This light and flavorful cod fillet is seared in a rich, and creamy brown butter sauce that gets a summery, tropical kick with a generous zest of fresh lime.

I have been C R A V I N G cod fish for weeks, you guys. I kept seeing it pop up on sale; everywhere! My local Florida grocery chain, The Fresh Market, Whole Foods, Sprouts…literally everywhere. We clearly needed cod on our menu, and in our life.

Cod is such an easy fish to prepare, and takes like zero effort to cook. I found this recipe for my cod, and a happy accident was made. The recipe from Real Simple called to add lime zest to melted butter for 30 seconds. Only, I got distracted and ended up browning the butter a little longer than I planned to, and it became the richest, most decadent – yet light tasting, fish ever.

I’ve browned butter for baking before, but beyond that I haven’t played too much with it – until this cod filet. The mix of rich brown butter and fresh lime zest (with juice) was just incredibly flavorful and perfect for summer. This cod would be great on the grill, but because it takes such little time, I opted to pan sear it on the stove. I think I made the right decision.

If you’ve never browned butter before, it couldn’t be easier:

To make brown butter, simply start by melting butter over medium heat (not any higher).
Swirl the pan occasionally to be sure the butter is cooking evenly. As the butter melts, it will begin to foam.
The color will darken from light to brown (hence the name). In between this time, you will add fresh lime zest, and then add cod.

This seared cod with a brown butter lime sauce sounds fancy, and it tastes like it too, but it couldn’t be easier to make. It’s also incredibly inexpensive, which makes it a perfect weeknight dinner! The little flecks of brown butter help

This dinner is low carb and keto compliant. It is a not whole 30/paleo approved meal; as ghee won’t brown the way actual butter does since it doesn’t contain milk solids (dairy), but if you want a cleaner ingredient butter, I’d suggest Kerrygold Butter.

I like to make this cod with a cilantro-lime slaw (recipe coming Friday!), but a side salad, roasted or grilled veggies would be just as tasty – enjoy!

Items used to make this meal: