Parmesan Crusted Baked Mahi Mahi

Mahi Mahi is a wonderful white fish with thin skin and firm meat. Besides salmon, my other two top choices for fish is mahi mahi and cod. There is something about the firm yet juicy meat that is delightful to eat and easy to cook.
Mahi Mahi doesn’t fall apart when it cooks because of the dense meat consistency. That makes it easier to cook but also makes it important not to overcook.
Besides the firm flesh, mahi mahi has a pleasant mild flavor with a little sweetness to it. The mild flavor is perfect because it means that this fish will go with a wide variety of flavors and can be served with many different sides. Mahi Mahi is a good fish to pan fry, bake in the oven, grill, and it is great in fish tacos too.
Tips And Steps To Make Parmesan Crusted Baked Mahi Mahi
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil. I highly recommend parchment paper (not waxed!) because the fish slides right off.
- Set three wide and shallow bowls in front of you. Mix flour with salt, garlic powder, and grated Parmesan cheese. Whisk eggs with salt and pepper in another bowl. Mix Panko bread crumbs, grated Parmesan cheese, parsley, garlic powder, and salt in a third bowl. (Remember to season each layer of the breading!)
- Coat each piece of fish in flour first, then in egg, and last in the Panko mixture. Pat the coating onto the fish firmly and lay in on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 18-22 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish filet.
How To Tell When Mahi Mahi is Done?
- As I mentioned before, it’s best not to overcook mahi mahi or it will be dry. So cook it just until it just turns opaque throughout and flakes easily. That is easy to tell when cooking the fish without coating. Unfortunately, it makes it a bit harder if it’s coated. (But coating also preserves moisture, so there is that benefit.)
- You can always flake off a piece on the thicker side to check inside.
- Or, you can use a meat thermometer and insert it into the center of the thickest part in the fish. Safe fish temperature is 145°F but I find it a little dry at 145°F. I pull my mahi mahi out around 137°-140°F.
Serving Suggestions
- Since the flavor of mahi mahi is so mild, it goes with just about anything you want to serve it with.
- You can serve it over a salad as a healthy dinner salad option. Make homemade Caesar salad or a simple side salad and add some shaved Parmesan cheese to the salad and balsamic vinaigrette to compliment the fish.
- Roasted vegetables make a great option here too. It can actually be cooked at the same time as the fish in a separate baking sheet or in the same one. Try asparagus, green beans, red peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, and cauliflower.
- Mashed potatoes or over roasted potatoes would be great as a comforting side dish option.
How To Make This Mahi Mahi Gluten Free?
- Don’t let the coating put you off because with just a couple of substitutions, you can make this mahi mahi recipe gluten free.
- Use all purpose gluten free flour for the first coating and use gluten free bread crumbs in the outer coating instead of Panko.
- Make sure that Parmesan cheese is freshly grated and there is no additives that could contain gluten.
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Parmesan Crusted Baked Mahi Mahi Recipe
Ingredients
- 20-24 oz mahi mahi 4 pieces of mahi mahi
Flour mixture:
- 1/3 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
- salt
Egg mixture:
- 2 eggs
- salt
- fresh cracked black pepper
Panko mixture:
- 1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tbsp parsley
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425° and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
- Set three wide and shallow bowls in front of you. Mix flour with salt, garlic powder, and grated Parmesan cheese in first bowl. Whisk eggs with salt and pepper in another bowl. Mix Panko bread crumbs, grated Parmesan cheese, parsley, garlic powder, and salt in a third bowl.
- Coat each piece of fish in flour first, then in egg, and last in the Panko mixture. Pat the coating onto the fish firmly and lay in on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 18-22 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish.
Video
Notes
- As I mentioned before, it’s best not to overcook mahi mahi or it will be dry. So cook it just until it just turns opaque throughout and flakes easily. That is easy to tell when cooking the fish without coating. Unfortunately, it makes it a bit harder if it’s coated. (But coating also preserves moisture, so there is that benefit.)
- You can always flake off a piece on the thicker side to check inside.
- Or, you can use a meat thermometer and insert it into the center of the thickest part in the fish. Safe fish temperature is 145°F but I find it a little dry at 145°F. I pull my mahi mahi out around 137°-140°F.
Nutrition
More Delicious Fish Recipes To Try
Originally published on Will Cook For Smiles on January 8, 2019.
All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe.
Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.
Very simple with incredible flavor, excellent for an impressive meal with low effort.
I am so glad you liked it, Ryan!
I made this recipe last night and can’t recommend it enough! Will be in my dinner rotation from now on!
Easy to make, and absolutely delicious, gracias!
I am so glad you liked it!
Easy and Delicious!
Thanks, Janet!
Delicious. Easy to prepare. My go to for Mahi Mahi.
Thank you
So glad you like the recipe, Chip!
Super easy and explained very well.
Dont fry…
Oven bake. Healthier.
So glad you liked it, Mark!
Whoa… I even impressed myself!!! This was amazing. I am not a good recipe follower and was going to try to pan fry the fish and then put some of the panko/parm on top. BUT, decided to actually follow the recipe and it came together quickly and came out DELICIOUS. Cooked through. Tender and nice crunchy crust without burning. Definitely going to make this a signature dish of mine. I threw together some leftovers and made a Quinoa Vegetable Hash that was a perfect accompaniment. And a big slice of lemon on the side.
I am so glad you liked it!
It stuck to the foil if I make it again I’ll try on parchment paper or spray the foil.
Loved this simple recipe. I did not use any salt. The Parmesan adds plenty of saltiness. I did increase the the garlic to 1 teaspoon and I believe fresh parsley will only make it better.
Used Mahi from Omaha Steak, they were surprisingly good. Going to use this recipe with Grouper when we get home
Thanks, so glad you liked it!