Crisp and tender elegant Baked Cod Harissa with roasted veggies!

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Baked Cod Harissa is so easy yet elegant that it’s perfect for date nights, quick dinner, or dinner parties. It takes less than an hour, looks very impressive, and tastes as if it came out of the kitchen of a fancy restaurant. The yogurt and harissa sauce goes well with the cod and the roasted veggies. Plus, it provides a giant punch of flavor! I can’t wait to hear how much your date loves it.
Perfect for date night
- Buttery crisp panko
- Tender harissa spiced cod
- Perfectly roasted veggies
- A delicious and easy dinner elegant enough to impress a date or a house full of guests!

Full of flavor
- Cod fillets
- Plain yogurt
- Harissa –my favorite is homemade or Mina Harissa Mild sauce
- Olive oil
- Salt
- Ground black pepper
- Panko Bread crumbs –unseasoned, so you control the seasoning
- Butter –melted salted or unsalted
- Dried thyme or oregano
- Potatoes –thinly sliced to cook
- Bell peppers –use a variety of colors for depth of flavor and
- Onion –use what you have. Red, white, yellow, or even leeks will be good.
- Capers or pitted and chopped Kalamata olives.
- Garnish: lemon wedges and fresh chopped parsley

Substitute for Cod
I find cod to be a great affordable fish option. It’s mild in flavor, healthy, and flakes apart when it’s done cooking. However, any white fish would work as an alternative. Try haddock, tilapia, Pollock, or striped bass. Salmon would even work well. Let me know what you like best!

How to make Baked Cod Harissa
- Preheat the oven to 400 °F, 200 °C.
- Combine the yogurt and harissa in a bowl and add the thyme with salt and pepper. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.
- Place the fish in a pan and season with salt and pepper on both sides.
- Pour the yogurt harissa sauce over the fish, toss to coat, and set aside.
- Place the veggies (potatoes, onion, and bell peppers) in a baking pan and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and bake for 20-25 minutes or until the potatoes are fork-tender.
- Place the fish on top of the veggies and pour over the marinade.
- In a bowl, stir together the panko breadcrumbs along with the butter and thyme—season with salt and pepper.
- Then, taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.
- Top the fish with the breadcrumb mixture.
- Sprinkle the capers around the fish and bake on the center rack for 15-20 minutes.
- Garnish with lemon wedges and parsley and serve.

Serving
I love to sprinkle scallions or parsley over the entire dish just before serving. It gives it a pop of freshness and adds to the elegance. You‘ll have a complete meal of panko harissa cod with veggies and potatoes, but I would still serve it with a nice side salad or bowl of soup. If you prefer, try Mediterranean rice pilaf or couscous. Whatever your date likes, serve that! Here are some of my favorite things to serve with it:
- Fasolada in 30 Minutes: Express Greek White Bean Soup
- Maroulosalata: Greek Lettuce Salad
- Mediterranean Green Bean Salad
- Greek Lentil Tabbouleh Salad
- Greek Black-Eyed Peas Salad
More Fish Recipes:
- Cod in a Lemon Butter Sauce in 30 Mins!
- Cod Fish Stew
- Greek Fisherman’s Soup: Kakavia
- Roasted Salmon & Green Beans

Baked Cod Harissa
Ingredients
- 4 cod fillets
- 4 tablespoons plain yogurt
- 6 tablespoons harissa or to taste
- 3-4 tablespoons olive oil
- salt, to taste
- ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 cup (100g) Panko Bread crumbs, unseasoned
- 3-4 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme or oregano
- 2 potatoes, thinly sliced
- 2 bell peppers, sliced
- 1 onion, sliced
- 2 teaspoons capers or chopped and pitted Kalamata olives.
- Garnish: lemon wedges and fresh chopped parsley
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400 °F, 200 °C.
Combine the yogurt and harissa together in a bowl. Add the thyme and some salt and pepper. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.
Place the fish in a pan and season on both sides with salt and pepper.
Pour the yogurt harissa sauce over the fish. Toss to coat and set aside.
Place the veggies (potatoes, onion, and bell peppers) in a baking pan and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and bake for 20-25 minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender.
Place the fish and all of the marinade over the veggies.
Combine the panko breadcrumbs along with the butter and thyme in a bowl and mix together. Season with salt and pepper. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.
Top the fish with the breadcrumb mixture.
Sprinkle the capers around the fish and bake on the center rack for 15-20 minutes.
Garnish with lemon wedges and parsley and serve. Kali Orexi!
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Delicious! I didn’t care for the Kalamata olives in this dish, so I’ll probably leave them on the side the next time, but we will definitely be making this dish again.