Grilled Fish with Lemon and Capers is a delicious summer dinner, and you can make this with any fish that’s firm enough to cook on the grill!
PIN Grilled Fish with Lemon and Capers!
This Grilled Fish with Lemon and Capers is something I first made back in the days when I was grilling fish on a houseboat at beautiful Lake Powell. At the lake I often made this with halibut, back in the days before it got to be so expensive. But now the Wild Pacific Mahi Mahi I love from Costco is a perfect choice for this recipe if Halibut isn’t in the budget!
And when it’s summer I’m always wanting to cook fish on the grill, and I think this flavorful marinade with lemon juice, lemon zest, capers, Dijon, and just a touch of onion and garlic flavor would be good on just about any type of fish that’s firm enough to grill! See some ideas below for other types of fish you can use with this extra-flavorful marinade.
What ingredients do you need?
(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)
- white fish fillets
- oil for oiling grill
- lemon pieces for serving fish (optional)
- lemon zest
- fresh squeezed lemon juice
- Dijon mustard (affiliate link)
- extra virgin olive oil
- Capers (affiliate link)
- Garlic Powder (affiliate link)
- Onion Powder (affiliate link)
- Dried Parsley (affiliate link)
- fresh ground black pepper
What kinds of white fish can you use for Grilling?
What kind of fish should you use when a recipe calls for “white fish?” White fish refers to mild-flavored quick cooking fillets of fish such as cod, bass, grouper, haddock, catfish, and snapper and you can use any of those as long as they are thick enough for the grill. You can also use pieces of halibut, Mahi Mahi, Swordfish, or Tuna for this recipe.
Why did I use dried herbs in the fish marinade?
I love to use fresh herbs in cooking, but in marinades like this I use ingredients like onion powder, garlic powder and dried parsley because they don’t leave clumps of onion, parsley, or garlic on the fish or meat when it’s grilled. If you prefer to use fresh onions, garlic, or parsley, I would increase the amounts a little.
Tips for Marinating Fish for the Grill:
If you’re a regular follower of my site you know how I love to marinate chicken, pork chops, beef, and lamb when I’m cooking it on the grill. For meats I often use a long marinating time, sometimes even marinating overnight and cooking the next day. I also like marinating fish for a flavor boost, but fish doesn’t need more than a few hours of marinating time, especially with marinades that have lemon or lime juice.
How can you cook this grilled fish without an outdoor grill?
If you don’t have an outdoor grill (or it’s not grilling weather), grilled fish like this can easily be cooked on a stove-top grill pan with ridges (affiliate link) or a George Foreman Grill (affiliate link) with good results. Remember that the George Foreman Grill cooks both sides at once so grilling time will be a lot shorter!
How to Make Grilled Fish with Lemon and Capers:
(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)
- Thaw frozen fish overnight in the fridge. (The Mahi Mahi I get at Costco comes individually wrapped like this, which does make them handy to keep in the freezer.)
- Drain thawed fish in a colander, then press between paper towels to remove excess liquid.
- Zest the lemon and squeeze the juice. Chop capers, and give lemon zest a chop if it’s not very fine.
- Whisk together lemon zest, lemon juice, Dijon, chopped capers, olive oil, garlic powder, onion powder, dried parsley, and black pepper.
- Put the fish in a Ziploc bag and pour in the marinade. Let fish marinate in the fridge for 1-2 hours.
- When you want to cook, drain the fish, and let it come to room temperature.
- Spray grill with non-stick grilling spray or brush with oil, then preheat to high.
- Lower heat to medium-high when you put fish on the grill.
- To get criss-cross grill marks, first lay fish at an angle and cook 2-3 minutes, or until you see nice marks when you lift the edge.
- Rotate fish on the same side but going the opposite angle and cook 2-3 minutes, or until you see opposite grill marks.
- Turn fish over and cook about 2-3 minutes on the other side. Fish is done when it feels firm, but not hard, to the touch. I cooked these pieces of fish about 9 minutes total.
- Serve hot, with additional lemon to squeeze on at the table if desired.
Make it a Low-Carb Meal:
The salad shown with the grilled fish in this photo is Chopped Greek Salad with Peperoncini, and that was a tasty combination. For a low-carb dinner this would also be delicious with Easy Grilled Vegetables, Grilled Zucchini Caprese Salad, or Cucumber Salad with Balsamic Dressing.
More Tasty Recipes for Cooking Fish:
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 4 Mahi Mahi filets
- 1 T oil for oiling grill grates
- lemon pieces for serving fish (optional)
Marinade Ingredients
- 1 T lemon zest (more or less to taste)
- 3 T fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 T capers, chopped (or more if you really like capers)
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. dried parsley
- 1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- If you’re using frozen fish it’s best to thaw overnight in the fridge, but in a pinch you can thaw them in cold water
- Drain the thawed fish in a colander, then put between layers of paper towels and press down to remove the water
- Zest the lemon and squeeze the lemon juice. Chop up the capers a little, and you can also give the lemon zest a chop if it’s in large pieces
- Then whisk together the lemon zest, lemon juice, Dijon, chopped capers, olive oil, garlic powder, onion powder, dried parsley, and black pepper to make the tasty marinade
- Put the fish pieces in a small Ziploc bag and pour in the marinade. Let fish marinate in the fridge for 1-2 hours. (Don’t leave it much longer than that or the lemon juice will start to “cook” the fish
- When you’re ready to cook, drain the fish, catching the marinade to discard if you don’t want that going down your drain. Let fish come to room temperature.
- Spray the grill with non-stick grilling spray or brush with oil, then preheat the grill to high.
- Lower heat to medium-high when you put fish on the grill. To get criss-cross grill marks, first lay fish at an angle across the grill grates and cook 2-3 minutes, or until you see nice marks when you lift the edge
- Rotate fish on the same side but going the opposite angle and cook 2-3 minutes, or until you see opposite grill marks
- Turn fish over and cook about 2-3 minutes on the other side. Fish is done when it feels firm, but not hard, to the touch. I cooked these pieces about 9 minutes total
- Serve hot, with additional lemon to squeeze on at the table if desired.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4
Serving Size:
1
Amount Per Serving:
Calories: 394Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 174mgSodium: 290mgCarbohydrates: 4gFiber: 1gSugar: 1gProtein: 49g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.
Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
Grilled Fish with Lemon and Capers is not only delicious, it’s perfect for any low-carb or Keto eating plan or any phase of the original South Beach Diet.
Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Grilling Recipes to find more grilled fish recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.
Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This favorite recipe for grilled fish was first posted in 2011! The recipe was last updated with much better photos and more information in 2023.
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