Mustard Grilled Tilapia

This finished off the last jar of wholegrain mustard from last year.  I wanted to grill and I've never done fish, so here was a new experience.

I did use the grill pan for this project, but also put half of the filets on foil.  I definitely recommend a grill pan, mat, or foil liner.  Closing the lid gets you the smoky flavor, which doesn't matter if the filet falls apart and lands on the coals.  I ended up preferring the results of the foil because the juices stay with the fish.  The two cooked in the pan got a bit overdone and tasted more like chicken.

I made some homemade tortillas to go with these, even though mustard isn't much of a South American condiment.  Tossed them on the grill for that special flavor. I didn't make tomatillo salsa this year, so I made a tomatillo salad instead, which will be the next post.

This process is very easy and can be done under the broiler if you don't want to grill.  Step one, marinate.  Step two, cook.  Step three, eat.  I just drew it out into a two hour project waiting for the coals to heat up.

*2 Tb grainy mustard
1 Tb olive oil
*1 preserved lemon or one lemon, zested and juiced
1/2 tsp salt if not using preserved lemon
4 tilapia filets

1.  For the marinade, rinse preserved lemon well and finely chop peel or zest and juice lemon.  Whisk together with mustard, olive oil, and salt if needed.  Smear onto fish and allow to marinate at least 4 hours, or overnight.

2.  If using grill, get up to a medium heat.  The filets are thin and you don't want to overcook them.  For oven, set to broil and line the pan with foil.

3.  Place marinated filets on foil or other liner and grill with the lid closed until cooked through.  This will vary entirely by how hot your grill is.  On a broiler, probably only five minutes per side.  I grilled mine for about 20 minutes, checking every 10, and didn't flip them.  I just loosened them from the pan and foil after 10.

4.  Serve while still hot, either on their own or as part of a fish taco.

Difficulty rating  π