It’s time to learn how to grill tilapia! (Don’t worry, it’s beyond simple.) This grilled tilapia in foil couldn’t be easier! Simply layer a white fish in the fish foil packet, season with olive oil, salt and pepper, top with veggies and GRILL. Lots of bright summer flavors and the perfect meal to eat outside. The grilled fish in foil packets is not only fun, but it’s also functional as flaky fish like tilapia can’t be grilled directly on the grill. It also helps “steam” the fish so you aren’t drying it out. It’s a meal in a foil packet, but add napa cabbage slaw for a crunchy side.
If you love fish, be sure to try my air fryer tilapia, fish cakes (made with tilapia) and grilled salmon in foil next time. If you need a winter version, my Mediterranean baked fish is a great alternative that you can make inside.
Estimated reading time: 10 minutes
Table of Contents
- Grilling Tilapia in Foil Video
- Can You Grill Tilapia?
- What You’ll Love About this Grilled Fish in Foil
- Ingredients
- How to Grill Tilapia Fish Foil Packets
- Grilled Tilapia Recipe FAQs
- Storage Instructions
- Substitutes for Grilled Fish Foil Packets
- Get Your Kids Involved in Making this Grilled Tilapia Recipe
- How to Serve Fish to the Whole Family
- What to Eat with Grilled Tilapia
- More Easy Grilling Recipes
- More Fish & Seafood Recipes
- Helpful Tools for Foil Packet Dinners on the Grill
Grilling Tilapia in Foil Video
Can You Grill Tilapia?
Yes, you can grill tilapia! And I’ll show you how to grill tilapia without it falling apart. There are a few ways to make grilled tilapia:
- Use a grill basket. This is especially helpful when grilling a flaky fish.
- Make a foil platter. You can do this easily by shaping some foil into a platter shape.
- Make grilled tilapia in foil. This is exactly what we’re doing in this grilled tilapia recipe!
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What You’ll Love About this Grilled Fish in Foil
- Delicious and colorful
- Perfectly cooked tilapia as it steams in the foil pouches
- Whole meal cooks together
- Just 10 minutes to prep
- Made with simple ingredients
- Great way to cook fish outside if you don’t like to cook it inside
Ingredients
The ingredients to make grilled fish in foil are basic:
- White fish – While the recipe calls for tilapia, you can really use any flaky white fish. Cod, bass, grouper, catfish, snapper, or halibut would also work.
- Olive oil – Use high quality olive oil for best flavor.
- Bell pepper – I’ve used an orange bell pepper for a variety of colors, but use yellow, orange, or red.
- Onion – I’ve used red onion, which I prefer for color and flavor, but you could also use white or yellow onion.
- Corn – Use fresh or frozen. If using fresh corn on-the-cob, simply cut it right off the cob and it’s ready to use.
- Tomatoes – Grape or cherry tomatoes work really well in this dish, but you could also use diced tomatoes, just be sure to remove the seeds so it isn’t too watery.
- Seasonings – garlic powder, sea salt, black pepper
- Bread – Optional bread for serving. I love to grill it and serve it on the side.
How to Grill Tilapia Fish Foil Packets
Let’s get to these fish foil packets! The whole meal comes together in just 25 minutes, so it’s perfect for an easy weeknight dinner.
- Preheat the grill. Turn up the grill to medium-high heat, about 375-425 degrees F.
- Make your foil packets for the fish. Cut out 4 large square of aluminum foil.
- Season fish. Drizzle with olive oil and season with garlic powder and sea salt.
- Add veggies to fish foil packets. Top fish with pepper, onion, corn, and tomatoes. Drizzle with remaining olive oil and season with sea salt and black pepper.
- Fold foil packets. Fold the sides of the foil together to create a tent and roll up the seams so that there are no gaps.
- Grill! Place the fish foil packets directly over heat and cook for 10 minutes, or until the fish is opaque and flakes easily. Open foil tents carefully, the steam will be hot.
TIP: If you aren’t eating the meal immediately, be sure to open up the packets to vent or they will continue cooking.
- Grill your bread if using it as a side dish.
Grilled Tilapia Recipe FAQs
Can you grill tilapia in foil?
Yes, grilling tilapia in foil is a great way to ensure your fish doesn’t fall through the grill grates. It’s also easy and keeps it nice and flaky without drying it out.
How to season tilapia for grilling?
In this recipe for grilled tilapia, the seasoning is kept really simple with olive oil, sea salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. The fish also gets plenty of flavor from the corn, tomatoes, pepper, and onion!
You could also use old bay seasoning and grill the tilapia just like my grilled trout recipe.
What to put on grilled tilapia?
Tilapia is a blank canvas. We’ve seasoned it here with basic seasonings and fresh veggies. Grill them together in foil packets and it makes for a flavorful and nutritious dish.
Is grilled tilapia healthy?
Yes! Unless you don’t or can’t eat fish. 😉 This tilapia recipe is nutritious and packed with protein and veggies. Serve it with a carb to round out the meal and it’s a satisfying combo.
How do you grill tilapia without it falling apart?
Because tilapia is a flaky fish, you can’t just set it right on the grill or it will fall apart.
That’s why we’re cooking the grilled tilapia in foil packets. There are also a few other options (see above!) for grilling flaky white fish.
How long to grill tilapia?
This easy grilled tilapia will take about 10 minutes to cook over a medium-high heat grill over direct heat (right over the flame).
The tilapia grill time will vary based on the size of the tilapia fillet. You’ll want it to easily flake so you can open up one of the packet and check with a fork.
You can also use an instant read meat thermometer, you’ll want to cook the tilapia in foil until it reaches 145 degrees F.
Storage Instructions
If you have any leftover grilled tilapia in foil, simply remove from foil and transfer tilapia and veggies into glass storage containers. Store in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
How to reheat
Re-heat in a 350 degrees F oven, a hot skillet, or a few minutes in an air fryer, until just heated throughout. Microwaving is not recommended, but can be done in a pinch.
Can you freeze grilled fish?
Yes, place in an airtight container (stasher bags or glass storage containers work well) and freeze for 2-3 months.
Substitutes for Grilled Fish Foil Packets
Many grilled tilapia recipes like this one can be made with any flaky white fish like cod, bass, grouper, catfish, snapper, or halibut.
You can also swap out some of the vegetables depending on what you have. I love the bright and summery-fresh veggies used in this grilled tilapia in foil, but feel free to use other soft vegetables like shallots, lemon slices, green beans, diced potatoes, or zucchini.
Get Your Kids Involved in Making this Grilled Tilapia Recipe
There are so many ways to get your kids involved in cooking this grilled tilapia in foil:
- Season the fish with olive oil, sea salt, and black pepper.
- Help chop veggies with a kids knife. (The pepper is a good one for younger kids.)
- Add veggies to fish foil packets. This doesn’t need to be done perfectly, so it’s the perfect job for kids! Season veggies with olive oil, salt, and pepper.
How to Serve Fish to the Whole Family
I get it, feeding kids can be tough! But following the Division of Responsibility and knowing your job and your child’s job makes it SO much more enjoyable. You’ll be able to feed your kids any meal, which will help ensure that they are eating a variety of nutritious foods – with plenty of play food sprinkled in. 😉
If you can get your kids involved (see ideas above!) this always helps. Other than that, be sure to use the Division of Responsibility, serve it with a few things you know they will eat (like bread, milk, fruit), and then ultimately let them decide what to eat.
They may take a bite of fish, they may not. Both are ok.
All of my articles on feeding kids can be found here and if you want a FULL list of all of the videos I have with hacks, tips, scripts, and ideas for feeding kids, check out my instagram or tiktok page.
What to Eat with Grilled Tilapia
This grilled tilapia recipe is a protein and veggie so you really just need to eat some carbs! I love it with grilled bread, but you could also serve it with some
- Grains – Serve over a bed of rice, quinoa, couscous. All the flavor from the fish and veggies will soak into the grains.
- Salads – Simple salad recipes like everyday side salad, simple green salad, or quinoa arugula salad pair well with the grilled fish.
- Grilled bread – The best summer side! Simply brush bread slices with olive oil and grill until lightly charred on both side. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt and eat.
More Easy Grilling Recipes
Love to grill anything and everything when the weather is right? Me TOO! Here are some other
More Fish & Seafood Recipes
If you like this grilled fish in foil with vegetables, you should try some of my other easy seafood recipes:
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Helpful Tools for Foil Packet Dinners on the Grill
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Grilled Tilapia in Foil (Fish Foil Packets)
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Dinnner
- Method: Grill
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Diabetic
Description
Learn how to grill tilapia! Grilled tilapia in foil packets makes an EASY 25-min dinner! These fish foil packets are delicious + no clean up!
Ingredients
- 4 6–oz. fillets of white fish (cod or tilapia)
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil + more for bread
- 1 orange pepper
- 1/2 red onion
- 2 cups corn kernels (fresh or frozen)
- 8 oz. grape tomatoes
- garlic powder
- 1 tsp. sea salt
- 1/4 tsp. black pepper
- loaf of bread
- olive oil, salt for bread
- aluminum foil
Instructions
- Preheat grill to medium-high heat, about 375-425 degrees F.
- Cut 4 large squares of aluminum foil, place on a baking sheet and fold up edges to form pouch.
- Place fish on the bottom of foil. Drizzle with olive oil (about 1 teaspoon per fillet) and sprinkle with garlic powder and salt.
- Divide corn, peppers, onion, and grape tomatoes over the top of the fish. Drizzle with remaining olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Fold sides of aluminum foil together, to create a tent and roll edges together, ensuring there are no gaps as you fold the sides together.
- Place foil packets directly over heat and cook for 10 minutes, or until the fish is opaque and flakes easily. Set fish aside. If you aren’t eating the meal immediately, be sure to open up the packets to vent or they will continue cooking.
- Meanwhile, brush bread with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt. Grill bread for about 2-4 minutes per side, or until lightly charred.
Notes
- Get your kids involved! They can: help season fish and top with veggies, brush the bread with olive oil. See more ideas above.
- Nutrition facts do not include bread.
Keywords: fish foil packets, grilled fish packets
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Vanessa
Love fish, but hate cooking it inside. This recipe has great flavors and can be cooked outside!
★★★★★
Jessy
We started letting our kids decide what to season their fish with and it’s worked so well! It’s a family fave.
★★★★★