Baked Halibut Lemon Capers (Printable View)
Flaky halibut baked and served with a bright lemon-caper sauce for a fresh main.
# What You Need:
→ Fish & Marinade
01 - 4 skinless halibut fillets (6 oz each)
02 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
03 - 1 lemon, zested and juiced
04 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
05 - 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
→ Lemon Caper Sauce
06 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
07 - 2 tablespoons capers, rinsed and drained
08 - 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
09 - 1 garlic clove, minced
10 - 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard (optional)
11 - Lemon slices, for garnish
# How-To Steps:
01 - Preheat the oven to 400°F and lightly grease a baking dish large enough to hold the fillets in a single layer.
02 - Pat halibut fillets dry with paper towels and arrange them in the prepared baking dish.
03 - In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, and pepper; pour evenly over the fillets.
04 - Bake for 15 to 18 minutes until the fish is opaque and flakes easily with a fork.
05 - While baking, melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat, then stir in capers, garlic, parsley, and Dijon mustard if using; warm gently for 1 to 2 minutes.
06 - Remove fillets from the oven, spoon warm lemon-caper sauce over each, garnish with lemon slices and extra parsley, and serve immediately.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- The fish comes out impossibly tender and moist because baking at the right temperature means zero guesswork.
- That warm lemon-caper sauce is sharp and bright without being fussy, turning an simple weeknight dinner into something you'd order at a restaurant.
- Twenty-eight minutes total means you can pull off an elegant main course faster than takeout arrives.
02 -
- The moment your halibut turns opaque and a fork slides through without resistance, take it out—one extra minute in the oven turns it from tender to dry and there's no coming back from that.
- Rinsing the capers really does matter; I learned this the hard way by making a sauce that tasted aggressively salty and had to start over.
- Don't leave the garlic out thinking you'll skip it or add more later—it gets its flavor into the butter as it warms, and its absence is actually noticeable.
03 -
- Buy your halibut the same day you plan to cook it, or keep it in the coldest part of your fridge no longer than overnight—fresh fish makes a visible difference here.
- If your fish fillets are thicker on one end than the other, tuck the thin end underneath slightly so everything cooks evenly and you don't end up with one overdone edge.