Southwest Tilapia with Wild Rice and Creamy Hollandaise
This Southwest Tilapia with Wild Rice combines seasoned baked tilapia, colorful peppers, fire-roasted tomatoes, black beans, corn and long-grain wild rice with creamy hollandaise sauce for an easy fish dinner packed with flavor.
If you're looking for a different way to cook tilapia, this recipe turns simple fish fillets into a complete Southwest-style dinner. The tilapia is seasoned with sweet red pepper, BeSure To Seasoning Blend, Southwest seasoning and lemon pepper before being baked until moist and tender.
The wild rice cooks with peppers, onion, garlic, fire-roasted tomatoes, black beans and corn, so every spoonful has plenty of flavor and texture.
To finish the dish, the baked tilapia is placed over the Southwest wild rice and topped with creamy prepared hollandaise sauce.
Easy Southwest Tilapia with Wild Rice
This easy tilapia dinner combines baked seasoned fish with a Southwest-style wild rice mixture filled with vegetables, beans and corn.
Instead of serving plain fish and rice separately, the ingredients come together as one complete dinner. The rice provides smoky, savory Southwest flavor while the creamy hollandaise adds a rich finishing sauce to the tilapia.
It's a great choice when you want a flavorful baked tilapia recipe that feels different from basic lemon-and-pepper fish.
Why You'll Love This Tilapia Dinner
Complete Dinner
Fish, rice, vegetables, black beans and corn come together in one satisfying meal.
Big Southwest Flavor
Peppers, fire-roasted tomatoes, black beans and seasonings give the wild rice plenty of flavor.
Moist Baked Tilapia
Butter and a short baking time help keep the tilapia moist instead of dry.
Creamy Finish
Hollandaise sauce gives the finished fish a creamy, rich finishing touch.
Southwest Tilapia with Wild Rice and Creamy Hollandaise
Seasoned baked tilapia served over flavorful Southwest wild rice with vegetables, black beans, corn and creamy hollandaise sauce.
Ingredients
- 5 tilapia fillets
- Dried granulated sweet red pepper
- BeSure To Seasoning Blend
- Southwest seasoning
- Lemon pepper
- 2–3 tablespoons olive oil
- ⅓ cup diced green bell pepper
- ⅓ cup diced red bell pepper
- ⅓ cup diced onion
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 can fire-roasted diced tomatoes, drained
- 1 can seasoned black beans
- 2 boxes long-grain wild rice
- Chicken broth or other required liquid, according to the rice package
- 1 cup corn
- Butter
- Prepared hollandaise sauce
Instructions
- Season both sides of the tilapia with dried sweet red pepper, BeSure To Seasoning Blend, Southwest seasoning and lemon pepper. Refrigerate the fish while preparing the rice.
- Heat the olive oil and sauté the green bell pepper, red bell pepper, onion and minced garlic until they begin to soften.
- Add the drained fire-roasted tomatoes, seasoned black beans, wild rice, required liquid or chicken broth and corn. Mix everything together well.
- Transfer the Southwest rice mixture to a baking dish and bake at 350°F for about 35 minutes, or until the rice is tender and the liquid has cooked down.
- Place the seasoned tilapia fillets on a buttered, foil-lined baking sheet. Add small pieces of butter on top and bake at 350°F for about 10–15 minutes, or until the fish is cooked through and still moist.
- Spoon the Southwest wild rice onto plates. Place the baked tilapia on top and drizzle with creamy hollandaise sauce. Serve hot and enjoy.
What Gives This Southwest Tilapia So Much Flavor?
The tilapia gets multiple layers of seasoning from sweet red pepper, BeSure To Seasoning Blend, Southwest seasoning and lemon pepper. A little butter added before baking also helps give the fish a richer finish.
The wild rice mixture brings in even more flavor from sautéed green and red peppers, onion, garlic, fire-roasted tomatoes, seasoned black beans and corn.
Once the creamy hollandaise is drizzled over the finished tilapia, you get a combination of savory, creamy, smoky and slightly tangy flavors in the same dish.
Watch the Southwest Tilapia Recipe Step by Step
Click a chapter below to jump directly to that part of our BeSureToCook YouTube video.
More Seafood Recipes from BeSureToCook
If you enjoy tilapia, shrimp and flavorful seafood dinners, try these BeSureToCook recipes next.
How Do You Know When Tilapia Is Done?
Tilapia cooks quickly. Instead of relying only on the clock, use a food thermometer to check the thickest part of the fish.
USDA food-safety guidance lists 145°F as the safe minimum internal temperature for fish and shellfish.
You can review the USDA Safe Minimum Internal Temperature Chart .
Be Sure To Seasoning in This Tilapia Recipe
We use BeSure To Seasoning Blend along with Southwest seasoning, lemon pepper and sweet red pepper to season the tilapia before it goes into the oven.
The seasoning blend can also be used with vegetables, chicken, potatoes, seafood and other everyday recipes.
Southwest Tilapia Recipe FAQs
What goes well with tilapia?
Tilapia works well with rice, vegetables, corn, beans, potatoes and creamy or citrus-based sauces. In this recipe, we serve it over Southwest wild rice with hollandaise.
Can you bake tilapia at 350°F?
Yes. We bake these tilapia fillets at 350°F for approximately 10–15 minutes. The exact cooking time can vary depending on the thickness of the fish.
What temperature should tilapia reach?
USDA guidance recommends cooking fish to a minimum internal temperature of 145°F.
Can I use chicken broth to cook wild rice?
Yes. Chicken broth can add more flavor than plain water. Follow the liquid amount listed on the wild rice package you're using.
What sauce goes well with tilapia?
Tilapia works well with lemon sauces, butter sauces and creamy sauces. This recipe uses prepared hollandaise sauce for a rich and creamy finish.
Can I make the Southwest rice ahead of time?
You can prepare the rice mixture ahead and refrigerate it, then reheat it thoroughly before serving with freshly cooked tilapia.
About BeSureToCook
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