Cod Fillets With Cilantro Yogurt Sauce

By Martha Rose Shulman

Cod Fillets With Cilantro Yogurt Sauce
Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
Total Time
40 minutes
Rating
4(679)
Comments
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This cooling herbed yogurt sauce is adapted from the chef Yotam Ottolenghi in London, who serves it with leek fritters. But it’s wonderful with mild fish like cod. The fish, while delicious, is utterly simple: fillets baked in a 300-degree oven until opaque, 10 to 20 minutes depending on the thickness of the pieces. It is the sauce that is the star, and that comes together quickly in a food processor. Combine roughly chopped cilantro and parsley, garlic that has been mashed to a paste, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and yogurt. (Whole-milk yogurt would be best for body and flavor, while low-fat is O.K., and nonfat untenable.) Process until the mixture is smooth and green. There will be sauce left over, which you can use on yet more fish, or as a dip for vegetables or fritters, anything that would thrive when dunked in the refreshing, herb-graced sauce.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings (you’ll have sauce left over)
  • 2cups cilantro leaves (some stems are O.K. – you don’t have to pick off each leaf the way you do with parsley)
  • ½cup flat-leaf parsley leaves
  • 2garlic cloves
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 2tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 2tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1cup plain Greek yogurt (low-fat or whole)
  • 1½pounds Alaskan cod fillets
  • Lemon wedges for garnish
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

273 calories; 12 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 5 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 3 grams sugars; 36 grams protein; 642 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    To make the sauce, coarsely chop the cilantro and the parsley leaves. In a mortar and pestle, mash the garlic with a pinch of salt. Place the cilantro and parsley in a food processor fitted with the steel blade and process until finely chopped. Add the garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, about ½ teaspoon salt (or to taste), and the yogurt and process until the mixture is smooth and green. Transfer to a bowl.

  2. Step 2

    Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Line a sheet pan with foil and oil the foil. Season the fish fillets with salt and pepper and lay on the foil. Place a pan of just boiled water on the floor of your oven and place the baking sheet with the fish in the oven on the middle rack. Bake 10 to 20 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fillets, until the fish is opaque on the surface and you can pull it apart with a fork.

  3. Step 3

    Remove the fish from the oven, transfer to plates or a platter, and spoon on the sauce. Garnish with lemon wedges and serve.

Tip
  • Advance preparation: You can make the sauce a few hours ahead. Keep in the refrigerator and stir well before serving.

Ratings

4 out of 5
679 user ratings
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Comments

Figaro

Try putting the pan into the oven, then pour the boiling water into it; push pan back in on the shelf. No worries about scaling water on your feet!

Stephanie

This sauce is addictive. I've put it on salmon and chicken, delicious!

Philip Glebow

I'm not a fan of cilantro so I replaced it with dill - it was excellent!

Pat K

If you're like me and automatically reduce the amount of salt in new-to-you recipes, you'll likely be surprised about the amount of needed for this sauce. Our family found that it really does need 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

Paula

Forget about baking cod. Saute instead with butter, salt and pepper. Or use salmon because it tastes better with this sauce. IMO the sauce is smashing!!!

Dragoi

I would say what's important about the yogurt isn't that it's *drained* like Greek yogurt, but that it's *tangy*, whether or not it's Greek. It's going to melt on the hot fish anyway. And please, FULL fat only :)

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