Cajun Blackened Cod is a super easy less than 15 minute meal that even the picky fish eaters will love. Perfect with a drizzle of lemon or in a fish taco.
Can you get your kids or meat eaters in the family to eat fish? And just as a FYI fish fingers do not count...!
If fish is on the menu for dinner, my boys usually make the usual face expression like they just bit into a sour lemon, or immediately make plans to eat at their friend's house or if that fails they have been known to fake the flu...Usually fish for dinner does not go over well.
However, I found the perfect solution for picky fish eaters that even teenagers and grown meat-eater men will love and that is my Cajun Blackened Cod. Delightful spices that tingle the tongue and wake up the senses with earthy cumin, spicy chili, tasty taco seasoning and of course a little garlic for good measure is all you need to make your meat eaters like fish. With your first bite, the spices hit your tongue and the moist flaky texture is perfect all on its own but with a little drizzle of lemon on top is just pure heavenly.
If you are looking for more delicious Low Carb fish recipes, be sure to try our...
Healthy Mediterranean Baked Fish
Grilled Swordfish with Summer Vegetable Crab Salad
Lemon Herbed Baked Rainbow Trout
The trick is in the iron skillet
The iron skillet gets really hot and is a good conductor of heat and when you add the spices it seals the outer section of the fish with a crust of "blackened" spices and seals in the juicy flaky fish. If you do not have an iron skillet you can still make this in a regular pan but the fish may not get as golden/blackened crust but the taste is still great.
Spice it Up!
I think the secret for getting "anti-fish eaters" to like fish is to disguise the fish taste. I am not suggesting that you dress the fish up like Mr. Steak but adding some zesty spices transforms the usual scary baked smelly fish into something they do not even think is fish. I used a pre-made taco seasoning but you can make your own with a mixture of chili powder, paprika, onion powder, sea salt, garlic powder, cumin, oregano, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and red pepper flakes.
You can use any white fish you like but I had cod on hand and it worked like a charm. Last week I made Cajun Blackened catfish and made delicious fish tacos with a chipotle rainbow slaw and the boys devoured it in nano seconds. It's all about disguising the fish!
Cajun Blackened cod is a quick meal for any busy weeknight as from start to finish it is less than 15 minutes and I even made a salad with a Lemon White Balsamic Vinaigrette . Even if your fish are still frozen when you come home from work, you can get them unfrozen by running cold water over it and within 15 minutes they are unfrozen and you are in business.
Whether you eat the blackened Cajun cod with just a drizzle of lemon with a healthy veggies on the side or wrapped up as fish tacos, I am sure this will be a big hit with even your picky fish eaters.
Hungry For More? Subscribe to our Newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest for all the latest updates.
Cajun Blackened Cod
Ingredients
- 2 pounds cod fillets 4 with bones removed (or any white fish you like such as tilapia, mahi maui, catfish etc)
- 2 teaspoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 2 teaspoon taco seasoning ( or your own homemade version with chili powder, paprika, onion powder, sea salt, garlic powder, cumin, oregano, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and red pepper flakes)
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
( or other light flavored high heat tolerance oils as desired- do not use olive oil) - 2 tablespoon lemon juice drizzle of lemon juice - optional
Instructions
- Wash and dry your fish well with paper towels.
- Coat front and back of fish with chili powder, cumin powder, garlic powder, pepper, taco seasoning.
- Place canola oil in iron skillet and heat to high medium heat.
- Sauté fish for 2-3 minutes on each size, depending on the size of your fish or until flakes easily with your fork.
- Drizzle a little lemon juice on top and serve with a delightful veggie medley or inside your favourite fish tacos.
Notes
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (if desired)
Jenny says
Are the nutrition facts for 1 serving or 4 servings?
HWC Magazine says
Hi Jenny, thanks so much for letting us know. We have updated the nutrition information for 1 serving for our Cajun Blackened Cod. We hope you give this recipe a try soon.
Maura says
46 gms of fat can not be correct.
HWC Magazine says
Thanks so much for noticing that Maura. Our ingredient calculator must have had a hiccup. There are only 2 grams of carbohydrates in this recipe. We have updated the ingredient calculator on our blackened Cajun cod. Hope you give this low carb recipe a try soon. Take care