I love sea scallops. Big, beautiful sea scallops. You know when you have your mind set on one dish you really, really want to make for dinner? Yeah, that happened. And the grocery store was out of those big, beautiful scallops. So, we improvise. It’s a critical and necessary function of cooking. Nonetheless, I settled for not so big, but delicious sea scallops. Partly, for you (my refusal to take personal responsibility). Just kidding, this recipe is just so good and I was dying to share it with you (original recipe here). The glaze is perfect for scallops; it’s slightly sweet from the honey and cider with a balancing bite from the vinegar. And as a personal preference, I like to serve this dish with a bacon and onion spinach saute. It completes it. So many flavors, so little time. Let’s get started.
Scallop recipe (enough for two):
- 10 large sea scallops
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2/3 cup apple cider
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
Spinach Recipe:
- 9 ounces baby spinach
- 3 slices of bacon, crumbled (into semi-large pieces)
- 4 ounces mushrooms
- 1/2 medium onion, diced
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
First, remove the tough side muscle from each of your scallops. Next, we want to ensure that our scallops are completely dry so that we are able to get a nice golden-brown sear. Yum.
My method is layering paper towels on a plate (probably three) then placing the scallops and gently pressing three or so more paper towels down on top of the scallops. I’d let them dry for at least an hour, switching out the paper towels as they become damp. Tedious? Yes. Worth it? Definitely.
So, we will leave those be while we prep our spinach. In a large pan saute your bacon bits. I used thick cut peppered bacon because I love anything with spice to it. But – there’s a million flavors you can use depending on your taste.
Remove from heat once they have reached your desired crunchiness. Then, we’ll dice our onion and clean our mushrooms. Heat 1/2 tablespoon olive oil and butter over medium heat in your pan. Once it’s hot, go ahead and toss your onions and mushrooms in.
After the mushrooms and onions have cooked down (approximately 8-10 minutes) remove from heat and set aside next to our bacon.
Then, let’s generously salt and pepper our scallops and mix our ingredients for the glaze – apple cider, balsamic vinegar and honey – and set aside (this is where I’m so lucky to have a sous chef. So many things to do, but four hands to do it. And the best part? He does the dishes. He thinks that I cook so he should clean. But I am terrific at delegating and he probably cooks more than I do. Not a bad deal! Now you see why I missed him… just kidding!).
Then, heat one tablespoon of butter and one tablespoon of olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat until bubbly. We want our scallops to sizzle when we throw them in (that will give us our beautiful golden-brown sear). So after the pan is heated, go ahead and toss them in; you may have to do them in two batches – hence the extra tablespoon of butter and olive oil in case your pan is too dry and needs more liquid for the batch.
For your standard large sea scallop I would suggest about three minutes per side undisturbed (this is key to that golden-brown color I keep raving about). Once they’re finished set aside on a plate and tent with foil to keep them warm.
Okay folks, last couple of steps here. In the same pan as the scallops, pour your cider-vinegar glaze into the pan and let simmer for 8-10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the remaining olive oil and butter in your pot for the spinach. After it’s almost entirely cooked down, let’s add the onions, mushrooms and bacon that we had set aside. Stir to combine.
Finally, let’s plate these bad boys up. Don’t forget to drizzle with your glaze!
Ah, it’s 3:00 p.m. and I just can’t help myself: The perfect wine pairing (and one of my most favorite pinot noirs) the 2010 Dutton Goldfield Russian River Valley Pinor Noir. It is exceptional. And balances immaculately with the glaze, the bacon, the everything. Serious business.
Dig in!
