Sous vide is one of the best ways to prepare cod. There’s no risk of overcooking it and it’s healthier and less messy than deep frying! At 130 degrees F for just 30 minutes, you’ll have the most delicious, flaky cod you’ve ever had. Need to cook from frozen? No worries, just tack on an additional 15 minutes of cook time.

Sous vide cod in a lemon butter sauce on a white plate.
Butter poached cod is my secret weapon for a fancy-feeling weeknight dinner that takes 30 minutes.

Cod is one of the most popular white fish around, and for good reason! It’s flaky, mild, and delicious served all kinds of ways, especially with this lemon butter sauce.

However, when overcooked, it can become rubbery and inedible, and it doesn’t take much to overcook it. This can be really intimidating! Enter: sous vide, a cooking method that makes it impossible to overcook the fish since the cooking environment is the same temperature you want the interior of the fish to come to.

Once you’ve tried this recipe and loved it, make sure to check out my other sous vide seafood recipes. I’ve got plenty more in my cookbooks, too!

I’m so glad you found this recipe!

I can’t wait to be a part of your sous vide cooking today, and hopefully more to come! 

I’ve been passionate about sous vide for almost a decade now. I take a different approach from other sous vide experts. While I love the science of sous vide, I want it to be an approachable cooking technique for everyone, and I don’t want you to sweat the details.

If you’re new to sous vide, make sure to read through this blog post or consider joining Sous Vide School. 

I also have two sous vide cookbooks I think you’ll love: Everyday Sous Vide and Sous Vide Meal Prep.

Got questions?

Leave a comment and I’ll get right back to you!

The method outlined in this recipe will work for any species of cod, whether it’s Lingcod, Pacific Cod, Atlantic Cod, or Pollock.

In fact, this method should work well for nearly any white fish that’s less than an inch thick.

Time and temperature

With cod, I tested 3 temperatures: 125 degrees F, 130 degrees F, and 135 degrees F and can’t recommend any temperature other than 130 degrees F.

Cod is almost always served one way: cooked through and flaky. It’s not like steak or even salmon where there are preferences when it comes to how rare it’s served.

130 degrees F for 30 minutes is the best time and temperature for sous vide cod. Trust me!

Seasoning

Butter poaching is one of my favorite ways to cook seafood, especially lobster and cod. I keep the seasoning simple with just salt and garlic powder.

Sous vide cod ingredients on white tray on yellow background.
To prep the cod for sous vide, you’ll just need butter, garlic powder, and salt.
Seasoning cod with salt on white tray on yellow background.
Season the cod lightly and evenly with the salt.
Seasoning cod with garlic powder on white tray.
Season the cod with garlic powder.
A hand places raw, seasoned sous vide cod fillets into a vacuum-seal bag beside a cutting board with more fish and butter cubes, all set against a bright yellow background.
To make it easier to add the cod to the bag, cuff the bag a couple of times.
A hand places raw chicken breasts and butter into a vacuum-seal bag on a bright yellow surface, next to a white tray with a piece of butter—perfect prep for sous vide cod or other delicious dishes.
Once you’ve added the cod, place pats of butter right on top of the cod fillets.
A vacuum sealer machine sealing raw chicken pieces with three cubes of butter in a clear plastic bag, placed on a bright yellow surface—perfect for sous vide cod or other delicious sous vide recipes.
Once you’ve added the seasoned cod and the butter, vacuum seal or use another air removal method.
A vacuum-sealed plastic bag containing raw chicken breasts and three pats of butter is submerged in a clear water container with a sous vide immersion circulator—perfect for chicken or sous vide cod—set against a bright yellow background.
Add the vacuum sealed cod to a preheated water bath and use sous vide magnets to secure the bag and keep it from floating.
A sealed plastic bag with sous vide cod and yellow liquids inside is submerged in a clear water bath with a white sous vide immersion circulator, all set against a bright yellow background.
Cook for 30 minutes. At this point, the fish will be opaque and white and the butter will be melted.

You don’t need to finish the fish by searing or broiling, it’s delicious as is.

A white plate with several pieces of sous vide cod sits on a yellow surface, with a blue-and-white patterned napkin partially under the plate.
Carefully remove the fish to a serving plate. It’s so tender that it may fall apart – that’s okay!
A hand pouring sauce or oil onto cooked pork belly slices on a white plate, with a blue patterned napkin underneath, set on a bright yellow surface—perfect alongside a delicate sous vide cod for an elevated meal.
Pour the butter sauce from the bag over the fish.
A white bowl filled with tender, flaky sous vide cod in a light sauce, placed on a yellow surface with a blue and white checkered napkin partially under the bowl.
There’s nothing like tender, flaky fish swimming in butter!
A hand squeezes a yellow lemon squeezer over a bowl of sous vide cod fillets on a yellow surface, with a green and white cloth partially wrapped around the bowl.
Give the cod a generous squeeze of lemon.
Sprinkle on lots of chopped parsley or dill and serve!

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    A plate of tender sous vide cod fillets topped with chopped herbs, served in a creamy sauce with a lemon slice. A fork rests on the fish. The plate is on a yellow surface beside a white and blue cloth.
    5 stars from 2 reviews

    Get the Recipe:

    Butter Poached Sous Vide Cod (30 Minutes)

    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Sous Vide Time: 30 minutes
    Total Time: 38 minutes
    Yield: 4 people
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Leave a Review
    Sous vide is the easiest way to ensure that your cod is melt in your mouth tender and never risk overcooking it. When poached in butter and finished with a little lemon, it's truly as good as it gets!

    Ingredients
      

    • 1 lb cod fillets, Pacific, Atlantic, Ling, or Pollock
    • 1 tbsp garlic powder
    • 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
    • 4 tbsp salted butter, cut into pats
    • 2 tbsp lemon juice, about 1/2 lemon
    • 3 tbsp chopped parsley or dill

    Equipment

    Instructions
     

    • Preheat a water bath using an immersion circulator to 130 degrees F.
    • Evenly season the cod fillets with garlic powder and kosher salt.
      1 lb cod fillets, 1 tbsp garlic powder, 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
    • Cuff a vacuum seal bag a couple of times and add the seasoned cod fillets. Add the butter pats and distribute them evenly in a single layer on top of the fish. Uncuff and vacuum seal the bag using a vacuum sealer. If you don't have a vacuum sealer, use another air removal method.
      4 tbsp salted butter
    • Add the vacuum sealed bag to the preheated water bath and secure with sous vide magnets to keep from floating, or place a ceramic plate or bowl on top of the bag. Cook for 30 minutes. If cooking from frozen, cook for 45 minutes.
    • After cooking, remove the bag from the water bath and carefully remove the fish from the bag to a rimmed serving plate. It will be so tender that it will likely fall apart a bit. That's okay! Pour the contents of the bag over the fish for a butter sauce.
    • Squeeze the half lemon over the fish and sprinkle on the chopped parsley or dill. Serve.
      2 tbsp lemon juice, 3 tbsp chopped parsley or dill
    Cuisine: American
    Course: Dinner
    Author: Chelsea Cole
    Calories: 202kcal, Carbohydrates: 2g, Protein: 21g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 7g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Trans Fat: 0.5g, Cholesterol: 79mg, Sodium: 1025mg, Potassium: 503mg, Fiber: 0.2g, Sugar: 0.2g, Vitamin A: 396IU, Vitamin C: 4mg, Calcium: 24mg, Iron: 1mg
    Did you make this recipe?Mention @chel.seacole on Instagram or tag #aducksoven.