Honey Garlic Sablefish

Name: Honey Garlic Sablefish (Black Cod)
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 1 pound Alaska sablefish (black cod), cut into 4 fillets; 12 ounces fresh broccoli florets; 3 tbsp grapeseed other neutral-tasting oil, divided; 3 tbsp coconut aminos, reduced sodium soy sauce or tamari; 5 tbsp honey; 1 tsp toasted sesame oil; 4 cloves fresh garlic, grated; 1 inch fresh ginger, grated; ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes; Coarse salt and pepper to taste; Cooked rice for serving (optional)

Published: Jan 31, 2021 · Modified: Oct 12, 2023 by Marisa Moore·

This buttery, flaky pan-seared sablefish is sweet, savory and garlicky in a good way. It’s an easy sablefish recipe that’s ready in minutes. Pair it with broccoli for a restaurant quality meal that’s ready in.

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skillet with cooked sablefish and the glaze

This post was originally sponsored by Alaska Seafood.

This easy sablefish recipe is ready in about 20 minutes. And that’s even if you forget to thaw the fish (because you can cook it from frozen).

If you are not familiar, sablefish (Black Cod) it’s a fatty, flaky fish with an irresistibly silky, succulent texture when cooked. It’s mild in flavor and pairs perfectly with sweet and savory marinades and glazes. This is an elegant fish recipe that would be ideal for date night and anytime you want to impress your family and friends.

Here’s what you’ll need

Alaska sablefish (also known as black cod)
Fresh or frozen broccoli
Grapeseed other neutral-tasting oil
Coconut aminos, reduced sodium soy sauce or tamari
Honey
Toasted sesame oil
Fresh garlic
Fresh ginger
Crushed red pepper flakes

The list seems a little long. But once you gather the sauce ingredients, it goes quickly. Promise!

Ingredients on a grey board. Sablefish in plastic, honey, oil, soy sauce, sesame oil, red pepper flakes in bowls, whole pieces of garlic and ginger.

Best way to cook sablefish

I love sablefish for its rich, buttery texture when cooked. I like to bake, broil or pan-sear it. I think it works especially well broiled with a glaze or pan-seared like this recipe. This succulent fish is quite forgiving making it a great one to start with if you are new to cooking seafood.

You can swap in other fish. Though it has a stronger flavor profile, salmon would pair well with the honey garlic glaze and offer a similar fatty content. Cod, halibut and pollock will also work in this recipe and are all available fresh or frozen year-round.

For this recipe, salmon would work great but also halibut with a few adjustments to the cooking time since it has a drier texture.

Nutrition

Sablefish is a good source of omega-3 fatty acids but with a mild flavor that most people will enjoy. And as a registered dietitian, I recommend getting eating sources of these important fats such as salmon, sardines, and sablefish.

Omega-3s are essential and provide immune and heart-health benefits and are especially important for children’s brain and development. In fact, the US Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends eating seafood 2-3 times per week for everyone 12 months and older.

Is frozen fish ok?

YES! In fact, I often prefer it. If you live in an area without easy access to the ocean, fresh seafood may not be easily accessible, abundant or affordable. Here’s the thing…

Frozen wild seafood makes buying, meal planning and cooking seafood easy; Alaska freezes its seafood just after it leaves the water to ensure freshness and it can be prepared in as little as 15 minutes – no thawing required.

That means I can keep frozen fish on hand to make a meal in minutes at any time. No thawing required and no running out to find fresh fish at a seafood counter the day of!

Let’s make this recipe

Whisk the sauce ingredients together (or shake in a jar)

Whisking the sauce ingredients in a bowl.

Sauce the vegetables.

Pouring the sauce onto the broccoli florets in a stainless steel mixing bowl.

Slice, season, sear and baste the fish. Sauce and serve the fish!

Close up of a spoon dripping glaze over the cooked sablefish in a skillet.

Be sure to watch me make this Honey Garlic Sablefish on Instagram where I shared it as part of #AskForAlaska #SeafoodSunday.

Tips for success

Pat the fish dry. I made this recipe using thawed black sablefish (thawed overnight in the refrigerator). Removing excess water from the fish will allow for maximum contact and a good sear.

Don’t overcrowd the pan. Keeping the skillet hot is a key to creating a nice sear and enhanced flavor. Overcrowding can cool the pan and also affect that browning process leaving you with steamed fish instead.

Leave the fish alone. One of the biggest mistakes people make when cooking fish is moving it around too much. To avoid rips and tears, let the fish cook for at least 3-5 minutes before trying to move it.

Don’t overcook the fish. This one is hard. I know. Cooking a thick versus thin fillet will drastically affect cook times. And with practice you will get used to the indicators.

You’ll know when the fish is done by touch and timing. But I recommend using a meat thermometer to cook fish to a safe internal temperature of 145°F, or until the fish is opaque and flakes easily with a fork.

Substitutions

Soy sauce. Reduced sodium soy sauce adds rich, deep flavor to the honey garlic sauce. To make this a gluten-free recipe, use tamari. To make this a soy- and gluten-free recipe use coconut aminos in place of the soy sauce. You can swap these in equal amounts. You might find that coconut aminos adds a bit more sweetness and less rich flavor to the sauce however.

Don’t have fresh ginger? I prefer fresh for the punch of flavor but ground ginger can work in a pinch. Try 1 teaspoon ground ginger for the 1 inch fresh ginger root.

Don’t have any broccoli? Change it up. Though you might need to adjust the cooking time a bit, you can absolutely swap in Brussels sprouts green beans or cauliflower. Or serve the fish with a green salad.

Honey garlic sablefish with broccoli on a white plate.

How to serve this recipe

This recipe goes well with rice or other grains on the side. The first time I made it, I flaked the fish over brown rice and added the broccoli to make a bowl.

It’s also perfect for date night!

Plate the sablefish with an extra drizzle of honey garlic sauce, your date’s favorite roasted vegetables and a glass of white wine.

Why I prefer Alaska Seafood

It’s always wild and sustainable. Alaskan fishermen harvest only as much fish as science tells them the environment can handle. This allows the marine ecosystem and seafood species to continue to replenish year after year.

Alaska is the nation’s largest source of domestic wild-caught seafood. In fact, nearly 60 percent of all wild seafood and 95 percent of wild salmon harvested in the U.S. comes from Alaska.

If you haven’t noticed before, look for “Alaska” on packaging and on restaurant and food delivery menus to guarantee that you are getting wild and sustainably harvested seafood.

Two filets of black cod in skillet with sauce.

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5 from 17 votes