Pan Seared Halibut | So Easy To Make & Everything Cooks In One Pan

This quick and easy pan seared halibut is perfectly flaky and topped with an herby white wine sauce that features capers, olives, and pine nuts. It's ready in just 30 minutes and everything is cooked in one pan, making it the perfect easy, yet elegant, weeknight dinner!

The Best Pan Seared Halibut

You don't have to go to a fancy restaurant to enjoy five-star pan seared halibut fillets. They're surprisingly easy to make at home and come out just as luxurious and flavorful as the ones from the restaurant!

In fact, this pan seared fish requires just 3 easy steps to make, and the results are incredible. You end up with the most mouthwatering, tender, and flaky halibut fillets that have a perfectly golden brown sear to them and they're finished in a lick-your-plate-clean herb and caper sauce. Gah, they're good.

By the way, I like to eat halibut with a side of crispy air fryer brussel sprouts, and cauliflower rice. Both recipes have 5 ingredients or less and cook in about 10 minutes. So, I highly recommend pairing them with this halibut recipe.

Oh, and for more delicious and healthy 30-minute seafood dinners, check out my keto salmon in creamy garlic butter sauce and 5-minute keto shrimp scampi next!

Ingredients

So, you only need 10 ingredients - plus salt and pepper - to make this halibut recipe, and everything here should be easy enough to find in your nearest supermarket.

Here's what you'll need to make these pan fried halibut fillets:

• 1 lb Alaska halibut, cut in fillets
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• ¼ cup celery stalks, sliced
• 3 tbsp. Fresh Dill, chopped
• 3 tbsp. Fresh Parsley, chopped
• 3 tbsp. Capers
• 3 tbsp. Olives
• 3 tbsp. Pine Nuts
• ½ cup dry white wine
• sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Now, if you're allergic to pine nuts - or don't want to add them - you can definitely skip them here. While they do add some nuttiness and crunch to the halibut recipe, it'll still be perfectly delicious without them.

And if you want an alcohol-free swap for the white wine, you can substitute it with an equal amount of chicken broth, apple cider vinegar, or white wine vinegar diluted 50/50 with water.

The taste won't be exactly the same as this recipe, but it'll still make an amazing sauce for your pan fried halibut!

How to Make Pan Seared Halibut

As I mentioned, the total prep and cooking time for this recipe is just 30 minutes. Plus, everything is cooked in the same pan. So you can expect both cooking and clean-up to be a breeze!

Also, keep in mind this pan fried halibut recipe makes enough for 4 servings. And, of course, you can easily double or triple it for a bigger group.

With all that said, let's dive into how to pan sear halibut.

Step 1: Prep and Season

First, use a paper towel to blot the halibut fillets dry, removing the excess water from the surface. A drier exterior will make it easier to get a nice golden sear on the fish.

Then, season the fillets with salt and black pepper to taste and drizzle them with olive oil.

Step 2: Pan Sear the Halibut

Now, heat a pan to medium-high heat and lightly grease it with olive oil.

When the oil is shimmering, put the fresh halibut fillets in the pan.

Pan sear the halibut until golden brown on both sides. This should take about 7 minutes per side depending on the thickness and temperature of your halibut - you'll want the internal temperature to be about 130°F-135°F.

Once the halibut fillets have a nice pan sear on both sides, transfer them to individual plates.

Step 3: Make the White Wine Sauce

Next, using the same pan the halibut was cooked in, sautee the celery, dill, capers, olives, pine nuts, and wine in olive oil. Cook all of the sauce ingredients for about 5 minutes on medium heat.

Finally, serve your cooked halibut topped with the diced celery, and the herby caper sauce poured over the top. Enjoy!

How to Store and Reheat Halibut

Ok, so this recipe for how to pan sear halibut is definitely the kind of recipe that tastes best when you serve it immediately. And, as I mentioned a second ago, this recipe makes 4 servings, so you probably won't even have any leftovers of this delicious fish.

But, if you do happen to have leftovers, you can store them in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.

The best way to reheat your cooked halibut is in the oven. Preheat the oven to 275°F (135°C) and bake the halibut with the sauce in a covered oven-safe container for 10 minutes or until warm throughout. 

FAQs About This Pan Seared Halibut Recipe

How long does halibut take to sear?

It takes around 5-7 minutes to sear each side of a halibut fillet.

The total searing time will depend on the thickness of your fish fillet. And as I mentioned earlier, you'll want to sear it until the internal temperature reaches about 130°F-135°F.

With that said, before searing your halibut, make sure to pat the surface with paper towels to get it as dry as possible before seasoning. Then, sear the halibut in a hot pan with shimmering oil until a golden crust forms on both sides.

What is the best cooking method for halibut?

It all depends on what you want out of your halibut recipe. I love to make pan fried halibut because this method keeps the halibut super flaky on the inside with a nice golden crust on the outside. You can also pan roast the halibut for a similar effect.

However, if you want to infuse even more flavor into your halibut - and don't mind sacrificing the crust - baking or poaching the halibut in milk, oil, or tomato sauce are some other great ways to cook halibut.

How do you cook halibut without drying it out?

The most important thing is to not overcook your halibut. Once the underside turns golden brown, flip the halibut and immediately remove it from the pan once the other side is ready.

You'll also want to make sure you're starting with a hot pan coated in oil to help seal in the moisture.

Should you remove the skin from halibut before cooking?

You can remove the skin of the halibut before or after cooking. If you’re cooking pan-roasted or pan-seared halibut, it's best to remove the skin before cooking it so you can sear both sides. For methods that don't require any searing, like baking or poaching, you can remove the skin after, once cooking has loosened the skin from the meat of the halibut. Halibut skin is pretty tough, so it usually isn't included in the dish.

Wrapping It All Up

Well, that's how to cooke pan seared halibut that can rival any fine-dining seafood restaurant.

This quick and simple recipe for halibut is the one I find myself coming back to over and over again.

It's so easy to make and has so many wonderful flavors and textures, each bite makes you want another. Seriously, it's just as good as the halibut I've had in restaurants. And in a lot of cases, it's even better!

But don't take my word for it, try this delicious halibut recipe for yourself and let me know what you think in the comments below!

Oh, and for even more easy recipes, make sure to check out my Youtube, Instagram, and TikTok pages. 

More Dinner Recipes

If you liked this pan seared halibut recipe, and want to give some more dinner recipes a try that are just as delicious, I have a ton on the blog I think you'll like.

Give one of these a try next:

• Shrimp stir fry
• Garlic butter shrimp
• Chicken bacon ranch casserole
• Air fryer pork chops
• Blackened chicken
• Air fryer chicken breast
• Pan Fried Mahi Mahi
• Baked Turkey Wings
• Beef and Broccoli

Print