Are you looking for the best side dishes for tilapia?
Tilapia is one of the most eaten fish. In the United States, it comes fourth after Salmon, Alaskan Pollok and Tuna. It is no surprise thus that people will want to know the side dishes with which to cook it and therefore eat it along. Should you be one of these guys, then you are in the right place.
What side dish you are going to eat along the Tilapia is dependent on a couple of factors not least; how you have cooked your main dish, how much time do you have, what is your taste/ the people you are cooking for etc.
Mindful of this, I have shared a variety of recipe to cover for every individual no matter their choice from the scenarios shared. The choice is yours then to decide what to go with.
20 Best Side Dishes For Tilapia
1. Easy Creamed Spinach
This recipe is one of the surest way of making a delicious side dish out of frozen spinach. The ingredients include; black pepper, frozen spinach, half-and-half, cayenne, cheese, nutmeg etc. for those who might not know, half-and-half is a made of heavy cream and whole milk.
Also, you may use fresh spinach though you should cook it first and then squeeze out any liquids thereafter.
To make the recipe, stir by heating butter in a skillet at medium. Add shallot and wait for three minutes. Once softened, add garlic and wait for a short while (not more than a minute).
Pour flour to the skillet and stir. Add the spices next i.e. nutmeg, parmesan cheese, half-and-half, as well as cayenne. Simmer until there is thickening. Finally, stir in the defrosted spinach. Season with salt and pepper.
There can be variations to the recipe for instance, topping the sauce with buttered breadcrumbs after which you should place it in the oven.
2. Lemon Risotto with Peas and Asparagus
Risotto is an Italian originating rice recipe. The ingredients to this particular blend of risotto not least include; white wine, vegetable broth, leeks, lemon juice, parmesan cheese, and Arborio rice. Feel free to substitute leeks with onions or shallots.
Before doing anything with your recipe, it is key that you cook the vegetables i.e. asparagus, peas, and parsley (boil them in water for a few minutes then shock them with cold water) and then heat the stock– I shall tell you where we use them.
Now sauté garlic and leeks in medium heat before adding rice. Stir to ensure proper mixing. Now add the wine and next stock.
Cook for twenty minutes then reduce the heat and add the vegetables along with the cheese and butter. Stir. Finally, season with pepper and salt.
3. Air Fryer Spaghetti Squash
Usually, people will cook this recipe in an oven. We will however, go for the Air fryer here but you are free to do the oven way. The ingredients are, salt, spaghetti squash, black pepper, and then oil. Buy a small or medium spaghetti squash as that is what will fit in the fryer.
To prepare, wash the spaghetti squash then microwave if you find it difficult to cut. When cutting, divide it into two halves then remove the seeds and pulp with a spoon.
Next, place the halves in the air fryer side up and cook for fifteen or twenty minutes. You can cook one at a time as well. Once the inside is tender, top with anything you like; parsley, cheese etc.
4. Air Fryer Baked Sweet Potatoes
Whilst the name “air frying” might come off as though these potatoes are fried. The result is much closer to potatoes in the oven as little or no oil is used. The major difference is that air frying takes less time. The ingredients are salt, sweet potatoes, and then oil.
To prepare, wash and dry the potatoes. Pierce them with a fork or knife next all around before oiling them. Salt them as well.
Now place them in an air fryer and heat. The process should take up to forty five minutes before ready. You will know they are once they turn brown. Be sure to not to overcrowd the potatoes in order to have better results.
5. Perfect Air Fryer Asparagus
Asparagus is quite nutritious for example, it contains high levels of amino acids so it helps to add them to your diet. The ingredients for this recipe are; lemon zest, oil, asparagus, salt, lemon juice, and black pepper.
To prepare, wash then trim your asparagus. Mix olive oil, pepper, and salt then coat the asparagus spears in the mixture. Next, arrange the asparagus and place it in the fryer.
It should be ready between five and ten minutes. From here you can top with lemon zest and juice.
There are several variations that you can try with the recipe including coating with honey and miso prior to cooking as well as grating parmesan cheese on the asparagus after you have removed it from the fryer.
6. Air Fryer Corn on the Cob
The recipe is certainly something to think about whenever sweet comes around in the summers. The ingredients include; mayonnaise, cheese, lime juice, sour cream, and cheese. You can use cotija cheese or Mexican cheese as you find convenient.
To make this dish, start by spraying the fryer with olive oil or avocado oil and then season with salt. Now place in the corn and cook until it is tender.
This should take about ten minutes in total though you should ensure that you turn it around. As the corn cooks, stir together mayonnaise, garlic powder, sour cream, chili powder, and lime juice. When ready, drizzle the sauce on the top of the corn, and sprinkle cilantro and lime on top.
7. Air Fryer Butternut Squash
This recipe is vegan so it should work for those that identify as such. It is also easily customizable though to each person according to their preference.
The ingredients include; garlic powder, olive oil, paprika, butternut squash, kosher salt etc. In the place of olive oil, you may substitute it with any high smoke point oil that you prefer.
To cook this recipe, start with prepping the butternut squash. Cutoff the narrow neck and base off, then remove the seeds.
Make dices out of the butternut squash then coat them in a mixture of garlic powder, paprika salt, olive oil, and black pepper. Place in the fryer and cook for fifteen minutes.
If you think making the cubes on your own is too much work, then you can always buy the ones that are prepackaged.
8. Crispy Air Fryer Zucchini Fries
Zucchini is low in calories and high in water so be sure to grab some of it in this delicious recipe. The requisite ingredients include; flour, zucchini, Italian seasoning, breadcrumbs, eggs etc. Options for best flour are all purpose flour, and almond flour.
The first step for this recipe is to cut zucchini into sticks. Next, create a breading station. It should include flour in the first dish, then a mixture of Italian seasoning, parmesan cheese, salt, garlic powder, breadcrumbs, and seasoning, the last dish should be water mixed with eggs.
Dip the sticks in each of the dishes then transfer to an air fryer. Cook for twenty minutes. Be sure to toss midway the process.
9. Microwave Acorn Squash
Today we placing the recipe under side dishes though you can always decide to scale the quantities and turn it into a main course whenever you want. The ingredients are; water, butter, acorn squash, and salt. There are toppings too they are optional.
They include; cinnamon, brown sugar, and maple syrup.
To start on this recipe, you should wash the acorn squash and then cut it into halves. Next, place the cut pieces in a microwave and pour in water to help soften then cook for eight or so minutes. Remove the squash once tender then brush salt and melted butter on their inside.
Add any of the toppings if you like and return to the microwave. Wait for two minutes.
10. Mashed Potatoes with Caramelized Onions and Goat Cheese
Are you looking to eat tilapia with traditional potatoes? This side dish is a great way to dress them up. The ingredients include; kosher salt, milk, black pepper, bay leaf, onions, garlic, russet potatoes etc.
Start the dish by making caramelized onions. This is done by sautéing onions in butter and olive oil– I shall tell you where we are to use them later.
Now, boil potatoes in hot water until tender then drain them. As they boil, heat garlic, half-and-half, butter and bay leaf at medium to form a cream. Once ready, mash the potatoes then mix with the cream, caramelized onions, and goat cheese. Season with black pepper and salt.
11. Miso Roasted Carrots
This is such an easy recipe to make. Even beginner cookers will have no problems making it. The ingredients include; Greek yoghurt, rice vinegar, miso paste, carrots etc. Rainbow carrots are a good place to start though it is okay to use any type of carrots that you find.
Start this recipe by making miso glaze. Do so by mixing honey, the miso paste, soy sauce, oil, and rice vinegar. Pour this mixture on a sheet pan along with the carrots.
Allow for roasting in twenty five to thirty minutes. Remove and top the carrots with yoghurt sauce.
To keep the recipe vegan, feel free to replace Greek yoghurt with diary-free yoghurt instead. Honey too can be replaced with maple syrup.
12. Easy Air Fryer Diced Potatoes
These fries are much healthier than French fries. The ingredients are garlic powder, parsley, olive oil, and potatoes of course. I recommend that you use fresh parsley though you can do with that which is dried if at all that is what you are able to find.
Depending on which one of them that you use though, the stage at which you add it to the dish differs.
To start on this dish, scrub the potatoes, the cut them into sizable cubes which you should soak in cold water next for ten minutes. Drain them afterwards and mix with garlic powder, salt, olive oil, and parsley (if dry). Air fry for fifteen minutes.
The potatoes are ready to serve. If your parsley is fresh, this is the point when you garnish the potatoes with it.
13. Seared Tuna with Soba Noodles and Sesame Roasted Broccoli
By the time you are doing Tilapia you are probably are sea foods person. So adding to it another variation of fish should not be difficult. The ingredients here include; scallions, packaged tuna, noodles, soy sauce etc.
To prepare, follow the packaging on the tuna to defrost. Separately, add noodles to boiling water and again follow the instructions on the noodles package.
Now whisk sesame oil, sugar, and soy sauce and then power the mixture to the noodles. Add scallions then toss. To serve, divide up the tuna depending on the people present and for each of the slices accompany it with the noodles mixture. To this, add roasted broccoli.
14. Miso Roasted Brussels Sprouts
The ingredients here include; oil, maple syrup, miso paste, Brussels sprouts, sriracha, rice wine vinegar etc. The miso paste may either be white, yellow or even red. As for the oil, I recommend avocado oil or olive oil.
The very first thing to do in preparing the dish is to remove the outer leaves of the sprouts. Now, cut off the stems and divide the Brussels sprouts into half.
Now find a place to mix the sprouts with pepper, oil, and salt. Roast the sprouts in an oven for fifteen minutes. As you do this, separately mix sriracha, oil, soy sauce, maple syrup, miso paste, and vinegar to come up with miso glaze. Once the fifteen minutes of baking are over, pour the blaze to the sprouts and cook for a final ten minutes.
15. Wild Rice Pilaf
Don’t let the name lie to you. Wild rice is not rice but seeds of grass grown by the indigenous communities of the great lakes region. The ingredients to the dish include; celery, cranberries, onions, bay leaf, pecans, parsley etc. the cranberries are substitutable with apricots or raisins.
To get going, add butter and oil in a sauce pan at medium heat and sauté carrots and onion. Next, add bay leaf and thyme. Add wild rice to the mixture then toss.
Pour broth, cover then boil for forty minutes. Remove the heat (The rice should be tender at this point). Steam for ten more minutes then stir in the cranberries. To finish, garnish with pecans and parsley.
16. Celeriac (Celery Root) Puree
Celeriac also celery root is not to be confused with celery. They are related in plant biology but still different. The ingredients for making the puree include; celery root, half-and-half, potatoes, bay leaf, butter etc.
To make the puree, start by boiling potatoes and celery root in water for fifteen minutes. Add apple to them and continue boiling until they are all tender.
In the meantime, heat bay leaf, half-and-half, and butter to make a sauce. When the celery root, apple, and potatoes and apple are ready, transfer to the food processor.
Add the cream too then puree until smooth. Season with pepper and salt afterwards. You can also use an immersion blender in the place of the food processor.
Other Side Dishes For Tilapia
- Cauliflower Polenta
- Perfect Oven-Roasted Vegetables
- Air Fryer Zucchini
- Strawberry Jalapeno Salsa