This easy baked halibut is roasted with eggplant, cherry tomatoes, Calabrian chiles, and fresh mint, then finished with a crispy pine nut breadcrumb topping. A simple Mediterranean-inspired fish dinner that’s veggie-packed, full of bold flavor, and easy enough for a weeknight.
→ Easy fish recipes to try: Mediterranean Sheet Pan Salmon, Cod in Tomato Butter Sauce, Lemon Roasted Sole and Asparagus
The Baked Halibut Recipe I Can’t Stop Making
Bold statement: halibut is my favorite fish. If it’s on a menu, I order it. If my fishmonger is selling it, I buy it. It’s meaty and mild and somehow equally suited to big, bold flavors and the simplest butter-lemon situation.
But this dish, my friends. Buckle up. This is easily my new favorite way to prepare fish, and it has officially earned a top spot on the repeat list.
Let’s break down the highlights: mostly one dish, oven roasted, veggie-packed, Mediterranean flavors, a punch of heat from Calabrian chile, and fresh mint that makes the whole thing sing.
And then there’s the topping. Yowza.
Toasted breadcrumbs and pine nuts get piled onto the halibut for the final few minutes in the oven—but we don’t stop there. Save some of that crunchy goodness for the eggplant and tomatoes when you plate. And whatever you do, don’t leave behind the spicy, tomatoey olive oil hanging out at the bottom of the pan. Spoon it over everything.
This is my ideal main dish: exciting enough for a dinner party, easy enough to make on a Tuesday night. I realize I have written some version of that sentence approximately 47 times this year, but apparently this is my signature and I’m sticking with it.
And here is your very Abra nudge: don’t just look at this recipe and think, that looks easy enough to try.
Actually try it.
Go buy the halibut, eggplant, and tomatoes. Can’t find Calabrian chiles? Use crushed red pepper. Pine nuts wildly expensive, as they have a tendency to be? Try walnuts or almonds.
Then make the recipe. Don’t just think about it—do it. And when you do, I would be so grateful if you came back and left a comment to tell me how it went.
oxxo,
Abra
Let’s Get Cooking!
Easy Swaps
- No Calabrian chiles? Use crushed red pepper flakes.
- No pine nuts? Chopped walnuts or almonds would be delicious.
- No garlic scapes? Two cloves of garlic work perfectly, chop large. (I have a BOUNTY of garlic scapes from the garden so I am currently adding the to everything)
- And while I love this dish with halibut, the preparation would also work beautifully with another thick, firm white fish—just adjust the cooking time based on the thickness of your fillets.
👩🍳 SERVING SUGGESTIONS:
This is an all in one meal, but if you’d like to add more veggies I certainly won’t stop you 🙂 Try these:
A Few Things to Know Before You Start
Give the vegetables a head start
The eggplant and tomatoes go into the oven before the halibut. This gives the eggplant time to soften and allows the whole cherry tomatoes to start bursting and releasing their juices. Give everything a stir halfway through so the eggplant cooks evenly.
I like using a relatively snug baking dish here—I used a 9 x 6½-inch oval baker. You’re not looking for vegetables spread across a giant sheet pan and deeply browned. You want them nestled together, getting soft and juicy and creating that ridiculously good tomato-chile-olive-oil situation at the bottom of the pan.
Calabrian chiles bring the heat
Calabrian chiles are fruity, smoky, spicy, and one of my favorite ways to add heat to a dish. I use chopped Calabrian chiles packed in oil here.
If you can’t find them, don’t let that stop you from making the recipe. Crushed red pepper flakes will work—start conservatively and adjust depending on your heat preference.
The crunchy topping goes everywhere
The pine nut and breadcrumb mixture is intentionally more than you need to cover the fish. Toast the pine nuts first, add the breadcrumbs and parsley, then finish with olive oil until everything is golden and crisp.
Pile some onto the halibut before its final few minutes in the oven and reserve the rest for serving.
Fish gets crunch. Vegetables get crunch. Everyone wins.
Storage Tips:
- STORAGE – This is best enjoyed day of. If you do have leftovers store in an airtight container in the fridge for no more than 2 days
- REHEATING – Reheat in a microwave until warmed through, or I spread out on a baking sheet and heat in the toaster oven.
One Last Abra Note:
Good cooking doesn’t have to be complicated—it’s often just a few great ingredients treated well. This is one of those recipes: buy the beautiful piece of fish, let the vegetables get juicy and jammy, don’t skimp on the crunchy topping, and please spoon every last bit of that spicy tomatoey olive oil over your plate.
And remember: cooking is not a spectator sport. It’s an action. So, my friend, picture me cheering you on from the sidelines, encouraging you to get into that kitchen and cook.
Now go make dinner.
If you’ve tried this recipe, don’t forget to rate and comment!
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Baked Halibut with Roasted Eggplant, Tomatoes & Calabrian Chili
Ingredients
Roasted Vegetables
- 1 small eggplant or ½ large, unpeeled, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 4 cups)
- 1 pint whole cherry tomatoes
- 3 garlic scapes chopped (or 2 garlic cloves, minced)
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp chopped Calabrian chiles
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tbsp torn fresh mint
Crispy Pine Nut Topping
- ¼ cup pine nuts
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs or GF breadcrumbs for gluten free
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
- pinch of kosher salt
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Fish
- 4 halibut fillets about 6 ounces each
- 2 tsp olive oil
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 lemon thinly sliced
Instructions
Roast the vegetables
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil and chopped Calabrian chiles. Add the eggplant, cherry tomatoes, garlic scapes (or garlic), salt, pepper, and torn mint. Toss until everything is evenly coated.
- Transfer the vegetables to a 2- to 2½-quart baking dish (I used a 9 x 6½-inch oval baker.) Roast for 20 minutes, stirring once halfway through, until the eggplant is beginning to soften and the tomatoes have started to burst.
Make the crispy topping
- While the vegetables roast, heat a dry skillet over medium heat. Toast the pine nuts for 2–3 minutes, stirring often, until lightly golden.
- Add the panko, parsley, and a pinch of salt. Cook for about 1 minute before drizzling in the olive oil. Continue stirring until the breadcrumbs are crisp and golden brown. Remove from the heat and set aside.
Bake the halibut
- Increase the oven temperature to 425°F.
- Nestle the halibut fillets on top of the roasted vegetables. Drizzle the fish lightly with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Top each fillet with a few lemon slices.
- Bake for 10–12 minutes per inch of thickness, or until the thickest part of the fish reaches 130°F.
- Remove the lemon slices from the fish.
Finish the dish
- Sprinkle the crispy pine nut topping over the halibut and return the pan to the oven for 2–3 minutes, just until the topping is lightly toasted.
- Serve the halibut over the roasted eggplant and tomatoes, sprinkling any remaining breadcrumb mixture over the vegetables. Finish with a drizzle of good extra virgin olive oil and an extra squeeze of fresh lemon, if desired.
Notes
Recipe Notes
- Choose thick halibut fillets: Cooking time will vary depending on the thickness of your fish. Plan on roughly 10–12 minutes per inch of thickness. I pull halibut when the thickest part reaches 130°F so it stays moist and tender.
- Use a snug baking dish: I used a 9 x 6½-inch oval baking dish. Keeping the vegetables fairly snug helps the tomatoes release their juices and creates that delicious spicy, tomatoey olive oil at the bottom of the pan.
- Save the extra crunch: You’ll have more pine nut breadcrumb topping than you need for the fish—that’s intentional! Reserve the extra to sprinkle over the eggplant and tomatoes when serving.
- Cooking for two? You can easily make this recipe with just 2 halibut fillets. Keep the full amount of vegetables and crunchy topping—you’ll be very happy to have the extra vegetables for another meal.
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