Tilapia with a Leek Cilantro Salad

This is just a yummy dish!   Oven baked tilapia is a good staple.  I breaded mine with panko for a really light and crunchy texture.  But what sets this recipe apart is the leek and cilantro salad on top.   Served over a bed of jasmine rice, this is the perfect summertime meal.

Oven Baked Tilapia with Leek Cilantro Salad

Ingredients:

• Jasmine Rice, cooked per the package to serve 4
• 4 Tilapia fillets, rinsed and dried
• 2 T olive oil
• 12 oz panko bread crumbs
• salt and pepper

Directions:   Preheat oven to 350 degrees.   Prepare Jasmine Rice per the package to make 4 servings.   Rinse and dry tilapia fillets and rub each one with olive oil.   Dredge through the panko break crumbs, pushing with your fingers so it sticks.   Add a little extra olive oil onto your pan and place the breaded tilapia on it.   Season with salt and pepper and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until done.

Leek and Cilantro Salad

Ingredients:

• 2 leeks, green tops discarded, sliced in half, rinsed and patted dry
• 2 bunches cilantro, rinsed and dried
• 2 T rice vinegar
• 1 T butter
• 2 T olive oil
• Salt and Pepper

Directions:   Chop off the green tops of the leeks and slice in half, which makes cleaning easier.   Remove all sand and pat dry.   Slice the leeks and add to a saute pan with the 1 T of butter.   Saute until tender, remove from heat and cool.   Meanwhile, pick the clean cilantro leaves off the stems and add to a bowl.   Add the cooled sauted leeks, rice vinegar, olive oil and season to taste with salt and pepper.

To assemble: Start with a bed of jasmine rice, then the baked tilapia and topped with the delicious leek and cilantro salad.   Serves 4.

Pan Fried Tilapia with Jalapeno Cream Sauce

This was a request from Craig Bushon of the Craig Bushon Show, Talk Radio 1370 AM.   He LOVES Carino's Jalapeno Garlic Tilapia and asked me to deconstruct the recipe so he could make it at home.   After a bit of tasting and research, I came up with this version which is about 97% to the real recipe.   On a side note, the sauce is SO GOOD and instead of Tilapia, you could use grilled shrimp, seared scallops or any other seafood.

Pan Fried Tilapia with Jalapeno Cream Sauce

Ingredients:

• 4 T butter
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 small shallot, minced
• 1/2 C jalapenos, seeds removed, finely diced
• 1 C spinach, chopped
• 1/3 C heavy cream
• juice from 1/2 lemon
• 2 T white wine
• salt and pepper
• 2 T butter
• 4 Tilapia filets
• 1 C flour
• 2 T butter
• angel hair pasta
• diced tomatoes
• parsley, chopped

Directions:   In a small saute pan, melt butter over medium-low heat and add the garlic, shallots and jalapenos. Simmer for 5 minutes, making sure not to burn the garlic.   Add the spinach and when wilted, add the cream, mixing well.  Let simmer for an additional 5 minutes.   Add the lemon, wine and salt and pepper to taste, mixing well then remove from heat.  Add remaining 2 T of butter slowly, whisking into the sauce.

Cook Angel Hair pasta according to package directions.

In a separate large pan, melt 2 T butter.   Dredge Tilapia through seasoned flour and pan fry until cooked through. 

To plate:   Start with a layer of angel hair pasta, followed by a pan fried Tilapia filet.   Spoon over Jalapeno Cream Sauce and top with diced tomatoes and parsley.   Serve immediately!   So good!