Seared Scallops are paired with an easy-to-make butter sauce, this is a restaurant-quality scallop dinner for a portion of the price! Easy enough for a weeknight meal but fancy enough for entertaining guests!
Quick meals don’t always have to be sandwiches. Seafood is ultra quick to cook. You can grill or pan saute’ scallops or shrimp in minutes.
ARE SEARED SCALLOPS HEALTHY?
Scallops are clean tasting with a slightly sweet flavor. They are low calorie with only 112 calories per 100g serving, 23 grams of protein, 1 gram of fat, and no carbohydrates! They also contain heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids.
You’ll want to cook scallops almost as you would a steak, sear the outside quickly on a very hot skillet, and remove them from the heat. Scallops can go from perfect to overcooked in seconds so watch them closely! They’ll be rubbery, touch, and chewy if overcooked.
HOW DO YOU CHOOSE THE BEST SCALLOPS?
You can find scallops pretty easily at most grocery stores either in the fresh fish counter or the frozen section. You’ll want large scallops for this recipe, not the smaller bay scallops. If you cannot find fresh scallops, frozen works as well but buy dry instead of wet scallops.
HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN SEARED SCALLOPED ARE DONE?
Scallops will change from translucent to opaque when done. (just like an egg white does)
You can always cut into one to check doneness until you are familiar with how long it takes and what they look like once perfectly cooked.
IF YOU LIKE SEARED SCALLOPS YOU’LL LIKE THESE RECIPES?
- Sauteed Tequila Lime Shrimp
- Shrimp Pasta in Spicy New Orleans Tomato Cream Sauce
- New Orleans Sausage Shrimp Crawfish Pasta
- New Orleans Barbecue Shrimp Pasta
- Bang Bang Shrimp
- Sweet Corn Risotto with Shrimp
Seared Scallops
Ingredients
- 1 pound sea scallops
- 2 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 Tablespoon butter
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 lemon
Instructions
- Heat a large sauce pan to high.
- Pat scallops dry and add salt, pepper, and garlic to all sides.
- Add olive oil and butter to the pan. Once the oil is hot and ripples, add scallops to the pan careful not to crowd.
- Allow them to cook undisturbed 3 to 4 minutes before turning. They should be brown before turning. Once browned turn to the second side and sear again for 3 to 4 minutes or until scallop is opaque.
- Just before removing from the pan, squeeze fresh lemon juice over the scallops. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
Scarlet says
Thanks for the clear instructions on getting the sear just right on the scallops. They were delish in garlic lemon butter sauce too!
Allyssa says
Thanks a lot for sharing this seared scallops recipe! Really tasty and my fam’s new favorite!
Kat Biggie says
Yum, yum, yummy!!! Happy SITS day! And I appreciate the fact you explain exactly how to cook these. I have screwed scallops up many a time!
Charlene@APinchofJoy says
This looks fabulous – DH would love it. Pinned! Thanks so much for sharing on Busy Monday!
Lindsey Fisher says
Ahh this looks so delicious! Thanks for sharing!
I would like to invite you to my linky party Thrifty Thursday!
appleofmamaseye.blogspot.com
Hope to see you there!
-Lindsey
HungryLittleGirl says
Scallops are the only seafood I eat! Nicely cooked I would prefer them over chocolate! Lots of people have problems cooking them tho, but yours look amazing! Thank you for sharing this at Wednesday Extravaganza – see you there again tonight with more of your deliciousness 🙂
Paula Jones says
Sounds like they were over-cooked. Just like when shrimp are overcooked they get tough so do scallops.
Peggy~PJH Designs says
Hi Paula. I've tried scallops and they were tough. Now I know why. lol These look delicious. Thanks for linking up at Transformed Tuesday. Hugs, Peggy
Florassippi Girl says
Scallops are my all-time favorite seafood! Thank you for the recipe!
Savannah says
This looks wonderful. Thanks for sharing it, Paula.
Julie says
Oh yum. I LOVE scallops. I'd like you to make these for me. 🙂
Jeanine Tribley says
Hi Paula!
I love how this looks, so love scallops!
Thank you for the recipe, it does not look too hard, and love the pictures.
Jeanine
Spatulas On Parade - Dawn says
Great looking dish. Pinned.
Thanks for sharing with us at In and Out of the Kitchen Link Up Party
Dawn co host with Feeding Big
http://spatulasonparade.blogspot.com
Jess says
Yum, I love scallops! Thanks for the recipe!
Pamela says
OK I want some of this right now! I know it is good! I will be making this for the family! We love scallops!
Diane says
I am a huge scallop fan. Love this recipe. I didn't know they were so low in calories. I love that about fish in general high in nutrition, low in calories. Here is the recipe I made with my French cooking group. You might enjoy the salad we served the scallops over… it was amazing.
http://www.simplelivingeating.com/2012/08/french-fridays-with-dorie-warm-scallop.html
Kerry says
Yes! I've been wanting to cook scallops at home, thanks for the tips and recipe.