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You have to try this fish casserole! I knew it was a winner with the first bite. The recipe was given to us by my Mama-in-law and her friend shared it with her. When a recipe gets shared over and over, you know it’s good. Seriously, this is MOUTH-WATERING! It also tastes healthy and light. The tilapia is juicy and flaky without a hint of fishiness.
The sweet veggies complement it beautifully. If you aren’t a fan of tilapia, you can easily substitute your favorite fish and get the same delicious results. I want more! We ate it up real quick! This dish is perfect for company. It is easy to make, smells and tastes delicious and your guests and family will love it.
Tilapia Ingredients:
2 lbs (about 6-10 count) Tilapia fillets, thawed
Olive Oil to saute
1 Tbsp ketchup (several readers had great results with Sriracha instead of ketchup)
1 Tbsp mayo
Marinade Ingredients:
2 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp Salt and 1/8 tsp Pepper
Vegetable Ingredients:
2 medium bell peppers (red, orange, or yellow)
2 medium/large carrots, julienned or grated
1 medium onion
How to Make Tilapia and Vegetable Casserole:
1. Whisk together marinade ingredients. Combine with tilapia in a large ziploc bag or bowl and marinate in the fridge at least 1 1/2 hours.
2. Slice onions into thin half circles, slice bell pepper into thin strips and julienne or grate carrots. In a large skillet over medium/high, heat 2-3 Tbsp oil and saute onions for 3 minutes or until softened. Add sliced bell peppers and carrots and saute another 4-5 min or until softened. Remove from pan and set veggies aside.
3. Once fish is done marinating, drain and discard marinade. In the same empty skillet over medium/high, add 2-3 Tbsp oil and saute fish lightly on the skillet just until golden on the outside (about 2 min per side) – it’s ok if it’s not cooked through completely at this point. Also, it probably would have been easier to turn the fish on a non-stick skillet :-O.
4. Layer the casserole dish with 1/2 of the vegetables on the bottom. Place fish over the vegetables. Stir together 1 Tbsp ketchup and 1 Tbsp mayo and brush this mixture evenly over the top of the fish. Cover fish with remaining veggies. Sprinkle the top with salt and pepper to taste then cover tightly with foil or lid and bake at 375˚F for 15 min.
Tilapia and Vegetable Casserole Recipe
Ingredients
Tilapia Ingredients:
Marinade Ingredients:
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1/2 tsp Salt and 1/8 tsp Pepper
Vegetable Ingredients:
- 2 medium bell peppers, (red, orange or yellow)
- 2 medium/large carrots, julienned or grated
- 1 medium onion
Instructions
- Whisk together marinade ingredients. Combine with tilapia in a large ziploc bag or bowl and marinate in the fridge 1 1/2 hours.
- Slice onions into thin half circles, slice bell pepper into thin strips and julienne or grate carrots. In a large skillet over medium/high, heat 2-3 Tbsp oil and saute onions for 3 min or until softened. Add sliced bell peppers and carrots and saute another 4-5 min or until softened. Remove from pan and set aside.
- Once fish is done marinating, drain and discard marinade. In the same empty skillet over medium/high, add 2-3 Tbsp oil and saute fish lightly on the skillet just until golden on the outside (about 2 min per side) - it's ok if it's not fully cooked through at this point.
- Layer the casserole dish with 1/2 of the vegetables on the bottom, then Place fish over the vegetables. Stir together 1 Tbsp ketchup and 1 Tbsp mayo and brush this mixture evenly over the top of the fish. Cover fish with remaining veggies. Sprinkle the top with salt and pepper to taste then cover tightly with foil or lid and bake at 375˚F for 15 min.
♥ FAVORITE THINGS ♥
Shown in this post: (nope, no one paid us to write this; just stuff we love):
* It’s so handy to have multiple sizes of liquid measuring cups.
* This is my favorite baking casserole dish. I love that it has a lid!
* We search high & low for a perfect julienne slicer. This Swissmar is it!
* If using a slicer or mandolin, you have to try these safety gloves!
Hi Natasha, is it freezer friendly? I’m going to make it for the trip if you can freeze it.
Hi Yuliya, I think this would be best fresh. I honestly haven’t tried freezing this casserole for a later date. If you experiment I would love to know how you like it!
I was a little skeptical initially BUT with such high reviews I had to try it. Oh my gosh! This was fabulous!!! I was pleasantly surprised at how much we liked this. Thank you so much for giving us a great new option to use for Tilapia! This is soooo much better than the basic, boring way I typically cook it. Your recipes never fail and are always so amazing.
That’s wonderful feedback, thank you for sharing! I’m glad you loved how the recipe turned out.
What can I replace the buttermilk with? Yougurt?
Hi DW, I honestly haven’t tested that so I’m not sure how it would change the recipe. That might work if you add some milk to get it to buttermilk consistency since yogurt is pretty thick.
Can you marinade the fish over night?
Hi DW, You can assemble the casserole and marinate in the fridge overnight and bake the next day. You might need to add a few minutes to the bake time if you are starting with a cold refrigerated casserole.
My family does not like peppers.
Can I use other veggies in place of it ?
Hello Sue, I haven’t tried anything else other than peppers for this recipe. You can probably omit it but the taste might be a bit different.
I’m making this dish tonite, with leftover mashed potatoes and gravy–gravy is leftover from the whole roasted IP chicken we had last night.
I used cod fillets, tossed in some sliced mushrooms for good measure. Boy, did this turn out great!
Many thanks to you for providing a plethora of family-friendly dishes.
Thank you so much for sharing that amazing review, Jill! I’m so glad you liked this recipe.
Hello. Can i ask if what other kind of fish can i use here? Thank you
Hi Hazel, great question! Rockfish should work well. One of my readers reported amazing results using trout filets.
Hi Natasha! Thank u sooo much for makin fish taste great again! Lol my dad was a big fisherman back in the Day n me n my sisters were forced to eat fish whether we liked it or not! Unfortunately is was always trout! occasionally bluefish do u think this recipe would work with that particular fish I see so many mentioned salmon..but no trout! Lol with trout fishing coming up next week would love to know! My dad could certainly step up his game other then a slice of lemon! Ha ha I just love how they ketcup n mayo combo bringthis altogether n overthetop! Thanks again for posting!
Hi Mary! I love that you have memories fishing with your dad! I haven’t tested that with trout but one of our readers has and here is when they said “This recipe is amazing!! Just made it with trout and my whole family loved it. Thank you so so much! It is definitely a keeper! My mom told me to write to you in her little Ukrainian accent it’s: “Unbelievable good!” I hope that helps!
Hi, made this today, delicious: light and tasty, followed recipe to a T. Everyone loved it!
That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing that with me, Earne!
Omg 😮 i just made this fir my family and they LOVED it!!!! I thank you for providing such family friendly recipes!
That’s so great! It sounds like you have a new favorite!
Fantastic recipe! I followed you basic recipe, but made the following changes due to what I had in the house. With only the two of us used 3 salmon fillets and made half the marinade. I used 1 shallot, 1/2 of small onion, 1 small thin sliced zucchini, small amount of sugar peas, 1/2 red pepper and mushrooms. Used schirracha with mayo. Actually made the full recipe of that. Prepared exactly as you said. Perfect amount and hubby sopped up the juices with Italian bread. He said this is a keeper. With hi, being of diabetic I try to find good seafood/veggie recipes. Thank you for sharing. Got this safely tucked in my recipe file.
That’s so great! Thank you for sharing your review with us!
Sounds great, Natasha, on my to cook and taste list, soon (I am sure it will be 10 stars) and I will come back and leave a review. Thank you for the nice recipe. 🙂
I look forward to that! I hope you love it, Lee!
Hi Natasha, thank you so much for this wonderful recipe!! I made it tonight with cod as my fish monger did not have fresh tilapia today. I added sliced mushrooms as well. It was delicious and I will be making it again. I will try it with salmon next time. Yum!!! I would have liked to add a photo but I can’t!
That’s so great! It sounds like you have a new favorite, Carol!
Hi Natasha. I was wondering if I could make this ahead for company and freeze it? And how would I go about doing that?
Hi Victoria. I think this would be best fresh. I honestly haven’t tried freezing this casserole for a later date. If you experiment I would love to know how you like it!
I spiced up the fish and baked it in the oven for a healthier version. Turned out amazing. Have been making it this way. Thank you for the recipe.
That does sound amazing! Thank you for your wonderful review, Rimma!
Hi Natasha.
I love your tilapia casserole. Costco no longer sells tilapia loins and i miss making this. I tried using Basa fillets and i found them to be too thin and wasn’t able to brown them the same as the loins. Needless to say i didn’t enjoy it. Have you tried any other fish and any suggestions please. Thanks for all your amazing recipes.
Hey Debbie! You can use other kinds of fish with this recipe such as salmon – one of my readers was actually raving about salmon in this dish. But even with that, you have to look for wild rather than farmed.
Wow ! Made this tonight and my husband could not stop saying how good it was ! I completely agree. I will be making this over and over again !
That’s so great Susan! I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe!!
What are the eggs for in the marinade? Can i leave them out?
Hi Nina, I haven’t tried without them but one of my readers said they used egg beaters instead of eggs with great success 🙂
Do you think tilapia can be substituted with salmon?
Hi Inna, that should work well. Several readers have reported great results with salmon 🙂
Made this last night for the family and everyone loved it. Will definitely be on regular rotation. Thanks!
You’re welcome, I’m happy to hear your family enjoys the recipe as much as mine does! Thanks for sharing your great review Maxine!