SEARED SCALLOPS WITH SOY GINGER CHILLI GARLIC OIL

How To Clean Fresh Scallops On The Shell

These are so good, fresh scallops on the shell pan seared then topped with a hot garlic chilli ginger oil and soy sauce.  I’m luckily enough to live on the south coast of England and all my life I have been going to a wonderful family run fishing shack on the beach who run their own fishing boats stocking most of the shack.  It is always pot luck when I go there as they sell what they catch so I have certain days that I know will give me a better chance of what I’m after being there, but in honesty it’s really a 50/50 chance but I enjoy this because I often come home with something new, like a whole turbot or I’m still on the look out for a Megrim a large flat fish I saw one there once but did not know what to do with it and now I know it’s also known as Cornish sole I’m waiting for that opportunity to cook one.  Cornwall is 300 miles along the coast to the West, swim on up Mr fish.

Ingredients 

(serves 2)

10 fresh scallops cleaned or in their shells

30ml nut or vegetable oil

1 thumb size piece ginger finely chopped

1 Serrano chilli finely sliced

1 spring onion finely sliced

1 cloves garlic finely chopped

10 tsp soy sauce one for each scallop

You will need 3 bowls, one filled with cold water.  This is a super fast cook overall 3 minutes start to finish so prepare all ingredients first.

If you have fresh scallops only use ones that close when tapped, any that are open and stay open do not eat.  The scallop shell has a flat side and a bowed side, a lovely curve that goes into a blunt point, slide a dinner knife in between the two shells just past the blunt point on the right side and twist the knife to open the shell, run the knife down to the bottom, turn the scallop 180 degrees and repeat on the other side.  

Place the bowed shell in the palm of you hand and scrap the knife across the inside of the flat shell, taking care to keep the knife right against the top of the shell as this is where the scallop is attached and you don’t want to leave any of the scallop behind.

Using a spoon scoop out all the scallop in to one of the bowls, take hold of the white scallop and peel / clean  the scallop of the skirt this is easy to do, place the scallop in the bowl of water to rinse of any grit then pat dry and place in the last bowl, either keep the orange roe or discard, you can use the discard skirt for making stocks.  Clean the shells throughly and then pop in a hot oven for 10 minutes to sterilise.

Take the shells out of the oven and place on your serving plates.  Heat a cast iron or non stick skillet medium hot, add half the oil and wait one minute, add the scallops to the pan and do not touch for at least one minute, turn over and cook the other side for one minute, take off the heat, at the same time heat the remaining oil in a small saucepan add the garlic, ginger, spring onions and chilli cook for 45 seconds.

Pour one teaspoon of soy sauce over each scallop then spoon over the hot ginger, chilli garlic oil and enjoy.