Delicious, light and healthy, Easy Fish Piccata with Artichokes is quick enough for every day, elegant enough for entertaining. Mild fish filets (think cod or halibut) are sautéed, then served with a piccata-inspired sauce. To the standard piccata sauce base of lemon, butter and capers, I add chopped shallots, green onion, white wine, chicken broth and marinated artichoke hearts. The resulting dish is fresh, light, piquant and pretty on the plate!
White Fish Piccata
I love chicken piccata – a classic Italian dish of sautéed chicken breasts with a super yummy lemon, butter and caper sauce. Lemon-butter sauce is the perfect pairing for almost any fish – as you can see in my mom’s amazing recipe for Roasted Salmon Steaks. So, the other night when I was hungry for fish, I decided to create a Fish Piccata recipe. Trying to eat healthier these days, I set out to lighten up the sauce a bit as well.
Fish Piccata Recipe Ingredients
To the standard piccata sauce base of lemon, butter and capers, I added chopped shallots and green onion. White wine and chicken broth lightened it up a bit, as did sautéing the fish in oil instead of butter. And, I had some leftover marinated artichoke hearts on hand, so I threw them in as well. The resulting Fish Piccata with Artichokes was exactly what I was looking for – light, healthy, flavorful with a bit of tang, pretty on the plate – and oh, so delicious! Mom would have loved this dish.
Best Type of Fish for Fish Piccata
I like to make this Fish Piccata with cod, but you could also use halibut or snapper.
Can frozen fish be used to make this Fish Piccata recipe?
Yes you can use frozen fish. Thaw it in the refrigerator, then rinse under cold water and dry on paper towel.
How to make Fish Piccata
This fish dish is amazingly quick and easy to prepare. Here are the steps for cooking the fish; the directions for the Piccata sauce are in the next section.
- Coat fish with flour.
Place flour in a shallow baking dish or plate; stir in salt and pepper. Dredge each filet in the flour, shaking off excess. - Heat cooking oil.
In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the canola oil over medium-high heat until hot (but not smoking – see Tip in recipe card), about 2 minutes. - Sauté fish.
Place 3 filets in skillet. Sauté, without moving, until lightly browned, around 3 to 3 1/2 minutes. Turn filets over and continue cooking for around 1 to 2 minutes or just until cooked through. Remove from pan and set aside. Repeat process with remaining 2 tablespoons of canola oil and 3 filets. - Make sauce.
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How to make Piccata Sauce for Fish
Here are the super easy stops to making the Piccata sauce:
- Heat butter and oil.
Return the pan (in which you cooked the fish) to medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter; stir until butter melts. - Sauté shallots.
Once the butter melts, add chopped shallots and sauté for around 30 seconds, stirring. - Add wine.
Stir in white wine, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Bring to a medium boil and cook until the liquid is reduced by half, around 3 minutes. - Add chicken or fish broth.
Stir in broth, lemon juice and capers. Bring to a slow boil and cook for another minute. - Add more butter.
Reduce heat to medium and whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens slightly, about 3 to 5 minutes. - Add onion, artichokes and cooked fish.
Stir in the chopped green onion and artichoke hearts. Nestle cooked filets in the sauce and cook just until the fish is warmed through, about 2 minutes.
Storing and Reheating Artichoke Fish Piccata
This recipe by its nature is quick and easy, which means it’s designed to be prepared just before serving. If you do end up with leftovers (not likely!) then you can store them in in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They should last around 3 days. Place in a skillet over low heat to rewarm before serving. Watch carefully so you don’t over cook the fish.
What to serve with Cod Piccata
Here are a few suggestions of what to serve with this fish:
- Quinoa and Brown Rice mixture
- Roasted new potatoes
- Cauliflower Purée (in my cookbook “A Well-Seasoned Kitchen®)
- Barley Pilaf (in my cookbook “Fresh Tastes”)
- Spring greens tossed with sliced tomatoes, chopped red onion and a simple vinaigrette
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Artichoke Fish Piccata
Delicious, light and healthy, Easy Fish Piccata with Artichokes is quick enough for every day, elegant enough for entertaining. Fish filets are dredged in flour, sautéed in oil, then served with artichokes and a slightly tangy and scrumptious lemon, butter, caper sauce. Yum!
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Diet: Low Calorie
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
- Kosher salt, to taste
- Fresh ground pepper, to taste
- 6 (4 to 6-ounce) cod filets, skin removed – can also use halibut or snapper
- 1/4 cup organic canola or vegetable oil, divided
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons butter, divided
- 2 tablespoons chopped shallots
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1/2 cup chicken broth (can also use fish broth)
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoons capers, drained
- 2 tablespoons chopped green onion (white, light green and some of the dark green portion)
- 1 jar (6-ounce) marinated artichoke hearts, drained
- Lemon slices or wedges, for garnish
Instructions
- Place flour in a shallow baking dish or plate; stir in salt and pepper. Dredge each filet in the flour, shaking off excess.
- In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the canola oil over medium-high heat until hot (but not smoking – see Tip below), about 2 minutes. Place 3 filets in skillet. Sauté, without moving, until lightly browned, around 3 to 3 1/2 minutes per side. Remove from pan and set aside. Repeat process with remaining 2 tablespoons of canola oil and 3 filets.
- Return the pan to medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter. Once the butter melts, add chopped shallots and sauté for around 30 seconds.
- Stir in white wine, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Bring to a medium boil and cook until the liquid is reduced by half, around 3 minutes.
- Stir in the broth, lemon juice and capers. Bring to a slow boil and cook for another minute. Reduce heat to medium and whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens slightly, about 3 to 5 minutes.
- Stir in the chopped green onion and artichoke hearts. Return the fish filets to the pan (with the sauce) and cook just until the fish is warmed through, about 2 minutes.
- Serve immediately, placing filets on individual dinner plates (or one large serving platter) and spooning sauce over the top.
- Garnish with lemon wedges or slices, if desired.
Notes
Gluten free: use gluten-free flour and gluten-free chicken broth.
Tip on checking temperature of heated oil: place the flat end of a wooden spoon handle in the oil, in the middle of the skillet, touching the bottom of the pan. When bubbles start to form around the handle, the oil is ready!
- Category: main dish, fish, healthy, gluten free
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 220
- Sugar: 1.6 g
- Sodium: 107.7 mg
- Fat: 17.6 g
- Saturated Fat: 4.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 11.6 g
- Fiber: 1.7 g
- Protein: 5.4 g
- Cholesterol: 24 mg
