LEMON GARLIC BUTTER SHRIMP INGREDIENTS

You may have all of the ingredients for lemon garlic butter shrimp in your refrigerator or pantry and not need to make a trip to the grocery store. See recipe card below for ingredient amounts.

• Butter: Use unsalted butter.
• Minced garlic: You can mince it yourself or use minced garlic in the jar.
• Shrimp: Fresh is best but you can use frozen raw deveined shrimp with stems. Just thaw completely and pat dry.
• Lemon: Fresh lemon juice and lemon zest are a must for this dish.
• Salt & pepper: Fresh-ground black pepper and kosher salt to taste. You can also add red pepper flakes if you like a little heat.
• Parsley: We use chopped fresh parsley, but dried parsley is ok in a pinch.
• Lemon zest
• Water

Here are 50 sweet lemon recipes to help you keep things zesty.

INSTRUCTIONS

If you’d like to print this recipe, scroll down to the recipe card where you can print the recipe or have it scaled to double or triple. You’ll also find nutrition information.

GARNISH & SERVE: Serve with fresh parsley and lemon wedges.

STORAGE TIPS

Refrigerate: Store shrimp in an air-tight container for 3-4 days.

Freeze: Freeze shrimp in airtight containers, heavy-duty freezer bags, or wrapped tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil for 10-12 months. We do not recommend refreezing cooked shrimp that was previously frozen raw.

Defrosting: Thaw cooked shrimp in the refrigerator overnight.

WHAT TO SERVE WITH SHRIMP

We recommend serving a couple vegetables and a starch with your shrimp. Consider a crusty Garlic Bread or Garlic Knots, Easy cheesy garlic rolls or noodles or Instant Pot Jasmine Rice.

MORE LEMON GARLIC RECIPES

Love garlic butter?? Try these other delicious recipes:

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT SHRIMP

Pan seared tilapia is very versatile and goes well with most side dishes. We love serving it with butter noodles, rice, baked potatoes, steamed or roasted vegetables and a salad.

PAN SEARED TILAPIA WITH LEMON BUTTER INGREDIENTS

You may have all of these lemon butter white fish ingredients in your refrigerator or pantry and not need to make a trip to the grocery store. See recipe card below for ingredient amounts.

Jump to Recipe

• Tilapia Filets: Tilapia is a flaky white fish that is very mild in taste. Since it has no overwhelming fishy taste it works great in combination with bold flavors like lemon, herbs or garlic.
• Garlic Powder
• Coarse Salt
• Black Pepper
• Paprika: We used regular paprika, but if you are a big fan of smoky flavor you can also try smoked paprika.
• Lemon Zest: For best results use fresh and bright yellow lemons. Make sure you only use the yellow part of the lemon peel and not the white one. The white part, also called pith, tastes bitter and might ruin the flavor of your lemon chicken.
• Olive oil: You can also use avocado oil.
• Salted Butter
• Lemon Juice: For best flavor use fresh lemon juice.
• Fresh Parsley

INSTRUCTIONS

If you’d like to print this recipe, scroll down to the recipe card where you can print the recipe or have it scaled to double or triple. You’ll also find nutrition information.

DRY FISH: Pat tilapia dry with a paper towel.

BLEND SPICES: Mix garlic powder, salt, pepper, paprika, and lemon zest in a bowl. For spicier tilapia, add a pinch or two of chili pepper to the rub.

🔴 TIP: If you don’t own a lemon zester you can also use the fine side of a box grater to rub off the lemon zest or a vegetable peeler. First, peel off very thin slices of lemon peel (avoid the white part) and then chop the lemon peel finely on a cutting board with a knife.

RUB WITH OIL: Rub tilapia filets with oil.

RUB IN SPICES: Rub seasoning mix onto all sides of tilapia.

HEAT SKILLET: Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Spray with non-stick cooking spary.

COOK FISH: Add the tilapia filets. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the edges turn white (opaque). Turn your filets over and finish cooking the other side for 2-3 minutes until the fish is cooked through and flakes easily. It should reach an internal temperature of 140ºF.

🔴 TIP: Cooking time may vary depending on the temperature of the pan, the thickness of the fish and the internal temperature of the fish when you started cooking it.

TOP WITH LEMON BUTTER: Turn off the heat. Add 1 tablespoon of parsley lemon butter to the top of each filet. Save the rest of the lemon butter for another meal. You can store the rest of the lemon parsley butter in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to a month.

SERVE: Remove from the pan and serve with lemon slices and fresh parsley.

AIR FRYER INSTRUCTIONS

• Prepare tilapia according to skillet instructions. 
• Cook at 400ºF for 4 minutes on each side in the air fryer. 
• Use an instant read thermometer to make sure the fish reached an internal temperature of 140ºF. 
• Remove from the air fryer. Add 1 tablespoon of lemon parsley butter to the top of each filet. Serve. 

STORAGE TIPS

Storing your food properly is important to prevent spoiling or food poisoning.

Refrigerate: Let the pan seared tilapia cool completely. Then store in an airtight container or ziploc bag in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Freeze: Lemon butter tilapia is best eaten fresh. However, you can freeze leftovers in an airtight and freezer safe container or ziploc freezer bag. Freeze for up to 3 months.

Defrosting: A great way to defrost is in the refrigerator overnight.

WHAT TO SERVE WITH TILAPIA

We enjoy this tilapia recipe with roasted vegetables, over rice or noodles or with some Homemade Dinner Rolls or Lion House Rolls Copycat.

MORE TILAPIA RECIPES

While we love tilapia with lemon butter we also love some of these other recipes and think you will as well.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS