Roasted Fish With Lemon, Sesame and Herb Bread Crumbs

Published April 8, 2023

Roasted Fish With Lemon, Sesame and Herb Bread Crumbs
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Total Time
20 minutes
Rating
4(637)
Comments
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Trout is an ideal weeknight dinner because its thin fillets cook in minutes. All it really needs is some butter and lemon, but an herb-panko mixture adds freshness and crunch. The breadcrumb mixture is inspired by za’atar, a spice blend that includes sesame seeds, dried herbs and tart-citrusy sumac. Using fresh thyme and oregano instead of dried herbs, and lemon zest in place of dried sumac yields a brighter final dish. If you want to use dried za’atar, swap in 3 tablespoons of the blend for the first four ingredients. Serve the fish alongside rice, a green salad, boiled potatoes or braised chickpeas. The fish roasts in about the same time as string beans, broccolini or snap peas would, so you can also roast vegetables on a second baking sheet while the fish cooks.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 2tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
  • 1tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
  • 1tablespoon fresh oregano leaves, coarsely chopped
  • 2teaspoons lemon zest, lemon cut into wedges for serving
  • Kosher salt and black pepper
  • 1cup panko bread crumbs
  • 4tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 4(4-to-6-ounce) trout fillets or 2 whole butterflied trout
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

384 calories; 23 grams fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 7 grams monounsaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 13 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 1 gram sugars; 31 grams protein; 415 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

    Heat the oven to 450 degrees. In a medium bowl, combine the sesame seeds, thyme, oregano, lemon zest, ¾ teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper. Rub the mixture between your fingers until the herbs are bruised and fragrant. Stir in the bread crumbs and butter until combined.

  2. Step 2

    Season the trout with salt and pepper and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet, skin side down. Spoon the bread crumbs evenly over the fish and bake until the fish is opaque and the bread crumbs are golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges alongside.

Ratings

4 out of 5
637 user ratings
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Comments

I recently discovered that no all parchment papers are able to handle 450º, so check what temperature that your parchment paper is good for. Mine mentions it is fine up to 425º).

Made this first as written, but didn’t feel the blandness of the topping justified the work of making it. Followed the suggestion of one of the commenters here and added paprika the second time, as well as a bit more salt, and — bam — delicious! The paprika adds just the oomph the topping needs. I used maybe 1.5 tsp.

Super easy when using dried za'atar as suggested in the description. I used tilapia rather than trout.

This recipe is great! I used Za'atar, and doubled the lemon zest. Maybe tripled? So good. Brushed fish with mustard to get coating nice and stuck on there. Not at all bland, but maybe that was the lemon zest and mustard. New favorite fish recipe, a close relative to the Ina Garten panko-crusted salmon that was our former fave, but somehow even better with the za'atar and the melted butter.

Really nice, make sure use full amount of herbs. I baked at 475, which browned the crumbs nicely.

This is easy enough for quick dinner and elegant enough for entertaining! This is in our dinner rotation.. use halibut because of preference.

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