Air Fryer Tilapia – A Quick & Healthy Recipe

Whether you are looking to eat a little healthier or our looking for a quick and easy meal that requires little preparation, this Air Fryer Tilapia recipe will become one of your favorites!

Tilapia is a type of white-fish that has a very mild flavor. It is easy to find in your local grocery stores and is reasonably priced.

In fact, it is the 4th most common fish consumed in the United States.

However, you must be very careful where the fish you purchase originates from.

This is because Tilapia is primarily farm-raised. And depending on where your fish was raised, it might not be considered healthy at all.

Although there are a few US based fish farms, most of the Tilapia farms are located over-seas. And many of the tanks are overcrowded and the fish are fed both antibiotics and pesticides.

Therefore, before you purchase your Tilapia for the Air Fryer, be sure that it comes from a sustainable farm.

The sustainable farms make every effort to raise healthy fish and take care not to cause damage to local, natural ecosystems. Therefore they avoid using harmful things like additives, chemicals, hormones, or antibiotics.

So when you go to purchase this commonly found fish, be sure to look for tilapia that’s been eco-certified by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC), Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) and Naturland.

It is best to purchase tilapia that has been raised in Peru in raceways and in Ecuador in ponds. As a general guideline, you want to stay away from purchasing any farm raised fish from China.

So now that you know what type of Tilapia to buy, let’s get cooking!

How To Make Tilapia In The Air Fryer

As stated above, Tilapia is a very mild fish. So you are going to need to add some seasoning to give it some flavor.

First, pat your tilapia filets dry with a paper towel. Then brush or spray both sides with olive oil spray.

Next sprinkle on your favorite seasonings. We like to season our Tilapia using the same spices that we use on our Air Fryer Salmon recipe.

But sometimes we like to spice things up a bit and add a Cajun seasoning. But we also enjoy the low-sodium options as well, including Mrs. Dash Garlic Herb spice.

The choice is up to you. I suggest experimenting with various seasoning blends to see what you like the best.

Preheat the Air Fryer

Next, preheat your Air Fryer. I know not all air fryer brands require this step.

However, you want your fish to be put in on a preheated basket or rack. This will help the fish from sticking to the bottom of the basket during the cooking process.

Because we are cooking our Tilapia at high heat, be sure to spray the basket with olive oil spray (not extra virgin olive oil). Or you could also use another high heat oil such as Grapeseed, Avocado or Canola oil.

Place the Tilapia in the Air Fryer basket and cook for 8-12 minutes, depending on the thickness of your filets.

At the 4 minute mark, carefully flip the fish over using a silicone spatula.

Then continue to cook until the fish is flaky. Because all Air Fryers cook differently, it is best to check your Tilapia around the 6-7 minute mark for doneness. This is especially true when you are cooking thin filets.

Then remove the Tilapia, squeeze a little fresh lemon juice on top and enjoy!

Enjoy! Mary

What To Serve With Tilapia

• Air Fryer Ranch Potatoes
• Garlic Butter Smashed Potatoes
• Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes
• Mexican Street Corn
• Air Fryer Green Beans
• Wild Rice Salad
• Light & Creamy Coleslaw
• Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Rice

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