I am not a true vegetarian. I don't eat beef, chicken, pork, turkey, lamb, goat, duck, rabbit, lizards, or most other vertebrates. But I do eat seafood (so that would make me... a pescetarian?). And I love me some mollusks.
Friday night, we cooked. Delicious scallops, salad, and dessert was had - more about the latter two in future posts - and all was devoured devilishly. Good times. Of course, a large (nearly full) bottle of extra-virgin olive oil was shattered all over the floor... but lucky for us, we'd already made salad dressing. *wipes brow* Anyway, onto the main course.
Sweet, succulent scallops are excellent served as an appetizer or as the main feature of a meal. High heat and a short cooking time ensure they will form a golden, flavorful exterior and remain tender inside (I sound like a cookbook in a good way, right?).
PAN-SEARED SEA SCALLOPS12 large sea scallops
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 1/2 tbsp butter
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 1/2 tbsp capers
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1. Heat a 10"-12" heavy skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Pat scallops dry on paper towels. Coat well with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt.
3. When pan is hot, add scallops as quickly as possible. Do not move scallops once they've been placed in the pan. Sear two minutes or until golden brown on bottom.
4. Turn scallops with spatula. Again, do not move scallops once they've been turned. Cook approximately two more minutes. To test for doneness, press the top of a scallop with your finger: when you begin to feel resistance, remove from heat immediately and transfer scallops to a serving dish.
5. Deglaze the pan by adding butter, lemon juice, capers, and parsley. Stir to mix and remove stuck-on bits (the fond) from pan. Spoon over scallops and serve hot, seasoning to taste with pepper.
Did I mention that we ate them all up?
PROS: exquisite, versatile dish, flavors compliment each other well
CONS: very easy to overcook scallops; scallops tend to stick to the pan, scallops are expensive
4 comments:
Looks kinda like the recipe for Cocquilles St. Jacques that I used to make when you were a kid. Mmmm. Hurry up with the dessert!
love,
mum
What is Cocquilles St. Jacques? I should like the recipe, if it's something I can eat! :D
Cocquilles St. Jacques is what you made, basically. The recipe I used had you dust the scallops with a bit of flour before searing them. Yum!
Maybe I should try that with rice flour or something... probably makes a good crust! As long as the pan is not too sticky. What kind of pan did you use? Steel or stainless or cast iron? Something else?
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