Easter season is upon us. In 2014, the 40 days of Lent begin March 5 and end April 17th. The Church asks all Catholics over the age of 14 to voluntarily give up meat every Friday.
It has been said that a Pope once began this practice in order to help fisherman. In truth this practice goes back to the earliest days of the Church. Avoiding meat on Friday’s is a form of penance in remembrance of Jesus’s crucifixion on Good Friday.
This Lenten season as my Catholic husband helps me train for a marathon I am in search of great fish recipes. Personally, I was raised a Lutheran and grew up on the North Shore of Lake Superior. Fish and seafood have always been a part of diet simply because it tastes so good. As an adult I try to eat more fish for health reasons. Now, I am finding spiritual reasons to keep fish on the menu.
I found an easy rub of sorts for Spiced Tilapia and adjusted the heat to be suit my young family. I enjoy the Spiced Tilapia on a bed of long grain and wild rice mixed with black beans.
This fish recipe is simple, quick and has just the right amount of heat. I’ll use this recipe again and add the Spiced Tilapia to a fish taco with a fresh corn or mango salsa.

Spiced Tilapia
Ingredients
- 6 fresh Tilapia fillets
- 2 tablespoons cayenne
- 2 tablespoons ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons salt
- Olive Oil
Instructions
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Mix spices together
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Rinse fillets in cold water. Pat dry. Brush each fillet with olive oil on both sides. Lightly sprinkle both sides with spice mixture.
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Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. Fish should have a light crisp texture on the outside and be white and flakey on the inside. This recipe is also great grilled. When grilling cook fish 3 minutes on each side.
Spiced Tilapia Recipe Serves 6
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Made the empanadas from your recipe they taste fabulous do you have a recipe for dobladas or fish or meat filled ? As the ones I made the dough will be too sweet !
This looks like a recipe that would be very well received by my family! We live on the coast, so we’re lucky to have fresh fish available for a very affordable price.
I think it’s great that you all are honoring lent. This fish looks so easy to cook that it seems that it might even be a sort of cooking break, so easy and so good for the body.
Thank you for sharing, this sounds like something my husband would love.
I am a fish-lover and I also love rice and beans. Spice suits me very well also. Most of my family also love seafood dishes. I’m always looking for new and different fish dishes and I know we’ll all enjoy this recipe very much just the way it is presented.
This looks so good that it’s making me hungry!
Tilapia is one of my favorite types of fish to eat!
This looks delicious. I am always trying out new ideas for cooking fish and I must try this one.