Pan Seared Scallops With Beurre Blanc Sauce Recipes

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.

SEARED SCALLOPS WITH GARLIC BEURRE BLANC

Steps:

• In large skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter over medium-high heat. Cook scallops in butter about 5 minutes, turning once, until golden brown on outside and white and opaque inside. Remove scallops to serving plate; cover to keep warm.
• Add garlic, shallot, wine and vinegar to skillet, stirring to loosen brown particles. Cook until liquid is reduced to less than half. Reduce heat to low; add 4 tablespoons butter. Cook and stir until butter is melted. Add remaining 3 tablespoons butter; cook and stir until sauce is thickened and creamy.
• Press sauce through fine strainer; discard solids. Pour sauce over scallops. Serve immediately.

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.

PAN SEARED SCALLOPS WITH A TOMATO AND WHITE CHOCOLATE BEURRE BLANC

Steps:

• For the beurre blanc: Heat the oil in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Add the shallots and sweat with a pinch salt until just softened, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook 1 to 2 minutes, stirring to combine. Add the wine and vinegar and simmer until the liquid is reduced to about 2 tablespoons, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Add the cream (this will help stabilize your sauce and keep it from breaking) and simmer until reduced by one-third, 5 to 7 minutes. Strain the sauce into another warm saucepan over low heat. The sauce should remain warm, but never hot, or the sauce will break. On low or no heat, whisk in a few pieces of the butter at a time. Wait until each addition is incorporated before adding more butter. Once all of the butter is incorporated, add the lemon juice and combine. Set aside in a warm spot to hold. Just before serving, whisk in the white chocolate.
• For the seared scallops: In a large cast-iron skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat until it has a nice sheen and you can feel the heat coming off of the skillet. Dry your scallops well using paper towels, sprinkle each side with salt and pepper and add them to the hot skillet. Once the bottom of the scallops start to brown around the edges, add the butter to the skillet to help them caramelize. Let the butter melt, flip the scallops and cook until golden brown on each side and just cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes per side.
• Toss some pea tendrils and tomatoes with the lemon juice and some olive oil, season with salt and pepper and serve with the scallops and beurre blanc.

PAN-SEARED SCALLOPS WITH BEURRE BLANC SAUCE

Steps:

• Boil first 3 ingredients in heavy medium saucepan over medium-high heat until mixture is reduced to 1/4 cup, about 10 minutes.
• Add cream; reduce heat to low.
• Add butter, 1 piece at a time, whisking until just melted before adding more.
• Strain sauce, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible.
• Return sauce to pan.
• Season with salt and white pepper.
• Place pan in skillet of warm water.
• Sprinkle scallops with salt and white pepper, then dredge in flour, shaking off excess.
• Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
• Add scallops; cook until golden brown and just opaque in center, about 1 1/2 minutes per side.
• Divide scallops among plates.
• Top with sauce and chives.
• Makes 6 first-course or 4 main-course servings.