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This Tortilla Crusted Tilapia is baked to perfection and has tons of flavor! It’s tender and juicy on the inside, crunchy and seasoned to perfection on the outside.
It’s easy to fall into dinner routines, especially with fish! I feel like once you find a fish recipe that works for you, you tend to stick with it and don’t really experiment with new things. Well, allow me to introduce to you tortilla crusted tilapia – your new unique, mouthwatering, and easy weeknight dinner!
One of the more fun parts of serving this dish is watching people take their first bite. I recommend not telling your friends/family that the fish is crusted with tortilla chips, because it’s way more fun to watch them try to figure that out! Even when it’s a surprise that tortilla chips are what make up the crust, everyone’s always blown away at how perfectly the chips pair with the fish.
This easy tilapia dish is one of my favorite recipes to whip up any time of year. When you squeeze a little lime over the top and serve it with something bright like a mango slaw, tortilla crusted tilapia will become a quick, bright staple in your kitchen. It certainly has become one in mine!
Main Ingredients
- Tilapia – If you can, use fresh tilapia – not frozen! Fresh tilapia from your local seafood market or counter at the grocery store will yield better results than frozen tilapia.
- Tortilla chips – You can use any brand you’d like! Pick a bag that you already know you enjoy, that way you know your final result will taste delicious.
- Flour – I like to use gluten free all purpose flour for this recipe.
- Cornstarch – This is really going to help create the perfectly thick, crunchy outer layer of the baked fish.
- Seasonings – A combination of kosher salt, ground black pepper, and garlic powder.
- Almond milk – Use plain unsweetened almond milk. Double check the label – you really don’t want this fish to taste like vanilla. You can use dairy milk too.
Substitutions and Variation Questions
The tilapia in this recipe can be replaced with another white fish like cod or haddock, if you’d prefer. Just be conscious that your cooking time may differ based on how thick the filet is.
Tortilla chips are best because they’re thicker and will hold together better than regular chips. You can, however, use a different flavored tortilla chip instead of just plain classic corn tortilla. Switch it up with a lime flavored one or even a chili flavored one! Late July has a bunch of flavors that I love, especially the jalapeño lime one!
How to Make Tortilla Crusted Tilapia
- Crush the tortilla chips. In a food processor, add the tortilla chips and pulse to crush the tortilla chips until mostly ground. You want some larger pieces for texture. Place crushed tortilla on a shallow plate.
- Make the batter. Mix together flour, cornstarch, seasonings, and liquids in another shallow plate.
- Dredge the tilapia. Dip the tilapia filet into the batter then into tortilla chips and coat both sides. Place onto a baking sheet and repeat until all the tilapia has been coated.
- Bake! Spray the tops of the tilapia with avocado oil then bake for 25-30 minutes.
- Serve. Serve almost immediately after removing from oven so the crust is still nice and crispy for eating! Squeeze a lime wedge on the top for that bright and zesty flavor. Serve alongside rice, avocado slices, and mango salsa if you have some on hand.
Storage and Reheating Instructions
In an airtight container in the fridge, this baked fish will stay fresh for up to 3 days. To reheat your leftovers, use your toaster oven or air fryer – NOT the microwave!
Tortilla Crusted Tilapia
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds (680 g) tilapia, about 4–6 filets
- 3 cups (345 g) crushed tortilla chips, about 10 ounces of chips
- ¾ cup (94 g) gluten-free all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¾ cup (177 ml) unsweetened plain almond milk
- ¼ cup (59 ml) water
- Spray avocado oil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 °F (204 °C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
- Place the tortilla chips into a food processor and blitz until ground, you should still have some texture and larger pieces. Transfer to a plate.
- In a shallow bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, corn starch, almond milk, water, pepper, kosher salt, and garlic powder.
- Dip each tilapia filet into the batter then dredge through the tortilla chips. Place on the baking sheet and repeat with remaining tilapia. Spray the fish with avocado oil spray and transfer to the oven.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. For a darker fish, broil for the last 5 minutes. Serve immediately with mango salsa and avocado slices.
Amazingly crunchy and flavorful. I added cumin and a little bit of Mexican seasoning. We’ll be making this again!