Italian-style Baked Black Cod is buttery-rich and packed with flavor. This 5-ingredient recipe requires no fancy ingredients or equipment, but creates a knockout dinner. It's easy enough for weeknight cooking, but ideal for your holiday gathering or date night at home.
As a full-time seafood recipe developer, black cod (also known as sablefish) is one of my favorite kinds of fish. It's rich and buttery, giving you restaurant-quality seafood with very little effort.
Why You'll Love This Black Cod Recipe:
- 5 ingredients (plus salt and pepper)
- Less than 20 minutes to bake
- Classic Italian flavors everyone will love
If sablefish is on your mind, try this Pan-Seared Lemon Caper Sablefish recipe next.
Ingredients for Recipe
Before we get to the step-by-step instructions, a few notes about the ingredients and substitutions:
- Fish: black cod is ideal for this recipe, but you can use halibut, sea bass, or your favorite white fish. Reduce cooking time for lean white fish to about 10-12 minutes (or until cooked through).
- Breadcrumbs: classic Italian seasoned bread crumbs give the best flavor. But substitute Italian Panko crumbs, or season plain crumbs with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning to make your own.
- Butter: substitute extra virgin olive oil, if needed.
Check the printable recipe card below for a complete ingredient list and measurements.
Step-by-Step Instructions for Baked Sablefish
Step 1: Prep the Fish Fillets
Preheat oven and then dry fish fillets well with paper towels. Lay them in a baking dish or sheet pan that has been lightly oiled.
Step 2: Make Italian Crumb Topping
Combine melted butter with breadcrumbs, parmesan and a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss until sandy textured. Taste and add more salt, if needed. Squeeze fresh lemon juice over fish, then top each fillet with Italian seasoned crumb mixture.
Step 3: Bake and Serve
Roast fish for 16-18 minutes, until golden brown on top and flaky. Serve with lemon wedges and diced parsley.
What to Serve with Black Cod
This famously rich and fatty white fish pairs well with Lemony Garlic Green Beans or an acidic Fresh Tomato Salad.
Does Black Cod Taste Fishy?
Black cod is an ocean fish, so it has a more robust flavor than many freshwater white fish. But it is a fatty fish, so the overall experience is rich and flaky, not strong or fishy.
What is Special About Black Cod?
Most white fish are light and lean - think cod, pollock and haddock. All very low fat. Black cod has a similar appearance, but it contains higher fat, making it almost impossible to overcook, and giving a rich, satisfying texture to any dish. It's a unique seafood that brings a fancy restaurant-experience flavor to the table. It can be hard to find in your local market, so I always order sablefish from Sena Sea. Delivers it to my front door and it's always perfect!
What's the Difference Between Black Cod and Sablefish?
Nothing! They are exactly the same fish.
Print
Italian Baked Black Cod Recipe (Sablefish)
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4
Ingredients
- 4 5-6 ounce black cod fillets (sablefish)
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice, plus wedges for serving
- ½ cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
- 2 tablespoon parmesan, grated
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
- Pinch of salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees and position rack in upper third of the oven. Cover a baking pan with foil and drizzle with olive oil or spray with nonstick oil. Dry fish fillets well with paper towels and lay on the foil.
- In a small bowl, combine Italian breadcrumbs, grated Parmesan, melted butter and a pinch of salt and pepper. Mix with your fingers until combined and sandy textured.
- Drizzle ½ tablespoon of lemon juice over each fish fillet, then cover with about 2 tablespoons of the breadcrumb mixture. Pat gently to ensure the crumbs stick to the fish. Transfer to oven and bake for 16-18 minutes, until the topping is golden brown and fillets are cooked through and flaky.
- Serve with lemon slices.
Notes
- Black Cod (Sablefish) is notoriously fatty, so we want to bake it long enough to render some fat and create a beautiful, flaky fish. Normal bake time for lean white fish is 10-12 minutes, so be patient with this one! It will still be on the table in under 20!
- Black cod has a row of pin bones that are easy to remove once it is baked. They will pull away from the meat a bit and are easy to see as you flake into the fish when eating.
- Use Italian seasoned Panko crumbs, if you'd like. Or season plain breadcrumbs with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning.
- You can use extra virgin olive oil in place of melted butter in the crumb topping.
- Keep leftover black cod in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. To reheat, bake gently or warm in a skillet with a bit of butter or water on low heat until just warmed through.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 20
- Category: Easy Recipes
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ¼
- Calories: 148
- Sugar: 1.1 g
- Sodium: 732.9 mg
- Fat: 10.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 11.8 g
- Protein: 3.1 g
- Cholesterol: 24.7 mg
Jill
I was sold with five ingredients and 20 minutes. I'm always looking for something quick and easy, and this recipe was all of that and so delicious. I'll be making this one on repeat!
Christina Jolam
Thanks, Jill! I'm with you...just can't get enough of Black Cod. Such an amazing fish.
Greg Shill
Is black cod available in Portugal? If so what is it called?
Christina Jolam
I've never seen it in any of my regular markets around Lisbon and Cascais. But if I see it, I'll yell! I make this recipe (and my Sablefish with Lemon Butter Caper Sauce) when I'm back in the US. Because of the fat content in this fish, it's tough to find a white fish substitute. Salmon is likely your best bet for texture and cooking process on this recipe.
J.T.
I made this tonight for my family. It was great and my kids loved it. Thank you!
Christina Jolam
Thanks, J.T. - it's one of my favorites, too. Love hearing that your kids are big fish fans! Buttery breadcrumbs make it easy to love 😉 Appreciate you coming back to leave a helpful review!
Cate
Great easy recipe! Thanks!
Christina Jolam
So glad you loved it, Cate! This one never fails to win the day at my house 😉 Appreciate you coming back to leave a helpful review!