Super simple baked white fish with a buttery lemon caper sauce. SO delicious and perfect on the grill too!

What are you afraid of?  I have an irrational fear of fish, especially the scales. You should see me in the meat department of the grocery store: I have to nonchalantly walk quickly by the fish, acting like I’m not terrified to death. I’m sure it’s quite a site! I think I would have totally gone to culinary school if it weren’t for this fear.

The funny thing is, I love to EAT fish–as long as there are no scales.  Ricky has to make sure all scales are removed before the fish hits my plate.

Having a tight food budget makes it hard to get a lot of seafood in our diet, but we always find a way to splurge a few times a month. At Aldi, they have some tasty frozen options, but fresh is always better.

We have a new grocery store, Fresh Thyme, which had an amazing price on whitefish, so we treated ourselves to this simple meal. The shallots and capers make this meal feel fancy, but it’s truly all budget friendly, especially if you consider how much this meal would cost in a restaurant.

In the summer, I could see us serving this for a cookout with friends. It’s a “fancy fakeout” meal for any time of the year! The roasted carrots and potatoes could be subbed for asparagus or any other roasted veggie–even corn on the cob would be amazing.

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Baked White Fish with Lemon Caper Sauce

Ingredients

• 1-1.5 pounds white fish (2 filets)
• 4 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil , divided
• 1 shallot , finely chopped
• 1/2 cup white wine
• Salt & Pepper
• Juice of 1/2 lemon , plus zest
• 2 Tablespoons cold butter , cubed
• 1/2 teaspoon parsley
• 1 Tablespoon capers
• 1 Tablespoon Parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 425º (Can also grill). Prepare sauce before cooking fish.
2. In a small sauce pan, add the rest of the olive oil and shallot over medium heat. Cook 3-4 minutes, until shallot browns slightly.
3. Add salt & pepper to taste, plus white wine, lemon juice and zest. Allow to bubble and reduce by half, about 8 minutes.
4. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Spray with Pam. Place fish skin side down, then brush with 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
5. Bake for 10 minutes, until mostly cooked.
6. In the saucepan, add butter, capers and parsley. Whisk to melt butter. Remove from heat.
7. Take fish out of oven and pour sauce over each filet. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top, then return to oven to brown the cheese and the fish is completely cooked.
8. Serve immediately with roasted or steamed veggies.

What’s your favorite fish recipe? How to you fit more expensive items like seafood into your budget?