Whole Grilled Snapper with Cilantro Lime Garlic Butter

Nothing says summer like grilled dinners, am I right?? And in my world, grilled fish is a favorite. The usual suspects for grilled fish are the heartier varieties, like grouper, swordfish, and tuna.

Snapper has such delicate flesh when cooked that it easily falls apart on the grill if you just try to cook fillets. That’s why cooking the whole fish is the way to go! Not only does this prevent the fish from falling apart, but it also keeps it nice and moist during the cooking process. YUM!

I love going out fishing and catching my own snapper, but when I can’t get offshore, I can usually find these beauties at the fish market when I’m on the East Coast. For this recipe I used beeliner snapper, also known as vermillion snapper. They are usually all around 2-2.5 lb (0.9-1.1kg). But if yours are smaller or larger, just adjust for that with the cook time.

If you have a much larger snapper, like something over 5 lb (2.3kg), you will need to either reduce the grill heat and increase the cook time (by a lot!) OR you can grill at the same heat and time listed in the recipe, then just finish it in the oven on 350ºF (177ºC). If I had a larger red snapper, I would probably keep the grill heat and time as stated in the recipe and then finish in the oven. This recipe really works best with smaller fish. Speaking of smaller fish, you can actually use this same recipe with almost any fish of similar size!

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Whole Grilled Snapper with Cilantro Lime Garlic Butter

• Gluten-Free
• Dairy-Free
• Paleo
• Low Carb
• Keto
• Whole30
• Low Calorie
• Pescatarian

5 from 2 votes

Print

This simple and tasty grilled snapper recipe comes together in under 40 minutes! It's perfect for a weekend family dinner or a party! This recipe is Whole30 approved, paleo, gluten free, dairy free, low carb, and keto!

Prep Time: 18 minutes mins

Cook Time: 20 minutes mins

Servings: 6 servings

Ingredients 

• 2 2-2.5 lb 0.9-1.1kg vermillion/beeliner or red snapper, cleaned and scales removed*
• 1 Tbsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/4 cup grass-fed ghee or butter melted
• 2 Tbsp finely chopped cilantro
• 8 large cloves garlic minced or pressed
• 2 tsp fresh lime juice
• 6 limes
• 3-5 jalapeños and chili peppers optional
• 1/2 cup avocado oil

Instructions

• Bring fish to room temp. Remove fish from refrigeration and allow to come to room temperature.
• Start grill and heat to medium-high heat (375-400ºF). 
• Make seasoning mix. In a small bowl, combine sea salt, pepper, and cayenne and mix. 
• Cut slits in fish. Make 3 crosswise cuts down the width of each fillet all the way down to the bones at a 45º angle. 
• Rub with seasoning. Rub the skin and inside the cuts with the seasoning mixture.
• Make cilantro lime garlic butter. In a small bowl, mix together the melted ghee, cilantro, garlic, and lime juice. Reserve half of the butter mixture for the end of the recipe. Spoon the other half of the mixture into the cuts, into the belly, and over the skin of the fish.
• Slice limes and stuff fish. Slice 2 of the limes into thin (<1/4") slices, then cut them into half moon shapes. Stuff the cuts with the lime slices on both sides of the fish. Cut the other 4 limes in half and set aside.
• Oil everything well. Using your hands or a pastry brush, coat the peppers, 6 of the lime halves, and fish on all sides with avocado oil. Really be generous with the avocado oil here so that your fish doesn't stick on the grill. Reserve the last 2 lime halves for serving at the end. 
• Clean and oil grill grates. Once your grill is hot enough, clean the grill grates really well with a wire brush. Bring your fish, peppers, and limes outside and once your just about ready to put them on, oil the grates with avocado oil**. This step is really important to prevent the skin from sticking. 
• Grill fish. Place fish on the grill with enough room to flip them onto clean grill grates when it's time to flip. This is really important too. You're going to want to flip them using grilling tongs and a spatula and just roll them onto their other side. But when you flip you don't want them to go where the other fish was just grilling. You want there to be enough room to roll onto clean grill grates. This will help prevent sticking.
• Cover with lid and allow to grill for about 10 minutes or until the skin releases from the grill grates and you can easily flip them.
• Flip fish. Before you flip them, oil the grates where you will flip the fish onto and brush more oil on the fish. Don't be shy with the oil. Now roll them carefully onto the other side. Add the peppers and limes (face down) to the grill and cover with the lid. Allow to cook for about 10 more minutes. The flesh should be opaque and flake easily off the bone. You can also lift up the belly flap and check for doneness underneath. Carefully remove the fish, peppers, and limes to a platter.
• Serve. Brush immediately with the remaining cilantro lime garlic butter, squeeze fresh lime juice over them, and serve with the grilled limes (Extra yummy to squeeze on the fish! Give each person 1 grilled lime half).

Did you love the recipe? I would love it if you left me a 5-star review below!

Notes

*Cleaned means that the guts have been removed. Most fish will come cleaned, but if not your fishmonger should be able to do that for you. They should also be able to descale it for you. But bonus points if you caught your own fish!! 

**To oil the grates, I use an small towel dipped in avocado oil and rub it on using grilling tongs. 

Category:

• 45 minutes
• American
• Birthday
• Caribbean
• Dairy-Free
• Date Night
• Dinner
• Fall
• Fish
• Game Day
• Gluten-Free
• Grilling / Smoking
• Keto
• Low Calorie
• Low Carb
• Main Dish
• Mediterranean
• Memorial Day / 4th of July / Labor Day
• Paleo
• Party Food
• Pescatarian
• Spring
• Summer
• White fish
• Whole30

Author: Kit

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Did you enjoy the recipe? What’s your favorite seafood to grill? Let me know below in the comments! xx Kit