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!!
Jessica Nguyen says
Omg. I just made this for the first time tonight for 7 adults (risky, I know) and it was a huge hit!!! I tripled the recipe using 12 tilapia fillets and 3 baking dishes. There were a few hearty men that would be likely to have more than one fillet and I wanted some leftovers. I added more garlic, swapped out the heavy cream for unsweetened almond milk, and added white button mushrooms, lots of fresh dill, and lemon slices during the baking process. We like a thinner, more brothy type of sauce so the mushrooms added a bit more water and thinned out the sauce. The flavors were fantastic!! Served on a bed of brown basmati rice and wilted spinach, with a side of garlicky, parmesan asparagus. The only bad thing to say is there are no leftovers!! Definitely will be making this again and looking forward to checking out your other recipes. THANK YOU! ♥️
Nagi says
WOAH! So happy to hear it worked scaling it up so much!!! N xx
Danielle says
Hi Nagi,
This recipe looks delicious. I’m thinking of making it, but I have some leftover creme fraiche in the fridge. Do you think I could use this instead of cream?
Thanks,
😊
Nagi says
Hi Danielle! That should work just fine, your sauce will be a bit richer 🙂 Deeeelish! N x
Melissa says
I’ve made this twice – once following the recipe exactly and using fish. It was sooo good, and incredibly easy to make!! I thought the sauce would taste good with chicken, so I decided to try that the next time. This time I made the sauce as directed, but cooked everything on the stove top. It was delicious again! Thank you so much for this recipe!!
Nagi says
Wow that’s so great to hear Melissa! Thanks for letting me know! N x
Jasmine says
Such a great recipe. Used tilapia and it came out delicious!! I have made this couple times already.
Nagi says
That’s so terrific to hear Jasmine!!!! Thanks for taking the time to let me know – N x ❤️
jodi says
will this work with chicken?
Nagi says
I haven’t tried yet Jodi 🙂 I think it will need some tweaking 🙂
Jason says
Well technically…on the vegetarian thing…she would be right in calling herself so. By definition a vegetarian may or may not eat seafood. But will eat meat byproducts such as milk base foods and egg. So i think you’ll be fine…lol
If she were vegan, however, she would eat lots of protien veggies, protien supplements and absolu2 no meat or meat byproducts.
Andrea says
I am always on the lookout for new fish recipes for dinner. Not only was this dish easy to prepare but it was delicious! My husband is super picky and he gave it a big thumbs up! I am definitely adding it to my meal rotation!
Nagi says
That’s so great to hear Andrea! Thanks for letting me know! N xx
HL says
Hi Nagi, Can I prep this dish ahead of time and let the fish sit in the sauce uncooked (in the fridge) until I’m ready to cook it? If not, can I cook it ahead of time and just reheat it when I’m ready to eat it? What’s the best way to reheat it?
I love your recipe and would like to prepare it for a friend who is not well–if I can prepare it ahead of time then all she would need to do is bake it in the oven or reheat it. Thanks.
Nagi says
HI HL! I’d leave the fish separate from everything else – put it all in bowl and pour it over just before baking 🙂 N x
Sarahanne says
Incredible recipe Nagi! Had this tonight for dinner on a cold windy North Netherlands Sunday night.
Thanks!
Sarahanne
Nagi says
That’s terrific to hear Sarahanne! Thank you for sharing your feedback! N x ❤️
Michelle Radford says
YUMMO! Made this tonight and even my very fussy eight-year-old went back for seconds! So easy and so delish!
Thanks Nagi xx
Nagi says
That’s terrific to hear Michelle! Thank you for sharing your feedback! N x ❤️
Carole says
Hi Nagi,
OMGoodness, what a delicious dish!
I just made it for me and my husband. We both absolutely enjoyed it.
This is definitely going to be a staple, especially after work, it was so quick. We had it with new potatoes and green beans.
Very yummy……..
Thank you for such a simple and yet delicious dish.
Carole
Nagi says
I’m pleased you enjoyed it Carole, thanks for letting me know! N x
John Grawcock says
Made this tonight. I served it over rice. Easy and tastes great. The wife’s comment was don’t lose that recipe. 🙂
Nagi says
That’s so wonderful to hear!! Thanks for letting me know John – N x ❤️
May says
Hi Nagi, love and enjoy cooking with your recipes. As I have a lot of dill, is it ok to add to this recipe- baked fish with lemon cream. Thanks
Marlene says
Hi Nagi, OMG this is the best dish. I have made it several times and it seem to get better the more times I make it. Family love it – (not big fish eaters) we have it regularly because they ask for it. Thanks for the recipe.
Nagi says
I’m so pleased to hear that Marlene! Thanks for sharing your feedback! N x 😊
Kathrina says
Hi Nagi, can you recommend an alternative to Dijon Mustard? I would like to try this tonight. Thank you.
Sarah says
@Kathrina – I have swapped out Dijon with Mild Australian Mustard before. Masterfoods sell it in the little jars. Mild Australian Mustard isn’t a very feisty mustard, like Hot English is, I find it to be a good alternative,just be slightly more sparing than normal as while Mild Australian doesn’t have the feisty-ness of Hot English, it is a stronger mustard-y mustard than dijon. That sentence is shameful 🙂
@Nagi – Thank-you for this recipe, it is brilliant and I’ll be making it again tonight, with whiting fillets.
Nagi says
I’m so pleased to hear that Sarah! Thanks for letting me know! N xx ❤️
Nagi says
Hi Kathrina! I’m sorry that’s a bit hard for this recipe, it is used as a thickener as well as flavour :0 Sorry!
Art says
Hi Nagi,
I want to try this dish tonight. Is it okay to use whiting fish fillets with skin?
Nagi says
Hi Art! Yup that should be fine! N x
Judy says
I made this for one and not having either cream or evaporated milk in stock I made up 1/4 of a packet of cheese sauce then added the other sauce ingredients. Cooked my piece of Hoki in the sauce in an air fryer on 180 degrees for 9 minutes -delicious.
Nagi says
That’s great to hear Judy! Thanks for leaving a review! N x
Agnes says
Hi Nagi, I’d love to try this, but I don’t have a microwave, is there any other way to prepare/make the sauce without put it in the microwave? Thank you.
Nagi says
Hi Agnes! In a small saucepan on the stove will be fine! 🙂
Christine says
This is now my new favorite way to make fish ❤️ Ive made 10 times with halibut and now snowy grouper. It’s amazing and thanks for sharing.
Nagi says
Great to hear Christine! Thanks for letting me know! N xx
Jodi says
I made this delish dish last week. Will definitely be making it again and again! Making the honey mustard chicken tonight. Thanks you recipes and blog a fantastic read.
Nagi says
Thank you for the review Jodi, it’s so terrific to hear you enjoyed this! N xx