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e’ve talked about fish before. All our fishy issues. Sara doesn’t like it. My husband doesn’t like it. My son loves it, but my daughter hates it. It’s hard for me to cook seafood because I’m not a short-order cook, so I refuse to make separate meals for everyone in the family, but I also truly understand not loving fish because I didn’t like it at all growing up and I don’t want to subject my family to the same gag-worthy torture that I had to endure. Also, good fish can be quite spendy, so I don’t want to drop that kind of cash for something that my family is going to endure-borderline-hate.
So sometimes, when my daughter stays a few extra hours at preschool and I don’t feel bad about telling my husband that he can make his own dang lunch, I make fish for myself for lunch. Is that weird?
I do have a few confessions about this particular recipe. First, I don’t have a lot (read: any) pictures of the creamy dipping sauce because I was making it up as I went along. Second, and along those lines, for me, this fish was super tasty, but the sauce ended up knocking my socks off, so it kind of became a vehicle for the dipping sauce. If it were socially acceptable to eat it by itself, I would (and really, why isn’t it?! People eat sweet yogurt by itself all the time, so why not savory? I think I shall start a revolution…)
This comes together super quickly because fish doesn’t need to marinate for very long. You’ll need honey, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, garlic, fresh ginger, olive oil, and 16-24 ounces of your favorite fish (the original recipe called for mahi mahi, but I couldn’t find any mahi mahi, so I used and liked tilapia. I’d bet all my unfolded laundry that salmon, although fishier, would be fabulous.)
Whisk together the honey, soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, garlic, and oil. Rinse the fish in cool water and then place it in the marinade. Let it hang out for 20-60 minutes.
While the fish is marinading, whisk together 6 ounces of low-fat or fat-free plain Greek yogurt, a little garlic and grated ginger, soy sauce, lime juice, some grated lime rind, green onions, some kosher salt, and a little Sriracha sauce. I used 1/4 teaspoon and it the sauce itself was pretty spicy, but once you got it on the fish, it was perfect for me. However, you might want to start with just a few drops or 1/8 teaspoon and then go from there. Let it hang out in the fridge until you’re done cooking the fish.
When you’re ready to cook the fish, heat an indoor grill pan over medium heat and spray with non-stick cooking spray or brush with vegetable oil. Cook the fish for 4-6 minutes per side or until the fish flakes easily with a fork. You can also place it on a foil-lined baking sheet
and cook it under the low broiler setting in your oven for 4-6 minutes per side. Serve with brown rice, steamed veggies, and with the creamy dipping sauce.
Honey-Ginger Glazed Tilapia
Fish recipe adapted from allrecipes.com
Sauce by Our Best Bites
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon grated ginger root
2 teaspoons minced or pressed garlic
2 teaspoons olive oil
4-6 4-ounce tilapia fillets (or other favorite fish)
Creamy Dipping Sauce
6 ounces fat-free plain Greek yogurt
1 small clove garlic, minced or pressed
1/2 teaspoon grated ginger root
1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons chopped green onions
Juice of 1 small, juicy lime (about 2 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon lime zest
Sriracha sauce to taste (1/8-1/4 teaspoon will suit most tastes)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Optional: 1-2 teaspoons finely minced cilantro
Instructions:
Whisk together the honey, soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, garlic, and olive oil. Marinate the fish in the mixture for 20 minutes-1 hour.
While the fish is marinating, whisk together the creamy sauce ingredients. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Heat a grill pan over medium heat and brush with vegetable oil or spray with non-stick cooking spray. Cook the fish for 4-6 minutes per side or until it flakes easily with a fork. Serve immediately with the dipping sauce alongside steamed veggies and brown rice.
Questions & Reviews
Yum! I’m going to try this recipe this weekend! I know exactly what you mean as something becoming a vehicle for sauce. Your sauce looks very similar to my new favorite recipe for salad dressing. It’s also the only way I can trick my preschooler into eating (or trying) salad or veggies.
Made a quick version of this for dinner tonight. It was great!
The first time I tried tilapia was in your grilled fish tacos, which is now a family favorite (YUM), and I was looking at the tilapia at Costco wishing it was grilling weather, but now we have this and I’m sure it will be fabulous as well! Your sauces/dressings are always fantastic!! Thank You 🙂
Thank you! My kids happen to love tilapia…and I can’t wait to try this recipe out.
Thanks for a new idea for fish. I *love* fish and this sounds lovely 🙂
This sounds really good right now! We all love fish here. In fact one of my 8 yr. old’s favorite school lunches is Tilapia! Forget pizza day (a rarity at our school) he wants fish! But try and get him to eat fruits or veggies…not going to happen. And the sauce sounds so good! I can see why you’d want to start a savory yogurt revolution! 🙂
I love fish! So glad you posted this 🙂
put it in sandwich :o) with spinach and your sauce
Kate, I don’t have a grill pan, could I use a Foreman grill for this or should I just stick with the broiler for the glazey effect?
Have to be totally honest here…I think one of the major sellers of your cookbook for me is that there were no fish/seafood recipes in it! (Well, aside from one with shrimp, but that could easily be omitted for chicken…) I am definitely not a fish eater, however, my husband likes it occasionally. Maybe I will be a great wife and try this for him (don’t think you can go wrong when garlic and balsamic vinegar are involved)…or better yet, send him and this recipe over to his mom’s, I know both of them would love it! Thanks for all the great recipes you share…love every one I have tried! -The whole family does, my 3 year old has even convinced me to make some candy/Jello popcorn already today (and it is not even 9 am yet)!