Broiled swordfish takes a few minutes to cook, or make it on a grill instead. Either way, make this healthy fish recipe in under 30 minutes!
This is a great tried and true swordfish steak recipe I’ve been making for years. Typically, we eat a lot of grilled salmon and ahi tuna, but I decided to splurge on swordfish this time. Simple, easy and not much to it recipewise. It’s all about fresh ingredients.
If the weather permits, fire up your grill and cook them outside. Making broiled swordfish allows you to enjoy the meal despite the weather conditions.
Keeping dinner simple, delicious and healthy is the name of the game.
Broiled Swordfish
Swordfish to me is like a steak in the fish world. It’s thick and meaty, not thin and flaky like baked fish sticks are.
Before broiling or grilling, you’ll season the swordfish steaks with fresh rosemary, garlic, melted butter, lemon juice and zest.
Fish marinade ingredients and substitutions
The easy marinade packs the flavor. You can even use it to baste onto the fish as it cooks.
- Lemons– If you can find Meyer lemons, those are amazing in the marinade because they have a much sweeter flavor than traditional lemons.
- Fresh rosemary– Using fresh versus dried rosemary gives the fish marinade a bright flavor. It’s fine to use dried if you need to, though.
Time-Saving Shortcut
There’s no need to strip the rosemary needles from the twig… just toss the entire piece in, twig and all!
Video: Cooking Swordfish Steak
Although this recipe is for broiled swordfish, the video shows how to grill it. To see the process from start to finish, watch the video located in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
NOTE: It’s easy to overcook fish, which causes it to be dry and flavorless. All you need to grill or broil swordfish to perfection is 3 minutes per side.
How long to marinate swordfish
Don’t let the fish marinate for longer than an hour, as lemon juice can actually “cook” the fish (this is how shrimp ceviche is made). This is a tender and wonderful fish and I like to keep it simple and serve it with some steamed vegetables or a side salad. Enjoy!
This post, first published on Kevin is Cooking June 23, 2014, was last updated with new content on Sept. 18, 2021.
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Lemon Rosemary Broiled Swordfish + Video
Ingredients
- 1 lb swordfish 1-inch thick pieces
- 2 tbsp butter melted
- 3 cloves garlic chopped
- 1 lemon juice and zest
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 sprig rosemary finely chopped (1 tbsp)
- pinch salt
Instructions
- Rinse and pat dry the swordfish steaks. Set aside.
Fish Marinade
- Crush and chop the garlic. In a small bowl whisk together the melted butter, olive oil, garlic, zest of half the lemon and the juice.
- Add rosemary to the melted butter mixture and pour over the swordfish in a plastic zip bag or container to marinate for 20 minutes or up to an hour tops. (See Note 1).
Broiled Swordfish
- Preheat oven broiler. Place marinated swordfish on a rimmed baking sheet or oven safe grill pan.
- Place under the broiler and cook fish for 2-3 minutes on first side, then use fish spatula to carefully flip swordfish steak over. Baste with additional marinade if desired and broil second side for 2-3 minutes. (See Note 2)
Grilling Option
- Preheat grill to 500°F.  Place swordfish on cleaned grill grates. Drop heat to 400°F and baste with reserved marinade.
- Cook fish on first side for 2-3 minutes, use a fish spatula to gently flip it over, then grill the second side for 2-3 minutes. (See Note 2)
Notes
- Melted butter tends to solidify after 20 minutes in the refrigerator. Massage the bag of swordfish and marinade a bit to re-liquify the butter if necessary.
- It’s very easy for fish to over cook. To keep it moist, don’t cook it for any longer than necessary.
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Nutrition
Excellent recipe!! Delicious.
Thank you Josette! I am so glad you enjoyed it!
What is the weight for a serving size?
Hi Janey! Typically 1/2 pound per person! I hope you give the recipe a try!
I did make this. It is perfect. The recipe makes delicious swordfish that is low in calories. A bit chilly here, so I used the air fryer. Fish was moist and tasty.
Love how hearty swordfish is and how well is stands up against grilling! Lemon rosemary is such a lovely pairing, Kevin! Great recipe for entertaining too 🙂
Summertime grilling time here Dawn. Thanks!
I always forget about swordfish and it’s so good! Particularly with lemon and rosemary!! Putting this on the menu!
One of my all time favorite fish to grill and serve. Salmon is right up there too. 🙂
I’m a huge fan of swordfish and this recipe is absolutely divine! We’ll love it!
Thanks so much Annie. Hope you guys are having a wonderful Summer. Cheers!
One of my husband’s favorite fishes Kevin. Love how fresh and easy this sounds!
Super easy and big on flavor Mary Ann. You guys will love this one. 🙂
It is understandable the melted butter solidifies in the refrigerator after 20 minutes of marinating. I massage the swordfish and marinade a bit while in the bag before grilling and baste with reserved marinade in bag. Hope you enjoyed it Nelson.
Swordfish is my favourite food-from-the-sea and it is one of the things I miss so much since I’ve moved inland – I’m now 4 hours away from the nearest coast town which means, no fresh seafood! However, I’m definitely saving this recipe for the next time I do have the opportunity to buy fresh swordfish because that marinade sounds incredible!
Hey there James, thanks! I’ve always lived coastal (SF and now San Diego) so inland, land-locked would be quite strange. Thanks for stopping by, now to go check out your site. 😉
We also eat mainly tuna and salmon – the swordfish looks amazing though, I saw it recently at our fishmonger. Will definitely give it a try next time to mix it up a bit! Have a great weekend, Kevin!
Thanks Miriam, it’s an easy marinade that delivers big flavors. Plus, it’s starting to get cooler so needed something on the grill!
Hey Kevin! We love swordfish but it is not readily available here (gee, that’s a surprise). Yesterday we splurged and ordered some Chilean sea bass ($29.00 a pound!!!) from the upscale store in town and when we pick it up i’m going to ask about getting some swordfish. Question, in the body of your post you say to marinate the fish 20 minutes and in the recipe itself you say an hour…?
I remember when swordfish was every where and inexpensive, now not so much. We love Chilean Sea Bass as well, nice choice! As for the typo, thanks, I’ve updated the “…up to an…” Don’t want tough fish!