Fish piccata on the fly

...fish piccata is always on the fly, actually, which is one of the things I love about it. Even if you start with frozen fillets, this is not going to take more than 30 minutes. My recipe is heavy on the lemon and extra-saucy, because I love that stuff on everything, but you could make a milder sauce by just omitting some of the lemon juice. Try with any thin, tender white fish.

Weeknight Fish Piccata

Serves 4

for the fish:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
salt and black pepper to taste
4 tilapia fillets
2 tablespoons olive oil, or as needed

for the sauce:

1 clove garlic, minced
zest of 1 lemon
juice of three lemons
2 tablespoons capers, drained
2 tablespoons cold butter
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F. Place a serving platter into oven to warm.

Rinse and pat the fish fillets dry.  Season on both sides with salt and papper and dredge through the flour; shake off excess. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat and pan-fry the fish in the hot oil until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Keep fillets warm on heated platter in oven.

Pour off all but a thin film of oil in the skillet over medium heat; cook and stir garlic until fragrant, about 20 seconds. Pour lemon juice into skillet and scrape off the brown bits into the juice. Mix in lemon zest, two thirds of the parsley, and capers and cook until sauce thickens slightly, about 5 more minutes. Whisk butter into sauce.

Lay fish fillets in the sauce and turn to coat; serve on the warmed platter and garnish with parsley.