high praise! Thanks Senta, so glad you enjoyed it! N xx
Hi Nagi, made this for dinner this evening. Only way to make this wonderful baked fish. I used Talapia. Wow. I love lemons so I knew I would love this recipe. I bet you could use large shrimp! The sauce was perfect.
Ps. Give Dozer a kiss and hug from me 😋
As always,
Sincerely, Bonnie from Markleeville, in the Sierra’s 🏔
Oh wow! I’m so happy to hear that Bonnie, thanks so much for letting me know! N xx PS Will pass kisses on to Dozer as soon as I get home!
I made this over salmon with a few tweaks. I substituted 2 oz of neufchatel cheese for the heavy cream, and ditched the mustard (we’re not huge mustard fans), and it came out absolutely delicious! Bit of a thicker sauce which we loved, and very simple yet decadent. Definitely going to file this away to make again and again!
Whoot! So glad you enjoyed this Rachel, thanks for letting me know! N xx
I’ve made this three times in the past month. It’s fantastic! I use tilapia and serve with roasted string beans and rice. This is so easy to put together after work, even if I’m running late. Dinner on the table in a snap. Thanks for the recipe!
WOW that’s a compliment Sara! I’m so glad you enjoyed this, thanks so much for letting me know! N xx
I used almond milk and dairy free earth balance butter and it turned out fabulous. also added announce into sauce. served it with sautéed asparagus and green beans. 🙂
Oh WOW! So glad to hear that Jadyn! N x
A so-called vegetarian who eats fish is actually a pescatarian. I would eat that way if I lived alone, but I have a family and I’m not making two dishes for every meal. Just a thought, the lower temperature should work better than the higher temperature. People seem to be obsessed with overcooking food; it’s just not necessary.
Oh yes! Thank you, I always forget the name 🙂 N x
DELICIOUS!! 😋🤗😊
I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed this Trish! Thanks so much for letting me know – N x
I’m never making fish any other way! Lol.
I just made this for dinner and it was simply the best fish I’ve ever had!
Thanks for sharing…Love from Cape Town
That’s fantastic to hear Kudzai! Thank you for letting me know – N xx
FANTASTIC!! I was a little bit skeptical at first when I looked at this recipe, then I tried it! I have made this recipe several times using different types of white fish. It’s probably one of the tastiest and easiest fish recipes I’ve tried. It has turned out perfect every time and the family loves it, the sauce is just the right consistency. I have even swapped out the heavy cream for non-fat half & half, the heavy cream is better but the half & half was still great! Thank You so much for sharing
That’s wonderful to hear Alisa, thank you for letting me know! Hope you are having a lovely weekend – N xx
On a hot night in Northern Portugal I just made this wonderful dish. My wife and I just ate it and loved it. A brilliant but simple meal, thank you. Keep up the good work and keep enjoying life
Pleased to hear you enjoyed it Mike, thanks for letting me know! N xx
Really delicious!
Added prawns too and made double the amount of sauce as I love lots of sauce but was really too much. Will definitely make it again.
5 stars!
Pleased to hear you enjoyed it Amy, thanks for letting me know! N xx
Made this last night with salmon and it was fabulous! AND it was so easy and fast! I literally just ate the leftovers cold for breakfast this morning!?? Love the variations I’m seeing in the comments – def going to try with mushrooms and spinach <3
That’s so great to hear Jennifer! So glad you enjoyed it! N xx
This recipe was good! I made few changes myself.I seasoned the fish with sal and pepper and sprinkle flour ( thin layer ) and grill in a pan with little olive oleo. After was done, I removed the fish and stir-fried mushrooms. As for the sauce, I added capers and couple tbs of sara cream. Delicious!
I LOVE HEARING THAT!!!! Thank you for letting me know Adriana! N xx
OH MY GOD!! This was absolutely the best tilapia dish I have ever had in my entire life, and I have had many yummy ones! Even my husband, who typically hates fish in general, and tilapia in particular, kept raving about how good this was! I just wanted to say thank you so much for posting this. I am looking forward to trying your other recipes.
That’s so great to hear Ali! So glad you enjoyed it – N xx
My daughter can’t have dairy due to allergy. Do you think this would work with almond milk instead of cream?
Typically, organic non-dairy milks should work. Most of them say on package “good as milk, cup per cup”. Frankly, I think coconut milk would be fabulous with this recipe.
I’m sorry I don’t know, I am not sure it would thicken enough. Sorry!
I have made this three times and we just love it. I top the fish with sautéed mushrooms and wilted spinach when I serve it. We like to eat it with basmati or jasmine rice. Asparagus has made a turn as a side too. I find the dish to be versatile and adjustable based on my tastes that night and what I have on hand. Perfect in my book. Thanks for the recipe!
AWESOME!! So thrilled to hear that Allie, thanks so much for letting me know! N xx
WOW!
I used tilapia. Baked the dish for 20 minutes.
Drizzled whole black peppers and added mushroom on the dish before baking. Paired it with green pepper rice. I’m so glad i saved the sauce.
This recipe turned me on to fish. Thank you for sharing this one.
Everyone should give this recipe a try!
High praise! I’m so pleased you enjoyed this Craig, thank you for letting me know! N xx
I made this sauce last night to go over Atlantic Salmon and it was delicious. The salmon was very thick (more than 3cm) so I cooked it for 5 minutes first and then added the sauce and continued baking. I love that it is so simple, but special enough for a dinner party.
That’s terrific Judy! So pleased you enjoyed it, thanks for letting me know – N xx
This was quite good– couldn’t eat much of it because rather rich with the cream and butter, but quite good. I think I’ll saute the garlic and double the mustard next time for a bit more punch with tilapia.
Yes to more garlic and mustard to adjust it to your taste!! N xx
Always thought my baked whiting never had any pizzazz so I went on the hunt for a new recipe and found yours. Made it tonight. Substituted Dijon for spicy mustard. Omg super delicisioso!!! Thank you thank you!!
Wow what a compliment! Thank you Ambie! ❤️
Hi. I made the sauce in a pot. I don’t like cooking with cream, so I added some cornflour and milk and whipped it all together. Then I threw in some mussels for a bit until they were cooked – delicious!!
Oooh! That’s so clever that you used a “roux” and the mussels! YUM!