Pan Seared Sea Scallops Food

PAN SEARED SEA SCALLOPS

Steps:

• Start with fresh sea scallops, as large as you can buy. If you buy them frozen, defrost before preparing the recipe.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
• Heat olive oil in pan over medium heat. Rinse scallops with cold water, pat dry with paper towels.
• Pour pan searing flour into quart size plastic bag; coat scallops one by one with flour shaking off excess.
• Add scallops to pan; when scallops appear brown paper bag color 1/4 up flip with tongs.
• Add butter and spoon butter over scallops as "crusting" occurs.
• Transfer scallops and butter oil mixture to oven safe dish and place in oven for 7- 10 minutes and enjoy!

QUICK PAN-SEARED SCALLOPS

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add shallot; cook and stir until lightly browned, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour in lemon juice and cook until evaporated, scraping the bottom of the skillet with a wooden spoon to release any browned bits, about 3 minutes.
• Place scallops 1/2 inch apart in the skillet. Cook until browned on the bottom, about 1 minute. Flip and continue cooking until the second side is deeply browned, about 1 minute more.
• Transfer scallops to a serving plate; season with salt and pepper. Garnish with parsley.

SEARED SCALLOPS

Steps:

• Remove the small side muscle from the scallops, rinse with cold water and thoroughly pat dry.
• Add the butter and oil to a 12 to 14-inch saute pan on high heat. Salt and pepper the scallops. Once the fat begins to smoke, gently add the scallops, making sure they are not touching each other. Sear the scallops for 1 1/2 minutes on each side. The scallops should have a 1/4-inch golden crust on each side while still being translucent in the center. Serve immediately.

SEARED SCALLOPS

Steps:

• Place a layer of paper towels on top of a large plate or baking sheet and gently lay the sea scallops on top to rid them of any excess moisture. With the scallops still on the paper towel, grab a large pinch of kosher salt and sprinkle it from a foot or more over the scallops. The height will help distribute the salt evenly.
• Use a pepper grinder to crack fresh black pepper in the same manner, getting every scallop.
• Flip the scallops and season the other side. This is important!
• Heat the oil in a large cast-iron skillet or heavy-bottomed stainless-steel saute pan over high heat. Do not use nonstick-you'll never achieve the proper caramelization!
• Wait.
• Wait.
• Watch as the pan begins to smoke.
• Now, carefully, because the pan and oil are very hot, use tongs or your fingers to place each scallop individually in the pan, leaving room between them. Once the scallops are in the pan, do not move them or the pan or turn the heat down. You're going to want to, because the pan will be hot and splattering and smoking, but resist! You're getting your hard sear. Don't interfere or the scallops will stick.
• After 2 minutes, use a spatula or tongs to gently turn one of the scallops and assess how dark the sear is. If it's dark brown and caramelized, it's ready to be flipped and seared on the other side for at least 2 minutes more to achieve an identical sear.
• When the scallops have been flipped and seared on both sides, they're fully cooked and ready to eat. Remove them from the pan using tongs or a spatula. Add the butter to the pan and a squeeze of lemon juice and scrape up the bit on the pan to create a sauce. Serve the scallops hot and topped with the pan sauce and another squeeze of fresh lemon juice on top.

SEARED SCALLOPS WITH GLAZED BRUSSELS SPROUTS

Steps:

• In a small bowl, stir together the lime juice, maple syrup, mustard, garlic powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Season with pepper.
• Add the bacon and olive oil to a large, cold skillet. Turn the heat to medium-high and cook, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is very crispy but not burned, 3 to 4 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate to drain and carefully pour all but 2 tablespoons of the fat in the pan into a heatproof dish or jar. Place the pan back on the heat.
• Pat the scallops dry with a cloth or paper towel, and season with salt on all sides. Carefully place each scallop, flat side down, into the hot fat and cook, without touching, until nicely golden brown on the bottom, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip and cook briefly this time until very lightly golden, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Transfer to a plate.
• Add the brussels sprouts to the hot pan, making sure each one is turned cut side down. Season with salt and pepper and cook, still over medium-high and without touching, until brown and slightly charred on that one side, 2 to 3 minutes. Add more bacon fat as needed to keep the pan coated. Now gently shake the pan or stir with a spoon to stir-fry briefly, just a few seconds.
• When the brussels sprouts are charred on the cut sides and bright green on the rounded sides, transfer them to the plate with the scallops. In the now-empty pan, add the lime juice mixture and cook, stirring constantly, over medium-high heat until it bubbles up and reduces by more than half and a spoon dragged through the pan leaves a naked trail in the lime glaze, 2 to 5 minutes. It should look sticky like melted candy.
• Remove the pan from the heat and return the scallops to the pan, tossing in the butter as well. Stir until the butter is fully melted and incorporated into the lime glaze. This residual heat should also finish heating your scallops. Add back the seared brussels sprouts and bacon and gently toss in the glaze. Garnish with the chives.
• Serve right from the pan if you'd like with a side of crusty bread or bowls of rice.

PAN-SEARED LEMON AND GARLIC SCALLOPS

Steps:

• Place scallops in a bowl and sprinkle with salt. Cover and let rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
• Combine 5 tablespoons warm butter, lemon juice, and garlic in a bowl; whisk until combined. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• At the same time, remove scallops from the refrigerator and let come to room temperature, about 20 to 30 minutes.
• Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a nonstick pan over medium-high heat, making sure it does not smoke. Brush scallops with garlic mixture and add to the pan. Cook until the bottoms begin to sear and turn golden, about 2 minutes. Flip scallops, brush with garlic mixture, and cook another 2 minutes. Remove scallops from the heat and let them continue to cook while they rest, off the heat, for 5 more minutes. Plate and serve.

PAN-SEARED SEA SCALLOPS WITH BROWNED BUTTER SAGE

Steps:

• With a paper towel, thoroughly dry all sides of scallops.
• Season all sides of scallops evenly with garlic powder, onion powder and black pepper. Then evenly coat all sides with flour and pat of excess flour.
• In an oven-safe skillet (cast iron preferred), heat olive oil over medium-high heat until glistening.
• Add scallops. Cook for 3 - 5 minutes and turn over when bottom edges change color 1/4 of the way up, and seared side has turned paper bag brown.
• Lower skillet to medium heat. Add butter to pan (being careful not to burn). When butter has melted and begins to foam, baste scallops with it for 1 - 3 minutes. (The butter will become amber in color. If it seems to be any darker than "amber", reduce heat a little.)
• During the last one minute of cooking time, sprinkle fresh sage into butter and allow to crisp. Scallops are done when their sides are evenly white from top to bottom (no longer opaque) or internal temperature reaches 140°F.

PAN-SEARED SCALLOPS FOR TWO

Steps:

• Pour 2 Tbsp. dressing over scallops in shallow dish; turn to evenly coat both sides of each scallop. Refrigerate 30 min. to marinate.
• Cook beans in remaining dressing in large skillet on medium-high heat 5 min. or until crisp-tender, stirring occasionally. Add lemon juice and dill; toss to coat. Cook 1 min., stirring frequently. Top with nuts. Remove from heat; cover to keep warm.
• Remove scallops from marinade; discard marinade. Heat large nonstick skillet on medium heat. Add scallops; cook 4 min. on each side or until opaque and lightly browned on both sides. Serve with the beans.

SEARED SCALLOPS WITH PAN SAUCE

Steps:

• Cut 2 tablespoons of the butter into pea-sized pieces, put it on a small plate, and stick it in the freezer. Heat a large skillet over medium-heat high for 3 or 4 minutes. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon butter and the olive oil and wait for the butter to melt.
• Pat the scallops dry with paper towels, add them to the pan and sprinkle with salt and pepper; work in batches if necessary to avoid crowding the skillet. Cook, turning once, until they are well browned on both sides but not quite cooked through, 2 minutes per side (less if the scallops are under 1 inch across; more if they're over). Transfer the scallops to a plate.
• Stir in the garlic, lemon juice, and wine and scrape all the brown bits off the bottom of the skillet with a spatula. Lower the heat to medium and cook until the liquid in the skillet thickens, a minute or two, then whisk in the butter you chilled in the freezer, one bit at a time, to make a creamy sauce, adding another tablespoon or two of liquid if necessary.
• Return the scallops to the skillet and add the chives. Adjust the heat so the sauce bubbles gently and toss to coat the scallops with the sauce. To serve, transfer the scallops to a platter and spoon the sauce over all.
• Variation:
• Seared Scallops With Cherry Tomatoes and Basil: Skip the lemon juice. Cut 1 pint cherry tomatoes in half. Add the tomatoes with the garlic and wine and cook until they wrinkle a bit and release their juice, 2 or 3 minutes. Use chopped fresh basil leaves instead of chives.
• Cooks' Notes
• Releasing From The Pan: The scallops will offer no resistance when they're ready to turn. Press down gently while the scallops cook to encourage full contact with the pan, then listen for a hiss: That's moisture heating and evaporating.
• Getting A Good Sear: The idea is to brown the scallops well on both sides without overcooking them, so keep the heat as high as you can without creating too much smoke.
• Building Sauce With Butter: After you add the liquid and deglaze the pan, the addition of butter develops fantastic creaminess and richness.
• Finishing The Dish: As soon as the scallops are cooked through completely and coated with the sauce, remove the pan from the heat; they will continue to cook. Nick-and-peek into one if you need to check for doneness.