Italian Cod Recipe with Tomatoes

This Italian Cod Recipe with tomatoes is ready in just 30 minutes. Simmer codfish fillets in a tomato sauce for an easy and delicious weeknight meal.

If you are looking for a healthy cod recipe that can be prepared and served in under thirty minutes, this is the recipe for you.

Just like this garlic oregano Baked Cod Fish, most Italian fish recipes are also simple to make and delicious.

Let me show you how quickly this particular recipe comes together.

Mise en place

Prep the garlic: I will usually use about 3-4 cloves of garlic that I crush with the side of my knife and then coarsely chop. Feel free to use more (or less) according to your personal preference.

Get the tomatoes ready: I like to use canned tomatoes for this easy fish recipe. If possible, purchase San Marzano whole peeled canned tomatoes packed in their juices and not tomato sauce. Use a high quality canned tomato just like when we made our Classic Marinara Sauce.

Empty a 28 ounce (796 mL) can in a large bowl and hand crush the tomatoes. Add 1 cup of water to the empty can, swirl it around and add it to the bowl of crushed tomatoes.

Prep the onions and the shallots: Coarsely chop 1 medium onion and 3-4 shallots.

The rest of the ingredients can be prepared while the tomato sauce simmers.

Instructions

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat.

Reduce the heat to medium. Add 1 medium chopped onion and 3-4 chopped shallots. Sauté until softened (4-5 minutes).

Add the 4 cloves of chopped garlic and sauté for 30 seconds. The addition of a pinch of red pepper flakes at this point is optional. Add ½ cup of white wine followed by the crushed tomatoes (28 ounces or 796 mL).

Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a simmer. Since I use chopped parsley to garnish the cooked dish, I throw in the parsley stalks while the sauce is simmering.

At this point, taste your tomato sauce. Adjust for salt and pepper. 

Reduce the heat to medium, and allow it to simmer for 20 minutes. Stir occasionally.

While the sauce is simmering, rinse 4 cod fillets (about 2 pounds or 900 grams total) quickly under cold water and pat dry. Season with paprika (about ½ teaspoon ) and salt and pepper. 

After the sauce has been simmering for about 20 minutes, place the fish in the sauce, cover and cook for about 7-10 minutes or until fish flakes easily and turns opaque in color (total time depends on the thickness of the fillet).

OPTIONAL: Garnish with freshly chopped Italian parsley.

The extra sauce can be refrigerated and served with pasta for another quick supper meal. 

Tips

• Rinse cod fillets quickly under cold water and pat dry.
• Use the best quality and freshest ingredients.
• Replace canned tomatoes by whole frozen tomatoes. 
• The extra sauce can be refrigerated and served with pasta for another quick supper meal. 

Can I use another kind of fish?

Yes, replace the cod with any firm, white fish fillet such as haddock, bass or grouper (to name just a few). 

How can you tell that the cod is cooked?

The fish should be opaque and flakes easily when tested with a fork. As a general rule, allow for 10 minutes of cooking time per inch (2.5cm) of the fish thickness. 

Easy seafood recipes we love

• Lemon Garlic Shrimp
• Pan Seared Scallops
• Coquilles St Jacques
• Seafood Pizza
• Smoked Salmon Pinwheels
• Seafood Salad
• Fish Chowder
• Maple Glazed Salmon 

Recipe origins

Growing up Italian meant we had fish every Friday. 

More often than not, this fresh cod recipe would be served alongside these oven-baked Italian potatoes. 

During the holiday season, my mom would always make this recipe with Salted cod aka Baccalà, for La Vigilia, aka Christmas Eve.

So many wonderful dishes of fish and seafood would be prepared to celebrate the Feast of the Seven Fishes with family and friends.

Still to this day, one of my favorite dishes for this Italian Christmas Eve menu is not fish, but rather pasta. My nonna would call it Spaghetti di San Giuseppe aka St. Joseph’s Spaghetti. 

But I digress…

If you are interested, I recently made a variation of this codfish recipe with my friend Carlo, a professional chef. If you would like to see how it is made, head on over to YouTube.  Just click on the following link and be sure to subscribe to the YouTube channel as my friend Carlo and I plan to share more wonderful recipes with all of you!

THANKS SO MUCH for following and being part of the She Loves Biscotti community where you will find Simple & Tasty Family-Friendly Recipes with an Italian Twist.

Ciao for now,

Maria

★★★★★ If you have made this recipe for codfish, I would love to hear about it in the comments below and be sure to rate the recipe!