Seared Sea Scallops With Sweet Corn Hash Recipes

SEARED SCALLOPS WITH CORN CREAM AND MAQUE CHOUX

Steps:

• Cut the kernels off the cobs with a serrated knife, being careful not to cut too close. Place the corn with the butter, 1 cup of water, and salt in a small saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 5 minutes, or until tender. Remove from the heat and let cool completely. Pour into a blender jar and pour the cream into the empty pot. Bring the cream to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer while you blend the corn mixture to a smooth puree. Strain the corn puree through a fine sieve into the saucepan with the cream, and whisk. Warm the sauce gently and taste for seasoning. Adjust to desired thickness by reducing it a little or thinning with a little more cream or water. Keep warm until ready to serve.
• Cut the kernels from the cob, being careful not to cut too close. Melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat and cook the onion, stirring, until softened, about 6 minutes. Add the corn and stir, cooking 4-5 more minutes, then add the tomato. Cook, stirring, until tomatoes are warm, then stir in the scallions. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
• Place a large skillet over high heat.
• Pat scallops dry with a paper towel, then season with salt and pepper.
• Pour the olive oil into the skillet and when very hot (but not quite smoking), add the scallops, being careful not to crowd them. Cook at high heat until the first side is a deep golden brown, 2-3 minutes, then turn the scallops and cook on the other side for about 2 more minutes. Scallops should be firm but not hard. Drain on paper towels. Deglaze the pan with 2 tablespoons water, scraping up the brown bits. To serve, pool some of the Corn Cream onto each plate, then pile a little Maque Choux in the center of each plate. Place 3-4 scallops around the Maque Choux and drizzle with pan juices. Serve immediately.
• When pureeing a mixture that contains more solids than liquid, add the solids first, then pulse the blade to break them down, then add liquid. Use caution when blending a hot sauce, and never fill the blender more than a third full. Otherwise, the heat will force the top off the machine.
• Choux is French for "cabbage," but the translation is not literal-there is no cabbage in this dish. Since corn was not a staple of the Acadians' diet, it's believed that the Indians taught the French settlers of Louisiana to make maque choux. This dish is essentially smothered corn or a Cajun version of Yankee succotash made with tomatoes, onions, and green pepper.

SEARED SCALLOPS WITH CORN CREAM

Steps:

• Stir corn kernels, chicken broth, 2 tablespoons butter, cayenne pepper, and salt together in a saucepan; bring to a simmer, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook until corn is tender, about 5 minutes.
• Pour corn mixture into a blender no more than half full. Cover and hold lid down; pulse a few times before leaving on to blend. Puree in batches until smooth. Pour pureed corn mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a saucepan. Season with salt to taste.
• Toss scallops, Fresno pepper, canola oil, kosher salt, and smoked paprika in a bowl until scallops are completely coated. Separate pepper slices from scallops.
• Heat a large heavy skillet over high heat until very hot, about 5 minutes. Cook scallops in hot skillet until browned on one side, about 3 minutes. Turn and cook on the other side until cooked through, about 3 minutes more. Cook and stir sliced peppers on the side of the skillet while the scallops are cooking.
• Remove skillet from heat; transfer scallops to a plate, leaving peppers in hot skillet. Stir water and 1 tablespoon butter into peppers until butter melts. Drizzle lemon juice over peppers; stir to glaze peppers completely.
• Divide corn cream between four bowls. Place 3 scallops over corn puree and top with glazed peppers. Garnish with radish sprouts.

SEARED SCALLOPS WITH CREAMY SUMMER SUCCOTASH

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until well browned and crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a paper-towel lined plate. Discard all but 1 tablespoon of the fat in the pan.
• Return the skillet to medium-high heat. Add the red onion and cook, stirring often, until just tender, about 2 minutes. Add the corn and garlic and cook, stirring often, until the corn is crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat.
• Combine 1/2 cup of the corn mixture with the heavy cream in a blender. Blend until smooth and reserve.
• Add 1 more tablespoon of the oil to the skillet with the remaining corn mixture and turn the heat to medium-high. Add the haricots verts and bell pepper and cook, stirring often, until the haricots verts are bright green and crisp tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in the cherry tomatoes, reserved corn puree and pancetta. Cook until the mixture is bubbling and warmed through, about 1 minute. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Set aside and keep warm over low heat.
• Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over high heat. Pat the scallops dry with paper towels and season both sides generously with salt and pepper. Add to the skillet and cook, undisturbed, until browned on the bottom, about 3 minutes. Flip and sear until just cooked through, about 1 minute more.
• Stir half the torn basil into the corn mixture, then spoon the succotash onto plates. Top with the seared scallops and serve with more torn basil on top.