Easy Pan Seared Cod in Garlic Lemon Butter Sauce

If you’re intimidated by cooking fish, this is where you start.

Cod is cheap, forgiving, and doesn’t fall apart when you look at it wrong. The technique here – hot pan, skin down, patience – works on literally any white fish fillet. Halibut, sea bass, snapper, whatever. Master this once with a $6 piece of cod, and you’ve cracked the code on cooking fish at home.

The crispy skin? That’s just physics – dry fish + hot oil + not touching it = golden, crackling crust every time. The lemon garlic butter takes 60 seconds and works on everything from salmon to chicken. This is your blueprint for confident fish cooking, and it starts with the easiest, most affordable white fish you can buy.

🔪 Ingredients for Crispy Skin Lemon Garlic Cod

Cod

• Skin-on cod fillets – Skin matters. It’s the whole point.
• Salt & black pepper – Simple seasoning lets the fish shine.
• Olive oil – High enough heat to crisp, not burn.

Cod has a bad reputation for being boring… mostly because people overcook it and then blame the fish. Done right, cod gives you crackly, golden skin and tender flakes that stay juicy under a spoonful of lemon butter. This is the weeknight fish recipe you make when you want something fast, sharp, and undeniably good.

Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce

• Unsalted butter: This helps to control the salt, keeping the flavor it clean.
• Garlic: Minced fine so it practically melts into the sauce.
• Fresh lemon juice: Bright, sharp, essential.
• Lemon zest: Don’t skip this; it’s where the aroma lives.
• Fresh parsley: For a clean herbaceous finish

Equipment

• Nonstick or well-seasoned skillet
• Fish spatula (or thin metal spatula)
• Paper towels (non-negotiable for crispy skin)

📝 How to Cook Cod with Crispy Skin (Without It Sticking)

1. Dry the fish aggressively.
   Pat the cod dry until the surface feels tacky, not damp. Season both sides with salt and pepper.
2. Heat the pan properly.
   Set a skillet over medium-high heat and add olive oil. You want it shimmering, not smoking.
3. Cook skin-side down — and don’t touch it.
   Lay the cod in the pan skin-side down. Press gently for 10 seconds so the skin stays flat. Cook 4–5 minutes until the skin is deeply golden and releases easily. Fish releases from the pan when the crust is set. If it’s sticking, it’s not cooked — flipping early just tears it.
4. Flip once and finish.
   Turn the fish and cook 2–3 minutes more. The cod should turn opaque and flake easily with gentle pressure. Remove to a plate.
5. Build the sauce in the same pan.
   Lower heat to medium. Add butter and let it melt. Stir in garlic and cook just until fragrant — about 30 seconds.
6. Brighten and finish.
   Add lemon juice, zest, and parsley. Stir, taste, and adjust salt if needed.
7. Serve immediately.
   Spoon the sauce over the cod, letting it pool around the edges — not drowning the skin.

If your cod has ever fallen apart or stuck like glue to the pan, you didn’t ruin it… The pan just wasn’t hot yet. Happens to everyone. The fix is patience.

🍽️ What to Serve with Lemon Garlic Butter Cod

• Steamed green beans or asparagus
• Buttered rice or mashed potatoes
• Crusty bread for chasing the sauce (non-negotiable)

🧊 Leftovers & Storage

This dish is best eaten right away. Crispy cod skin does not survive reheating, and we won’t help it at all.

• Refrigerate: Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
• Reheat: Warm gently in a skillet over low heat with a small splash of water or butter. Avoid the microwave if possible.
• Freeze: Not recommended. Cod is lean and dries out when frozen and reheated.

Meat Nerd Tip: If you know you’ll have leftovers, flake the cold cod and repurpose it into rice bowls, pasta, or tacos instead of trying to re-crisp the skin.

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