Did you know that you can cook fish from frozen? In this post you’ll learn how to cook fish like cod and salmon from frozen – there’s a basic method plus one for breaded fish.
What do you do when you forget to take something out of the freezer for dinner? You know that mad panic. You’re halfway home from work or from picking up the kids when you realize that you don’t have any dinner plans. Suddenly you’re pulling a U-turn to head to the grocery store, find something quick and easy to make, stand in line to pay, and then finally back into the car and headed home.
And you still have to actually *make* dinner.
But you know what? This doesn’t happen to me anymore. Not since I learned how to cook fish from frozen.
Can You Cook Fish From Frozen?
Yes! Now that I’ve discovered how to cook fish from frozen, there’s way fewer panicked evenings trying to figure out dinner. Since I learned this technique, I make sure to always have fish fillets or portions in the freezer ready to pop in the oven at a moment’s notice. Cod, salmon, and more are now so much easier to enjoy! Oh, and in case you’re curious, you can cook shrimp from frozen too. Now onto the fish fillets….
Here’s a video showing how to cook fish from frozen:
Making Breaded Fish From Frozen
The recipe below is just for cooking fish without a breading. But if you want it breaded like in the picture, here’s what you do.
I lightly oiled cod portions and put them on a heavy-duty baking sheet that can withstand a high temperature then baked at 450°F until nearly cooked through (about 10 minutes).
Meanwhile, mix together 2 tablespoons of milk with 2 tablespoons of Dijon mustard. Set it aside.
In a separate bowl, combine ½ cup panko bread crumbs,1 tsp. olive oil, ⅛ tsp. salt, ⅛ tsp. black pepper,
¼ tsp. garlic powder. Keep stirring for a bit until all crumbs are moistened. Then toast those until nice and brown for a few minutes in a skillet on the stove over medium heat, or on a sheet pan in the 450F oven for 3-5 minutes (watch them carefully and stir once). However you cook them, transfer the crumbs out of the skillet or off the pan immediately so they don’t keep cooking.
I then removed the fish from the oven and brushed the tops of the fillets lightly with the Dijon-milk mixture, and then sprinkled the fillets with the toasted breadcrumbs.
The cod goes back into the oven until the fish registers 145F on an instant-read thermometer and was flaky in the middle. Easy, right? I hope you love this easy and convenient way to cook fish! -Christine xo
Print
How To Cook Fish From Frozen
- Prep Time: 2 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 14 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Entrée
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
DESCRIPTION
Did you know that you can cook fish from frozen? These are the basic instructions for cooking cod and salmon portions from frozen. To make the fish with crunchy crumb crust pictured here, the instructions are immediately above this recipe.
Listen to learn how to make this recipe, along with some great tips from Christine:
Ingredients
- 4 (4-6 oz.) cod or salmon portions
- 2 tsp. olive oil or vegetable oil
- Salt, pepper and/or other seasonings or sauce
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450°F.
- Remove frozen fish from all packaging and rinse under cold running water to remove any ice crystals.
- Arrange fish in a single layer on a baking sheet. Brush lightly with oil on all sides.
- Bake for 4-5 minutes. Remove from the oven and add seasonings or sauce.
- Continue to bake until hot and flaky in the center, about 8-12 more minutes. Thicker portions may need to be flipped over halfway through cooking and may require a few extra minutes to cook through.
Love this recipe? I’d appreciate it if you could scroll down and add a *5 star rating* to help others know they’ll love it as well!
This post originally appeared in April 2014 and was revised and republished in September 2021.
Lita Watson says
That recipe is very quick and easy to cook fish from frozen! But i think that dish will be perfect if you give some ways to mix it with other dishes. That sounds great idea.
Renee Vlna says
Amanda, She may be using fillets and you may have used loins thus the difference. Loins are much thicker than fillets.
Kate says
I want to prepare fish en papillote and freeze for later preparation. I’m trying to figure out how long to bake at 450 deg. Any advice? Thanks!
Amanda says
Hi there! I ended up having to cook my cod about twice as long and even at that point, it was just barely flaking (still a bit rubbery) so I’m guessing undercooked? Do you think I should try upping my oven temperature next time? By how much? Thanks!
Christine Pittman says
Amanda, it’s possible that your oven temperature isn’t calibrated. You could try getting an oven thermometer that goes inside your oven to double check that. Or, your cod portions might have been much larger than mine. I just went in and edited the recipe to say 4-6 oz. cod portions, since that is what I use. I hope that helps.
William Wilson says
just in case someone comes back looking for “Frozen to Fork” I found a .pdf of it on the following blog site.
http://blog.virginiawillis.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Frozen-to-Fork-E-Book.pdf
Mark says
Hi. I live in the U.K., and recently went to South Africa where I tried kingklip and really enjoyed it (never liked fish in my life before this). Tried to source this here in the UK but can only get imported kingklip fillets that are frozen. Do you have any advice for cooking it perfectly and/or recipes to try?
Christine Pittman says
Mark, You can try the recipes over here https://cookthestory.com/tag/entrees-from-frozen/ I’m pretty sure they will work straight from frozen using the above methods. Everything will depend on the thickness of the fillets.
Amanda says
Currently putting it back in the oven as the inside is completely raw. Sad because the outside looks amazing after 12 min… Be warned that 3/4 inch thick salmon might take longer to be fully cooked (even with turning)
Took about 4 min longer so not bad.
Christine Pittman says
Amanda, I feel like the timing for cooking fish from frozen isn’t exactly the same for every kind of fish and every thickness. I’m glad it didn’t take too much longer for you.
Julie at Australis Barramundi says
We love this! It makes dinner such a breeze and reduces food waste. We’re going to try it out with barramundi.
Lorna Schinske says
You can find the free e-book (along with others) at http://www.wildalaskaseafood.com/media-pantry/
Rick says
“You can get lots of instructions, recipes and ideas on how to cook fish from frozen from the Frozen to Fork e-cookbook.
” This link is broken.
Christine Pittman says
So sorry Rick. it seems they moved the book. You can find lots of recipes here http://www.wildalaskaseafood.com/media-pantry/
Mo says
Hi there, sounds very simple and I’m an avid fish lover!, I googled up how to cook fish from frozen and saw your blog on the methods used, must say so simple it is and time friendly I was amazed with restaurant quality in 20 mins at home . I followed it up and it was awesome ! Beautiful dishes in minutes !. Thanks Christine ! Oh I’m from good old UK , York city . Thanks mo
mimi says
I have just finished eating the best cod of my life, that I prepared using your recipe! I’m not really big on fish in general, but I currently live on an island with a huge [and cheap] variety of fish so I figured I’d have to adapt. Your recipe was perfect for that! I would’ve never guessed that such a good meal could be prepared in only half an hour. I did everything by the recipe, except i added some rosemary and remoulade to the coating. And I did some baked potatoes on the side. Perfect! Thank you so much.
Christine Pittman says
Mimi, Thanks for letting me know! I’m delighted that it worked so well for you.
Madonna says
I’ve recently started eating healthier so this is great info. I’d like to try a variation of this method. Would it be possible to bake the frozen cod with sweet potatoes as a casserole (sweet potatoes, onions as a base and cod on top )? Just wondering if the fish and yams can be baked at the same time or should I pre-boil the yams for a while first?
Christine Pittman says
Madonna, The issue here is that the yams need longer to cook than the fish does. You have two options. First, as mentioned, pre-boil the yams until they are just fork tender. Second, put the yams in your casserole dish (with the onions, oil/butter and seasonings) and bake them for about 15-20 minutes. Then add the frozen fish on top and bake until yams are tender and fish is opaque and flaky, about 15 minutes more. If you try it, do let me know how it turns out. Have a great day!
Christy Riederer says
Ok. I have been craving fresh fish for seversl days now, I’ve even gone as far as looking up seafood restaurant menus just to see if they have a photo gallery for pictures of different preparation styles. I know food porn..shame on me. But in my own defense I am a native Floridian transplant in Chicago and crave seafood almost everyday due to eating it 3-5 times a week the entire time I lived in Florida.
My son and I want fish now… right now… but since its frozen we did a quick web search and found your site, quickly book marked it and while I’m typing this my 12 y.o. Jordan is busy getting out each ingredient as I read them from the recipe.Im offvto kitchen land and we hope to be tucking into some Pablo baked (frozen) Cod in the next 30 minutes or so. Ill try to get a quick pick of it when it comes out of the oven. Back with my results and review in a bit. Wish me luck.
Fish… fish…fish…. Yummy yummy fish…Oh my!
Christine Pittman says
Hi Christy,
I hope it turned out well for you. Let me know what you thought. -Christine
Jamie leflar says
I made this but I took the frozen fish,brushed with vegetable oil,then baked as called for,then put lemon juice and lemon peper seasoning salt on it and baked it. Loved IT!! Even husband loved it and he hates fish!
Rita T says
Thank you!! Easy to follow and came out great!
★★★★★
Christine Pittman says
Rita, Thanks for letting me know that it worked for you too. This method really is a life-saver for me all the time! Have a great weekend!
frozenfishlover says
too much work. you’ll get results just as tasty by taking out the frozen fillet, knocking it with a knife if necessary to remove any ice flakes (rinsing just adds more moisture, and possibly spreads bacteria), spreading the frozen fillet with a light coating of Dijon or flavored or reg mayo, then pouring on the panko and spraying with oil. you can add finely chopped tomatoes to the top of the fillet before putting on the panko if you want a variation. bake for 20 at 400°. yum. life changing.
Christine Pittman says
Thanks for the great idea! My method follows the one that was developed by and recommended by the chefs at Alaska Seafood for best results. I know what you mean about spreading bacteria though. I stopped rinsing chicken and other meats a long time ago for that very reason.
Tried it says
Tried it with frozen cod from Costco, was great, except i left it in the oven over 15 minutes, recipe called for less, but wanted to be safe, the cod was nice and flaky, but a little dry and overcooked, my fault
★★★★★
Christine Pittman says
You’ll have to try it again and let me know what you think. I know exactly what you mean though. I did the same thing the first time I tried it. I just didn’t believe that it was ready and I wanted to be safe.
Morvin says
I wish people would try the recipe and then post their comments. Instead, most of the comments here simply state that the recipe looks amazing. However, since they have not tried it, they haven’t got a clue as to whether or not it really is good.
Tracy says
I’m a vegetarian, so I’d make the Celery Root Puree and the Tomato Jam. ;) My family are big salmon fans, but I’ll bet they’d love the Lemongrass-Poached Alaska Halibut, too. My sister, especially, would love these cooking from frozen techniques after teaching all day. Would love to win some fish for the family. :)