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crispy baked cod
“Much yummier than I thought it would be. I loved the buttered breadcrumb crunch on top!” —Jack, recipe tester, age 9
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Prepare Ingredients
Gather Cooking Equipment
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Line rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and set cooling rack inside baking sheet. Spray rack with vegetable oil spray.
In 12-inch skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add panko, garlic, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring often with rubber spatula, until lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes.
Turn off heat. Transfer panko mixture to medium bowl. Stir in parsley and let cool for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in small bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, egg yolk, and lemon zest.
Use paper towels to pat fish dry. Use back of small spoon to spread mayonnaise mixture evenly over top of each fillet.
Working with 1 fillet at a time, coat top of each fillet with panko mixture. Place fillets, crumb side up, on greased rack in baking sheet. Wash your hands.
Dip mayonnaise-coated side of fish into panko mixture. Press crumbs so they stick to fish.
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Food for Thought
Low and Slow is the Way to Go
A low-temperature oven (set to just 300 degrees) ensures that the fish cooks slowly, without drying out. Crispy, buttery, garlicky panko bread crumbs get a head start in a skillet so they’re golden brown when the fish comes out of the oven. Finally, a mayonnaise and egg yolk “glue” adds rich flavor and helps the crumb topping stay put. Even kids who don’t usually like fish will like this dish!
How to Peel and Mince Garlic
Follow the steps on the next two slides when you need to mince garlic cloves for a recipe. Garlic is sticky, so you may need to carefully wipe it from the sides of the knife to get the pieces of garlic back onto the cutting board, where you can cut them.
Crush garlic clove with bottom of measuring cup to loosen papery skin. Use your fingers to remove and discard papery skin.
Place one hand on handle of chef’s knife and rest fingers of your other hand on top of blade. Use rocking motion, pivoting knife as you chop garlic repeatedly to cut it into very small pieces.
How to Crack and Separate Eggs
Follow these three easy steps to crack eggs and separate the egg white from the egg yolk:
Gently hit side of egg against flat surface of counter or cutting board.
Pull shell apart into 2 pieces over bowl. Let yolk and white drop into bowl. Discard shell.
Use your hand to very gently transfer yolk to second bowl.
