A Pan Seared Tilapia recipe that is healthy, with flavorful spices and a hint of heat! This easy grill-style fish bursts with loads of flavor and is guaranteed to be a hit alongside your favorite carbs and veggies. Best of all, it is ready in under 10 minutes!
A Pan Seared Tilapia Fish recipe is one of the easiest and quickest ways to get a healthy tasty protein on your family’s plate! I always keep a bag of frozen tilapia in the freezer to come in handy at least once a week (and yes, frozen works just fine too, especially because I cannot always make it to the store for fresh fish on a whim!). (A bag contains 8 to 10 pieces of tilapia fillets.
Jump to RecipeHOW TO MAKE EASY PAN FRIED TILAPIA
PREP YOUR TILAPIA FISH
First step is to get my tilapia fillets out of the freezer about four hours before it’s time to cook. This then gives us enough time for the fish to defrost and get to room temperature before it hits the pan!
Pat your fillets dry to remove so that you remove as much surface moisture as possible, then rub Olive Oil lightly all over each fillet. You do have the option to squeeze some lemon on you fish before the olive oil. I have not been doing this much as I don’t find tilapia to be one of the “fishy” tasting types of fish.
THE SPICES FOR FLAVORFUL TILAPIA!
Now it’s the fun part – the Spices! You can use whatever seasoning mixes you like, or create yours with salt, onion powder, paprika, black pepper, garlic powder. My old faithful and ready-to-go mix is Old Bay Seasoning ! I reach for this spice first in almost every meat recipe because it is just so comprehensive for my palette! Sprinkle the seasoning all over the fish (on both sides) – being mindful that this spice already has salt included. Next is my crushed black pepper. I love some heat in my fish so I then add Cayenne Pepper or Cameroon Pepper. Cameroon Pepper is made from dried scotch bonnet peppers; I can testify it is an interesting smoky heat that lights up your dishes beautifully!
PAN FRY / SEAR YOU TILAPIA IN OLIVE OIL
I love to use Olive Oil to sear my meats because it is a relatively healthier oil option over the other available types of oils. Read more about why Olive Oil is a healthier option.
Heat up your oil on medium high heat for about a minute – you do not want the oil to burn! How to cook tilapia in a pan is relatively easy, but you do have to be mindful. Carefully place your tilapia fillet in the pan. Sear for about 3 minutes, you should see the color of the underside slowly change to whitish.
Carefully flip over and cook the other side for about 3 minutes as well. The color for me is a rich brown due to the coloring of my spices and black pepper!.
BON APPETIT!
I love to plop this on some Spaghetti with my favorite sauce. Sharing that recipe very soon! My yummy tilapia does have a blackened look to it too – LOVE!
Spicy Pan Seared Tilapia Fish
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp Olive Oil
- 4 fillets Tilapia Fish
- 1/2 tsp Mixed seasoning adjust qty to your taste
- 1/4 tsp Black pepper
- 1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper or Cameroon Pepper
Instructions
- Pat your fish fillets dry
- Rub Olive Oil all over fish.
- Sprinkle your seasoning mix, black pepper and Cayenne or Cameroon pepper – on both sides of fish.
- Heat up 2 tbsps of olive oil in pan on medium heat for about 1 minute.
- Place fish in pan and cool for 3 minutes.
- Flip over and cook for 3 minutes on the other side as well.
- Fish should now be crispy on the outside, browned and ready to go!
Would love to see your tilapia recipes! Follow me on Instagram and tag me on your creations. @asakes.kitchen on Instagram!
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