Panko-Crusted Tilapia

I found my new favorite tilapia recipe. It was very easy, took me about 5 minutes from start to finish. Even better, I bought enough tilapia to feed my family for $2.50. Although it was cheap, this recipe is restaurant quality.

Tilapia is a white fish found at most supermarket seafood counters. It does not have that "fishy" taste, so a lot of people like it.

Panko bread crumbs are a Japanese style bread crumb. It is lighter and flakier then other styles of bread crumbs. Panko bread crumbs can either be found next to the regular bread crumbs, or sometimes in the Asian food section

Panko-Crusted Tilapia  
adapted from February 09 Family Circle

4   U.S. farm-raised tilapia fillets, about 5 ounces each

1/2 cup  Italian-seasoned panko bread crumbs (I did not have Italian seasoned bread crumbs, so I just mixed in some Italian seasoning into my bread crumbs)

1/2 teaspoon  salt

1/4 teaspoon  black pepper

  Heat oven to 450 degrees F. Coat a broiler-safe baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Place tilapia fillets in pan, skin-side down, and coat lightly with cooking spray. Season fish with 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and black pepper. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons panko crumbs over each fillet. Bake at 450 degrees F for 10 minutes. Turn up oven to broil. Run fillets under broiler for 1 to 2 minutes, until browned and crisp.