Sautéed Tilapia with a Creamy White Wine & Lemon Sauce

Healthy Healthy, Joy Joy!

Healthy Healthy, Joy Joy!

So tilapia is one of those fish that I love and 'un-love'. It's such a plain fish which explains my love/hate relationship because alone the fish really isn't something to write home about but when paired, dressed or sautéed with other flavors this plain fish comes to life and brings home the bacon.

Paul is away, again, so before he left I wanted to make him a hearty and filling dinner that was going to still be lean on the buns since he's been in training for his big event in November.
{he's too cute}


Tilapia recipes are hard to find without some type of breading or flour-rolled crust so I was happy enough to stumble upon this recipe on Gourmet Betty that had none of the frying, breading or crust piece to the recipe. I kind of changed it up a bit to what I had in the kitchen, and it worked out perfectly. 

To hardy up the dish a bit I put the tilapia over couscous but I think this fish recipe would also be fantastic of a light bed of spinach to really accent the colors and add that light crunch to the dish.

The fish was excellent and the sauce was just the right creamy texture to moisten up the dish. Sprinkle a little extra basil or parmesan on top and you've got dinner served. This is also an excellent way to introduce kids to fish because the comfort in the creamy lemon sauce makes this dish 'taste just like chicken'. I think the whole family would love this sautéed tilapia.

Try it tonight.

Sautéed Tilapia with a Creamy White Wine & Lemon Sauce
Photos by A Healthy Jalapeño
Recipe adopted from Gourmet Betty


Ingredients
3 tbsp lemon olive oil
1 ½ lbs Tilapia Fillets
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

salt and pepper, to taste

1 tablespoon lemon olive oil
1 shallot, roughly chopped
1 tbsp garlic, minced

1/2 cup white wine
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon fresh basil
1/2 lemon

In a sauce pan, heat 1 tablespoon of the lemon olive oil over medium heat. Sauté shallots and garlic until softened and beginning to color, about 1 1/2 minutes.

Add wine, increase heat to high and bring to boil, boil until reduced to 1/4 cup, about 3-5 minutes. Remove sauce pan from burner and whisk in butter, parmesan, parsley and a squeeze of half a lemon. Keep warm till ready to serve.

Lightly season both sides of fillet with cayenne, salt and pepper. 

Sauté for 2 to 3 minutes on each side and until the edges of fillet are opaque and bottoms are lightly browned.

Transfer fillets onto plate. Pour the lemon sauce over the tilapia and serve on top of couscous.

Alternative: This dish would also be excellent over a bed a spinach. 

Enjoy!