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GET IT NOWMy Baked Cod Recipe Is Flaky, Buttery, And So Easy
One of my favorite things ever is showing you my super simple staples for a busy weeknight dinner… like this baked cod. This easy 20-minute meal isn’t fancy. Instead, like many of my other fish recipes, it’s the one for nights I’d rather be with my family instead of in the kitchen. For nights when I’m just tired. For nights I get home and it’s already dinnertime. Here’s why it’s perfect for those:
- Perfectly moist, flaky cod – This is a lean fish, so some cod recipes can be easy to dry out. Not this one!
- Bright, lemony, and buttery – The flavor of cod isn’t as rich as my baked salmon or rainbow trout, but that means the lemon butter sauce gets to shine! I love the way it brightens up the fish. (If you’re a fan of this combo with seafood, you’ll also enjoy it in my pan fried tilapia, garlic butter shrimp, or halibut recipes.)
- Quick and easy – My oven baked cod recipe has fast, hands-off prep and needs just 5 ingredients (plus a little salt and pepper). The only faster way I’ve cooked cod is in the air fryer, but this baked version only needs your oven.
If you’re having one of those nights, don’t stress — take a deep breath and bake cod in the oven with me!
Ingredients & Substitutions
Here I explain the best ingredients for my baked cod recipe, what each one does, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card.
- Cod – I prefer wild-caught, but you can use any cod fish you’ve got. Look for fillets that are about 4 ounces each and similar in thickness, so that they cook at the same rate. You can use larger ones too, they’ll just take a tiny bit longer to bake.
- Butter – Hello, flavor! I use unsalted butter so that I can control the salt separately, but feel free to use salted and just add less salt to the fish. You can substitute olive oil, but obviously the flavor isn’t the same.
- Lemon – You’ll need a fresh lemon (not bottled juice) for my baked cod recipe, because I use both lemon zest and the lemon juice. You won’t regret it!
- Garlic Powder – It’s the most convenient option, but I swap in a couple cloves of fresh minced or crushed garlic when I have the extra time.
- Fresh Parsley – You can also substitute fresh dill, chives, or thyme. I recommend fresh herbs here, since you’ll sprinkle them on at the end. If you need to use dried parsley, reduce the amount to 1 teaspoon and mix it with the lemon butter before brushing it on.
- Sea Salt & Black Pepper – I keep the spices simple. You can add a dash of paprika, onion powder, Italian seasoning, or even my lemon pepper seasoning if you want something extra.
How To Bake Cod
I have step-by-step photos here to help you visualize the recipe. For full instructions with amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card.
- Mix the lemon butter. Melt the butter in a shallow bowl in the microwave (or a saucepan on the stove also works), then stir in the fresh lemon juice and lemon zest.
- Season the fish. Arrange the cod fillets in a baking dish. Pat dry with paper towels, then brush the melted butter mixture over both sides. Season with garlic powder, sea salt, and pepper.
- Bake cod in the oven. It’s done when it’s opaque and flake easily with a fork, but see my tips below to avoid drying it out!
Don’t forget to drizzle the fish with the lemon butter sauce from the pan! I also like to garnish my baked cod recipe with lemon wedges or slices, and a sprinkle of fresh parsley on top.
My Recipe Tips
- I recommend thicker fillets for all my cod recipes, which dry out less. You can use regular cod fillets (vertical cuts from the side of the fish) or cod loin (thicker fillet cut from larger fish). Either will work, but I prefer cod loin, which has larger flakes.
- I usually thaw my fillets first for more even cooking, but my baked cod recipe also works from frozen. Just rinse to remove any ice, pat dry, and proceed with the recipe. Frozen cod will take an extra 5-10 minutes to bake.
- A quality lemon squeezer and citrus zester makes cooking this dish much more enjoyable. I had others in the past, and I hated juicing and zesting lemons. The ones I’ve linked here are what I have now — they make it fun, effortless, and take half the time!
- Make sure your baking dish is large enough to have space between fillets. If they are crowded, baking cod will take much longer and it won’t cook evenly.
- How long to bake cod? My general rule of thumb is to bake cod for 10-12 minutes per inch of thickness, but I always use my instant-read thermometer to make sure it’s perfect. I recommend removing cod from the oven at 135-140 degrees F, when it’s flaky but still moist. You can aim for 145 degrees F if you like it more well done.
- Variation: Toss in some cherry tomatoes! I do this sometimes and they add this amazing flavor as they burst while baking. It reminds me of my friend’s pan fried cod recipe, except it’s baked… and oh-so-buttery.
Baked Cod Recipe (20 Minutes)
My oven baked cod recipe is tender and flaky, with a dreamy lemon butter sauce! It takes just 20 minutes, with 5 simple ingredients.
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Instructions
Tap on the times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer.
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Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (204 degrees C). You can bake the cod fillets from frozen or thaw them first in a bowl of cold water. (I prefer thawing if you have time, as it makes it easier to brush on the butter without solidifying.)
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Use paper towels to pat the cod fillets dry. Arrange them in a single layer in a 9×13 baking dish.
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In a small bowl in the microwave or saucepan on the stove, melt the butter. Remove from heat. Stir in the lemon juice and lemon zest.
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Brush the lemon butter over the cod fillets. Season with garlic powder, sea salt, and black pepper. Flip and repeat both lemon butter and seasoning on the other side.
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Bake for 12-15 minutes (the time will vary by thickness), until the baked cod is opaque and flakes easily with a fork. For moist, tender flakes, aim for an internal temperature of 135-140 degrees F. Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve.
LAST STEP: Leave a rating to help other readers, or tag me @wholesomeyum on Instagram. I’d love to hear from you!
Maya’s Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1 cod fish fillet
- Tips: Check out my recipe tips above to help you get moist, flaky, and evenly cooked fish every time, plus one of my favorite variations.
- Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. Don’t prep the raw cod with lemon butter sauce without baking it, because it will start to turn into (an oddly flavored) ceviche.
- Reheat: I usually reheat baked cod in the oven again, but my air fryer also works well. I don’t recommend microwaving fish because it dries out.
- Freeze: You can freeze the fillets in a zip lock bag for up to 3 months. I line parchment paper between them, so I can separate them for faster thawing later.
- Note on the lemon: An average lemon is about 2 tablespoons of juice and 1 teaspoon of zest. If yours is very large, you might not need to use all of it.
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I provide nutrition facts as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see my nutrition policy.
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Baked Cod Recipe
Serving Ideas
My baked cod recipe is seasoned simply, so it goes with just about anything. I usually opt for a vegetable side dish. Here are some of my easy sides to serve with it:
- Asparagus – One of my favorite pairings for fish, and I have so many ways to make it! The easiest is to roast asparagus in the oven at the same time as this recipe for baked cod (in a separate pan), since they need the same temperature. You can also saute asparagus on the stovetop, air fry asparagus for the fastest method, or even wrap asparagus in bacon if you want to get fancy.
- Broccoli Or Cauliflower – Whole roasted cauliflower is amazing when I have time to make it. But let’s be real, for busy weeknights my simple roasted cauliflower, roasted broccoli, or a mix of broccoli and cauliflower together is more realistic.
- Brussels Sprouts – For a heartier veggie, try my roasted brussels sprouts or smashed brussels sprouts. You’ll just need to start them sooner, since they take longer than baked cod.
- Potatoes – For something starchy, make my simple roasted potatoes (my kids’ fave) or baked sweet potatoes. Or sneak in some veggies with my roasted rutabaga or loaded cauliflower cheese casserole.
More Fish Recipes
If you like my easy baked cod recipe, you might also like some of my other ways to cook fish:
90 Comments
Kristyn
0I need to eat more fish!! This recipe is perfectly tasty & the fish just melts in your mouth!
Toni
0This is really good!! I will definitely make it again!
Matt
0I have always loved using lemon with fish. This lemon-baked cod recipe is so good and incredibly easy to make. Such a great fish recipe. Can easily do the same with salmon as well.
Steve
0Super easy to make and my family loved it. Just delicious!
Joanne
0Easy & delicious!
Connie
0Two quick questions:
1. Can lime be substituted for lemon?
2. How can it be so low in calories with so much butter?
Thank you.
kazy
0Hi Connie. 1/4 cup of butter is 57 grams divided by 8 servings means you’re only consuming 7 grams of butter. Hope that helps in understanding why the calories are so low.
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Connie, Yes, lime is fine if you prefer that flavor. This recipe calls for 1/4 cup of butter and serves 8. If you have more questions you can refer to our nutrition policy.
Stephanie
0Delicious, simple recipe. I keep organic lemon juice in my fridge because I use it so often so I didn’t happen to have any fresh lemons on hand but it was still tasty and I look forward to trying it with the zest next time. I also used Kerrygold Garlic Herb Butter so I didn’t need any extra salt/pepper. I served it with cauliflower mashed potatoes, big hit at our house.
Judy
0I’m trying to eat more fish. This was delicious.
SJ
0This sounds good. Can you grill this?
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi SJ, Yes, you can grill this fish either in foil packets or on oiled grill grates.
Owen
0Love your recipes but the amount of pop ups on your website is irritating beyond belief.. I’m all in favour of people making money but come on.. you close one, 3 more open. not impressed and really hope that you can do something about it.. 🙁
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi Owen, Thanks for your feedback! I now have a completely ad-free version of the website. It’s called Wholesome Yum Plus and you can start using it right away!
Sandra
0Baked cod is a favorite in this house. Would you believe that I’ve never tried lemon butter on it? Lemon anything goes well with so many foods. Here’s our favorite way to have cod, & I sure hope that it can be paired up with the lemon butter: thaw the fish, pat dry. Melt butter in a 1/2 sheet pan lined with non-stick foil. Melt the butter (1/2 of a stick) just until melted. Put the cod on sheet of wax paper and dust it with sweet paprika on one side. Place cod in pan with the paprika side down in the butter. Brush on some of the butter from the pan and dust that side with the paprika. Bake at 350 degrees until it just starts to turn opaque and flip it over to the other side. Remove when fish can be easily flaked with a fork.
Paprika is the only thing ever used when I baked it. I leave the salt & pepper to my guys to put on for themselves. Now, after seeing your recipe, I will have to try it this way, still leaving the salt & pepper to the guys. Can’t wait to see if they like the garlic powder & buttered lemon. This really sounds like a winner here.
Krissy
0Really good fish recipe and super easy to make. More fish in our diets is always a good thing.
Emily
0This is such a simple and easy way to bake fish! Definitely, a weeknight staple and the lemon adds the perfect amount of zing.
Chris
0Lemon and cod is a match made in heaven! Your photos are making me drool so bad!!
Irina
0I am used to making cod recipes, but I have just discovered a single ingredient that I have never added, which is garlic powder. Next time I bake the cod, I will try your way of cooking.
Laverne
0My granddaughter is on a keto diet and this really made our day. We love cod and this makes us not miss the breaded variety. Simply delish!!!
Helen
0I really love the fish you can buy at Aldi, such good value and I’ve always found it to be good quality. This is a delicious recipe, and so easy to make that it really is ideal for any day of the week. Perfect with lots of green veggies.