
Free: 5 Secrets To Fast Healthy Dinners
Get It NowThis post may contain affiliate links, which help keep this content free. (Full disclosure)
- Why You’ll Love This Oven Baked Cod Recipe
- Lemon Baked Cod Ingredients
- How To Bake Cod In The Oven
- What Temperature To Bake Cod?
- How Long To Bake Cod At 400 degrees F?
- How Do You Know When Cod Is Done?
- How To Make Baked Cod From Frozen
- Storage Instructions
- What To Serve With Baked Cod Fish
- More Healthy Fish Recipes
- Tools To Make Baked Cod Fillets
- Lemon Baked Cod Fish Recipe
One of my favorite things ever is showing you super simple staples for busy weeknight dinners. Like this lemon baked cod fish recipe — let me show you how to bake cod that’s tender, flaky and super easy. Not only does the simple lemon butter sauce impart major flavor, but this recipe for oven baked cod is ready in only 20 minutes.
Lemon and butter work so well with fish, and if you love the flavors of this baked cod recipe with lemon butter, try the same combo in pan fried tilapia, pan seared halibut, or baked salmon. You can also make a separate lemon butter sauce for fish — or for just about anything.
Why You’ll Love This Oven Baked Cod Recipe
- Lemony, bright flavor
- Tender, flaky cod texture
- Just a few minutes prep
- Bakes in under 15 minutes
- Healthy seafood dinner that’s rich in protein

Lemon Baked Cod Ingredients
This section explains how to choose the best ingredients for baked cod with lemon butter sauce, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card below.
- Cod – I prefer wild-caught cod fish (this is my favorite place to get it), but you can use any variety of cod. Look for fillets that are about 4 ounces each and similar in thickness, so that they cook at the same rate. I recommend thicker fillets for most cod recipes, which dry out less.
- Butter – Imparts so much flavor! I prefer grass-fed, unsalted butter. But if you need a dairy-free version, you can substitute olive oil here instead.
- Lemon – You’ll need a fresh lemon (not bottled lemon juice), as we’re using the zest as well as the juice.
- Garlic Powder – I use garlic powder for convenience, but you can swap in a couple cloves of fresh minced or crushed garlic if you like.
- Sea Salt & Black Pepper
- Parsley – I used curly fresh parsley, but flat leaf works great as well. You can also substitute, or add, fresh dill if you like, as I did in my baked salmon recipe.
VARIATIONS: Try other spices on your cod! Paprika, lemon pepper seasoning, or chives all pair well with fish.

How To Bake Cod In The Oven
This section shows how to make lemon baked cod, with step-by-step photos and details about the technique. For full instructions, see the recipe card below.
- Thaw cod fillets. This isn’t absolutely required, but it’s easier to brush lemon butter onto the cod if it’s thawed first. Since the pieces are not too thick, they thaw pretty quickly in a bowl of water.
- Pat dry. Remove the fillets from the packaging and pat dry with paper towels.
- Make lemon butter. Melt butter in a shallow bowl in the microwave (or a saucepan on the stove), then stir in fresh lemon juice and lemon zest.


- Season. Arrange the cod fillets in a baking dish, then brush lemon butter mixture over both sides. Season with garlic powder, sea salt, and pepper on both sides.
TIP: Make sure your baking dish is large enough. The fish fillets should not be touching, or touching only minimally, to cook through evenly.


- Bake cod. Cook until the cod filets are opaque and flake easily with a fork. Garnish with lemon slices if desired.
TIP: For the most tender fish, check the internal temperature. It should be 140 to 145 degrees F, measured in the thickest part with an instant-read thermometer.

- Serve. Drizzle the fish with the lemon butter sauce from the pan, and a sprinkle of fresh parsley on top is nice, too. (See below to get ideas for what to serve it with!)

What Temperature To Bake Cod?
What temperature should cod be cooked at? There are different options for cooking temperatures, but I like 400 degrees F because:
- Cooking at a higher heat means faster cooking and less chance of drying out.
- It’s a standard temperature and makes it easy to estimate cooking time, based on size.
TIP: The general rule of thumb is to cook fish for 10 minutes per inch of thickness. But, it can still vary, so check a couple minutes sooner than you’d need based on thickness alone.
How Long To Bake Cod At 400 degrees F?
This baked cod with butter sauce will take about 10-15 minutes in a 400 degree F oven. If your cod is frozen, read below!
How Do You Know When Cod Is Done?
Baked cod with lemon will be opaque and flake easily when it’s cooked through. It should reach an internal temperature of 140 to 145 degrees F.
How To Make Baked Cod From Frozen
I prefer to thaw my cod fillets before putting them in the oven, but if you forgot or don’t have time to let it thaw, you can also easily make this oven baked cod fillet right from frozen.
Follow the same directions as above, but add on 5-10 minutes of baking time. The exact time will vary a bit depending on the size of the fillet, but cook it until it’s cooked through, opaque, and flakes easily.
Storage Instructions
- Store: Store this oven baked cod fish in the fridge for 2-3 days.
- Freeze: Let the lemon butter cod cool completely. Then freeze leftovers for 3-4 months in an airtight, freezer-safe container.
- Reheat: Reheat in a hot skillet or 350 degrees F oven for best results. I don’t recommend microwaving fish, but it will work if you must.

What To Serve With Baked Cod Fish
What do you eat with cod? There are so many options! This baked cod recipe with lemon and butter is seasoned simply, so it goes with just about anything.
I like to include a vegetable side dish. Here are a few sides that pair perfectly with baked lemon pepper cod:
- Roasted Asparagus
- Fried Radishes
- Kale and Brussels Sprout Salad
- Sauteed Broccoli
- Oven Roasted Brussels Sprouts (or smashed brussels sprouts!)
More Healthy Fish Recipes
If you like easy baked cod recipes like this one, you might also like some of these other healthy fish recipes:
Tools To Make Baked Cod Fillets
- Ceramic Baking Dish – I love this one because it’s beautiful to go straight from oven to table.
- Lemon Squeezer – This handy tool makes it quick and easy to make this lemon baked cod recipe.
- Citrus Zester – My baked cod lemon butter gets major flavor from the lemon zest, and this is the best tool to ensure you are getting just the zest and not the bitter pith.
Best Baked Cod Recipe
Reader Favorite Recipes
The recipe card is below! Readers that made this also viewed these recipes:
Lemon Baked Cod Fish Recipe
This lemon butter baked cod recipe is tender and flaky, with the best lemon butter sauce! Learn how to bake cod fish with just 5 simple ingredients and 20 minutes.
Recipe Video
Tap on the image below to watch the video.Like this video? Subscribe to my YouTube cooking channel for healthy recipes weekly! (Click the bell icon to be notified when I post a new video.)
Ingredients
Tap underlined ingredients to see where to get them. Please turn Safari reader mode OFF to view ingredients.
Instructions
Tap on the times in the instructions below to start a kitchen timer while you cook.
-
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (204 degrees C). You can bake the cod fillets from frozen or thaw them first in a bowl of cold water. (I prefer thawing if you have time, as it makes it easier to brush on the butter without solidifying.)
-
Use paper towels to pat the cod fillets dry. Arrange them in a single layer in a 9×13 baking dish.
-
In a small bowl in the microwave or saucepan on the stove, melt the butter. Remove from heat. Stir in the lemon juice and lemon zest.
-
Brush the lemon butter over the cod fillets. Season with garlic powder, sea salt, and black pepper. Flip and repeat both lemon butter and seasoning on the other side.
-
Bake for 12-15 minutes (will vary by thickness), until the baked cod is opaque and flakes easily with a fork. Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve.
Last Step: Leave A Rating!
Share your recipe picture by tagging @wholesomeyum and hashtag it #wholesomeyum on Instagram, or in our Facebook support group, too – I’d love to see it!
Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1 cod fillet
*If you have a large lemon, you may get more than the standard 2 tablespoons of juice per lemon. Measure juice and use all of the zest.
Nutrition facts are provided as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see our nutrition policy.
Want to save this recipe?
Create a free account to save your favorite recipes!
Sign Up To Save Recipes© Copyright Maya Krampf for Wholesome Yum. Please DO NOT SCREENSHOT OR COPY/PASTE recipes to social media or websites. We’d LOVE for you to share a link with photo instead. 🙂

29 Comments
Jan
Love the lemon cod recipe!
Jennie
I made the recipe exactly as written, but found it was almost inedibly bland. Definitely will not make again.
Lina
Yum! Super easy and a family favorite.
Katie
Lemon and cod are meant to be together. This is so bright and flavorful!
Becky
I don’t have lemon and was wondering if I can substitute lemon juice concentrate instead. If so, how much? Thanks!
Wholesome Yum D
Hi Becky, I would suggest 2 tablespoons of lemon juice.
A.J.
Fabulous recipe! Easy but oh so good! This is my go to recipe when I want fish in a hurry!
Amy
This recipe is so buttery and flavorful! I will never make it any other way again. It was perfection.
Natalie
I love cod & baking it is the best way to cook it!! The lemony flavor is so fresh!
Kristyn
I need to eat more fish!! This recipe is perfectly tasty & the fish just melts in your mouth!
Toni
This is really good!! I will definitely make it again!
Matt
I have always loved using lemon with fish. This lemon-baked cod recipe is so good and incredibly easy to make. Such a great fish recipe. Can easily do the same with salmon as well.
Steve
Super easy to make and my family loved it. Just delicious!
Joanne
Easy & delicious!
Connie
Two quick questions:
1. Can lime be substituted for lemon?
2. How can it be so low in calories with so much butter?
Thank you.
Wholesome Yum D
Hi Connie, Yes, lime is fine if you prefer that flavor. This recipe calls for 1/4 cup of butter and serves 8. If you have more questions you can refer to our nutrition policy.
Stephanie
Delicious, simple recipe. I keep organic lemon juice in my fridge because I use it so often so I didn’t happen to have any fresh lemons on hand but it was still tasty and I look forward to trying it with the zest next time. I also used Kerrygold Garlic Herb Butter so I didn’t need any extra salt/pepper. I served it with cauliflower mashed potatoes, big hit at our house.
Judy
I’m trying to eat more fish. This was delicious.
SJ
This sounds good. Can you grill this?
Wholesome Yum M
Hi SJ, Yes, you can grill this fish either in foil packets or on oiled grill grates.
Owen
Love your recipes but the amount of pop ups on your website is irritating beyond belief.. I’m all in favour of people making money but come on.. you close one, 3 more open. not impressed and really hope that you can do something about it.. 🙁
Wholesome Yum M
Hi Owen, Thanks for your feedback! I now have a completely ad-free version of the website. It’s called Wholesome Yum Plus and you can start using it right away!
Sandra
Baked cod is a favorite in this house. Would you believe that I’ve never tried lemon butter on it? Lemon anything goes well with so many foods. Here’s our favorite way to have cod, & I sure hope that it can be paired up with the lemon butter: thaw the fish, pat dry. Melt butter in a 1/2 sheet pan lined with non-stick foil. Melt the butter (1/2 of a stick) just until melted. Put the cod on sheet of wax paper and dust it with sweet paprika on one side. Place cod in pan with the paprika side down in the butter. Brush on some of the butter from the pan and dust that side with the paprika. Bake at 350 degrees until it just starts to turn opaque and flip it over to the other side. Remove when fish can be easily flaked with a fork.
Paprika is the only thing ever used when I baked it. I leave the salt & pepper to my guys to put on for themselves. Now, after seeing your recipe, I will have to try it this way, still leaving the salt & pepper to the guys. Can’t wait to see if they like the garlic powder & buttered lemon. This really sounds like a winner here.
Krissy
Really good fish recipe and super easy to make. More fish in our diets is always a good thing.
Emily
This is such a simple and easy way to bake fish! Definitely, a weeknight staple and the lemon adds the perfect amount of zing.
Chris
Lemon and cod is a match made in heaven! Your photos are making me drool so bad!!
Irina
I am used to making cod recipes, but I have just discovered a single ingredient that I have never added, which is garlic powder. Next time I bake the cod, I will try your way of cooking.
Laverne
My granddaughter is on a keto diet and this really made our day. We love cod and this makes us not miss the breaded variety. Simply delish!!!
Helen
I really love the fish you can buy at Aldi, such good value and I’ve always found it to be good quality. This is a delicious recipe, and so easy to make that it really is ideal for any day of the week. Perfect with lots of green veggies.