Our easy pan fried tilapia recipe is lightly breaded with breadcrumbs, Old Bay and other seasonings. Your family will love these crispy fillets for dinner, ready in just 20 minutes and just delicious!
Ok so we love fish for lunch or dinner. So much so that everyone in my family would eat it every single day if we could. The reason why we make tilapia more than other varieties is that it is cheap with a light flavor and can be found frozen just about everywhere too.
Of course fresh is best but defrosted from frozen is a decent second if that is all you have available. For years and years we stuck with oven fried fish. We still make that but once and a while I want a really crispy texture and frying is the answer!
There is NO need for a deep fryer, you just need a pan with high sides to heat the oil. I literally can have this meal prepped and ready to enjoy in less than 30 minutes. I love this when we have all had a busy day but want to eat together!
You are going to want a few tilapia fillets, skin on or off is up to you, to start with. We prefer without the skin if breading the outside so we don’t lose a lot of it when we eat (since we don’t eat the skin). This is similar to pan fried swai but with higher protein and firmer in texture.
Ingredient Notes
We are going to lightly bread tilapia fillet with Italian breadcrumbs. Yes this does have a bit of seasonings in it already but not enough if you ask me. Old Bay is a given when it comes to seafood, I like a bit of a garlic powder kick to it and Lawry’s seasoned salt goes in all the things we make.
You can change this up but I would stick to the measurements below so it isn’t overwhelming. I would add the same if you wanted to make cornmeal for fish fry instead for the breading.
What kind of oil should you fry tilapia in?
Canola oil was used in this case but vegetable oil would work just as well. You want one that doesn’t have much flavor to it so you can really taste the fish and seasonings without an after taste.
Can you fry tilapia without oil?
You could if you followed our air fryer tilapia recipe. Cooked with hot air you just need a spray of oil to crisp up but it doesn’t need to be submerged. This means it will be lower in fat and healthier, but just as crispy.
How Long to Fry Tilapia in a Pan
Not long at all!! In fact you will want to stay really close once you submerge each fillet in the hot oil because you only need 1.5-2 minutes until they are done. They are rather thin and don’t need too much time. Once they reach a deep golden brown color they are done. Fish nuggets (large bite size pieces) would be even faster at 1 minute.
Can you pan fry frozen tilapia?
We share how to cook frozen tilapia on our site, but fried wouldn’t be a good method. The problem with this method is it needs longer for the middle to defrost and get tender than the outsides need. Therefore the outsides will become burned by the time the center was cooked thru so it is better to bake in the oven instead.
Fried Whole Tilapia in a Pan
If you wanted to cook the whole thing, head and all, you would want to follow our how to fry a whole fish instructions. Of course this will take quite a while longer and you will have the skin and bones to contend with but is possible and quite popular in Asian cultures.
Ideal Tilapia Internal Temp
You will want the inside, thickest part, to reach a safe 145F before serving. I will say that I rarely ever have to bring out a meat thermometer because they are so thin that it is hard to test since the probe can barely get into the center. The easiest way is to look at the coloring and/or you can cut thickest part and look inside. It should be a flaky white without a translucent color.
Fried Tilapia Recipe
Equipment
- 1 pan 2.5-3" deep
- 1 plate
Ingredients
- 1 pound tilapia, 2 large fillets without skin used
- 1 cup Italian breadcrumbs
- 1/2 tbsp Old Bay
- 1/2 tbsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tbsp Lawrys seasoned salt
- 6-8 cups canola oil, for frying
Instructions
- Add 1.5" of vegetable or canola oil into a pan (enough for fillets to be slightly submerged) and heat over medium heat.
- Mix together the breadcrumbs and seasonings together and spread on a plate.
- Lay 1 fillet at a time into the breadcrumbs, coat the top, pat down, lift up and flip to other side to coat as well.
- Test oil. Once it reaches 350-375 degrees F. Lift up coated fillet, allow excess to fall off and set inside pan to fry. Fillet should be submerged slightly.
- Fry for 1.5 – 2 minutes or until the top is a deep golden brown. Lift out and set on to a paper towel to absorb any excess oil. Continue pan frying remaining pieces and serve warm with tartar sauce.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
FAQ
Tilapia originally comes from freshwater regions in Africa and the Middle East. It has been farmed for thousands of years dating back to ancient times in Egypt, where it was an important food source. Today, it is no longer limited to its original habitat and widely farmed around the world.
That depends on the size but typically it would vary from 10-150 calories per fillet, without the skin. It is a pretty healthy fish that is high in protein and quite delicious when cooked properly.
Tilapia is not considered fattening, in fact it’s a very lean source of protein. Low in calories and fat while being high in protein, this type of fish can help you feel full and support muscle maintenance. It may become “fattening” depending on how it’s prepared though: baking, grilling, or steaming keeps it healthy and low calorie.
Yes, tilapia is generally easy to digest. It’s a lean, mild fish with low fat and no fiber, which makes it gentle on the stomach. It’s often a good option for people with sensitive digestion or those recovering from illness if baked without a lot of seasonings or breading.
Fried tilapia makes for some delicious tilapia fish tacos!! Lightly breaded and pan fried quickly gives the exterior a crunchy texture that works well in small tortillas with cabbage and a white sauce on the top.
