Recipe for Parmesan Crusted Tilapia with Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce at Life's Ambrosia

Throughout my teen years and my early 20s, I worked at a seafood restaurant in my home town. During my 6 years there I got to see a variety of fish on the menu and it was there that I was first introduced to tilapia. It is now one of may favorite pieces of fish, not only is it mild but it is also very inexpensive to make at home. Another plus, it doesn’t make your house smell when you cook it, and for me in my little apartment, that is a wonderful thing. For this recipe I coated tilapia with shredded Parmesan cheese, sauteed it until it was golden brown and topped it with a tomato-basil cream sauce. It was fast and delicious, perfect for a weeknight meal.

It took me a few tries to get the coating just right for this recipe. The first time I tried there was virtually no Parmesan breading left on the fish but after a talk with a friend I found that it was best to lightly dust the fish in seasoned flour, then egg, then the Parmesan. The result was a light, flaky coating that nicely complimented the fish.

Serves 2

You will need:

3 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
10-12 cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup cream
small handful of fresh basil leaves
2 tilapia fillets
kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper
1/4 cup flour
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook 1-2 minutes. Add cherry tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium low and add cream. Let simmer for 15 minutes. Sauce will turn slightly pink and coat the back of the spoon. (Note: It is okay if the sauce boils slightly.)
Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet large enough to fit both fillets.
Rinse and pat dry the tilapia fillets. Season both sides with kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper.
Combine Parmesan, panko and granulated garlic.
Dredge the seasoned tilapia fillets in the seasoned flour. Shake off excess. Dip in egg. Press into Parmesan/panko mixture.
Place in heated skillet and cook 3-4 minutes per side. Fish will be golden brown and will flake easily when done.
When you remove the fish, chiffonnade the basil (Note: To do this, simply roll up a few basil leaves and gently chop). Stir the basil into the sauce. Season with salt and pepper if needed.
Lay fish on a serving platter and spoon sauce over the top. Serve.

I served this with steamed asparagus and my Creamy Mashed Potatoes, it was delicious. Enjoy!

Like this recipe? Recommend it to your friends!

Responses to "Parmesan Crusted Tilapia with Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce"

“
What a great spring meal. Love the sauce.
”

- cassie

“
Oh that looks so delicious. I recently tried tilapia for the first time and love it!
”

- Debbie

“
fish and basil is such a classy combination, and one that gets used rarely! I like the fusion you did here, incorporating the panko, which must add such a great crunch, I have yet to try using panko, but I’ve loved it every time I’ve tried it in rastaurants. Glorious photos too :)
”

- Marta

“
Thanks Cassie! Light meals like this are perfect for spring :)
Thanks Debbie!
Thanks Marta! I buy a huge box of panko when I go to the Asian market because I use it for so many different things. You’re right it does add really great crunch.
”

- Deseree

“
I love Tilapia cuz you can basically do anything with it since it’s so mild. It’s also usually on sale at our local Safeway so that makes it even better! I tried Panko breadcrumbs for the first time just a month ago and now I’m totally hooked! This looks like the perfect recipe and I can’t wait to try it!
”

- Cookie

“
I recently had a girlfriend as me for tilapia recipes so I’ll send this off to her.
”

- Mrs. L

“
Now that is a tasty way to enjoy some fish!
”

- Kevin

“
Honesty, this is the best meal I have made in a really long time. I don’t know if I can thank you enough. It was ridiculously delicious.
”

- Maya

“
I hope you enjoy it Cookie!
Thanks Mrs. L!
Thanks Kevin!
Maya: Thank you for the feedback! I am so happy to hear that you enjoyed the dish so much :)
”

- Deseree

“
Just made it and absolutely LOVED the flavors. I have a small kitchen, too, which now smells like fresh herbs and golden fried parmesan. This is definitely one of my new go-to meals for a weeknight–thanks!
”

- Adam

“
You’re welcome Adam! Thank you for letting me know how it turned out! Fresh herbs and golden friend parmesan is a wonderful smell to have in your kitchen :)
”

- Deseree

“
The recipe calls for a half cup of cream. Is that half and half or whipping cream or what?
”

- sandy

“
Sandy: Sorry for being a bit confusing! I used heavy cream.
”

- Deseree

“
I’ve made this dish a couple of times since you posted and it is now a permanent member of our repertoire. The panko and parmesan make a crunchy flavorful crust, and the creamy sauce really brings it all together. We served it over cous cous. Well done!
”

- Gary

“
Thank you Gary! It is nice to know that you enjoyed it so much! I think the crunchy panko and parmesan crust is my favorite part of the dish :)
”

- Deseree

“
hey,
i’m not really a fish person, but my dad eats a lot of fish. i’m kinda apprehensive to do sauces for him because most of the time he doesn’t appreciate it. i’m reading all these comments and it’s giving me a lil encouragement to try it. what i wanted to find out was….i saw u used panko breadcrumbs, i don’t know what that is, but i’m hoping that normal breadcrumbs could work? also….fresh cracked pepper means what? is it like black pepper?…or…red pepper flakes?
”

- belle

“
hey belle, panko bread crumbs are Japanese breadcrumbs that are lighter and give you a crunchier texture than regular breadcrumbs. If you have a large supermarket near you, you can usually find them in the Asian food aisle. I have never tried this with regular breadcrumbs so I can’t say whether or not it would be good. Fresh cracked pepper is black pepper, I use a pepper grinder to crack the peppercorns when I need them, but you could certainly use ground pepper if you don’t have a grinder or peppercorns. Hope this helps!
”

- Deseree

“
thanks deseree, i hope my dad likes your recipe!
”

- belle

“
Hi Deseree! I tried this recipe last night for the first time ever, also my first time cooking tilapia, and i was out of parmesan so i used asiago and it still turned out amazing. thanks for sharing this recipe, it didn’t last five minutes on the dinner table before it was all gobbled up =)
”

- Suzanne

“
HI! I just stumbled upon your blog the other day and love it! I cooked this tilapia dish and my husband said it was one of his top three favorite meals I’ve ever made for him. I paired this dish wish roasted zucchini and a baked sweet potato. Keep up the great work!
”

- Debra

“
Thank you Debra! I am glad that you and your husband liked this tilapia so much. Its one of my favorites too. :)
”

- Deseree

“
Another awesome recipe, thanks! We loved it!
”

- Tai

“
Wow and again I say WOW!!! Just made this for dinner tonight and it was so good! I couldn’t believe it. Me and my husband both just kept going “mmmmm”. I will DEFINITELY be making this again. So easy but so light and fresh and just fantastic!
”

- Megan