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!!
Another winner. So tasty, easy to prepare, very little clean up and I look like a champ! As always, thank you!
Awesome!!! I know it’s not fancy but I do like this for a quick fish dinner! 🙂 N x
What can I substitute for the mustard?
Hi Janae, I’m sorry but I can’t think of a substitute, it’s quite a key ingredient in this 🙂
Hi Nagi,
I LOVE your recipes, they are always a huge hit. I have made my way through your noodle dishes and am now looking for a few more fish recipes. I will be making this fish this week and have a quick question. Your video states to bake at 350 degrees and your recipe states 390 degrees. Can you please clarify? I look forward to making this. I always look like a pro when I make your dishes. Thank you.
Ahhh, thank you for picking that up Laura! It’s a typo in the video, I’m so used to writing 180C/350F for so many things! This recipe works better at a high temp I find 🙂 I’ve added a note to that effect. And thank you for your kind words!
If that is the case in cooking it in the oven, then at what temperature range would you recommend on the stovetop? Medium high? Medium?
I made this for dinner tonight using sole fillets, and it was so good! The bonus part was my picky toddler ate them too! Good job, Nagi!:)
Oh wow! Your TODDLER ate this too?? I’m super impressed!
What an easy and delicious dish! I made this with tilapia and was amazed by how perfect everything turned out. My pieces of fish may have been larger than yours; next time I may try doubling up on the sauce. The leftovers were just as yummy, cold and hot!
Woo hoo! I’m glad to hear you enjoyed this, thanks for letting me know Mimi! N xx
This looks so delicious, going to make it tonight with Tilapia. Thank you for the great recipe!
Hope you loved it Jennifer! 🙂
I made this dairy free with coconut cream and Earth Balance butter and it was still good! Thank you! Just found your website and love your recipes so far! I’ve done 3 in the last 3 nights! :):):)
Thanks for the compliment Jaime, and I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this! Thanks so much for letting me know! N x
Hi Nagi,
The holidays are finally over. Yay!! I’ve started doing Sunday dinners again for my mom. She turns 90 this year. Every Sunday dinner I pick one of your recipes to make. Today it was your baked fish with lemon cream sauce. I used key lime because that’s what I had but everything else was as written. My mom loved it, and the smell from the kitchen while it was cooking was divine. Thanks for sharing another incredible recipe!! I’m so glad I found your blog.
Ohhh….? I love hearing that! Thank you so much for using my recipes, I’m so touched! Please say hi to your mum for me! N xx
Hi Nagi! I rarely comment on blogs, but I have to comment here!!! Since I have found your blog I keep coming back to it for dinner recipes! Every single recipe that I tried was amazing!!! I have made this fish twice already, its sooooo good! Even my two year old loved it :-). Thank you!
Svetlana
Thank you for the compliment Svetlana! I’m so glad you are enjoying my recipes, thanks for trying them! N xx
I have made this so many times now! What a beautiful recipe, one if my favourites! Thank you x
Thanks for trying my recipe Bec! I’m glad to hear you enjoyed it, and I appreciate you letting me know! N x
Hi!!
This recipe looks great, do you think trout would work well with the flavors of the dish?
Hi Nicole! Yup, lemon cream is beautiful with trout! N x
The whole family loved this — me especially, since it was healthy, yummy AND a one pan meal! A great way to make fish a kid-friendly favorite. Thanks, Nagi!
Hi Laura, I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for taking the time to let me know – N x
Hi Nagi, thanks for the recipe! Well…. I substitute Fish with prawns, and my husband loved it!
I’m so glad you enjoyed this Elva, thank you for letting me know! N xx
That was fantastic. Sooooooo fast to prepare and everybody loved it. Thanks Nagi!
Woo hoo! So glad to hear that you enjoyed it Martha, thanks for letting me know! N x
Wow amazing flavour and super simple. With fishermen in the family I am always looking for new ideas with fish. Thanks for sharing. I am about to make up a weekly menu from your beautiful recipes.
I’m so glad you like the look of this recipe Chris, I do hope you try it one day! N x
Found your recipe as I was bored of fish done in the same manner week after week, partly because of being too scared to try a new recipe and it flopping.
Amazing – thank you! Super easy, all ingredients in my home and supper served in 20 minutes. Even hubby loved it.
I changed it a bit as suggested and used a light cream and a bit of wholegrain mustard mixed with english mustard. I omitted the shallots and served the fish with a spiced rice.
Fantastic to hear Lee! Thank you so much for taking the time to let me know! N x
We don’t eat fish for moral and ecological reasons. Do you think this recipe would work for any other type of meat? If so, what modifications would be involved? Thanks! 🙂
I would like to make other recipes using this method though, so I will share some soon!
Hi CF! It would but the recipe would need modification and I have not tested it yet 🙂
I did give this 5 stars but only 4 showed up?
Marianne
Glitch in the recipe system ? Thanks for trying though! N xx
Hi Nagi
Another winner – keep them coming please. I made this tonight and it was super easy and super delicious.
These easy, and oh so tasty, meals are just the thing for busy Mums – in fact for everyone! This one will be circulated to friends and colleagues.
I used cod and it was great!
I’m so glad Marianne! Thank you for taking the time to come back and let me know – N x
I have yet to find a recipe on your website that I’ve tried and didn’t adore! This fish dish is so tasty! I did substitute evaporated milk for the cream as suggested and it worked a treat. Love the website?
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Robyn, thank you for letting me know! N xx