Seared Scallops

Flamboyant

There is nothing humble about the taste of this dish. Lemon, lemon zest, chile peppers create an electrifying flavor that’s brought together by the sweet fleshy meat of scallops and a simple butter-parsley topping. White-cloth worthy and easy.

Ingredients

1/8 cup dry white wine
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon dried red chilis – crushed
3 or 4 cloves of roasted garlic
2 tablespoons LunaOlivo Tuscan olive oil (plus more for cooking)
juice of a half a lemon + lemon zest
zest of a half a lemon, very finely minced
8 large scallops (to serve two as an appetizer)
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

Directions

1. Combine wine, salt, chilis, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and zest in a bowl large enough to hold the scallops with room to spare.

2. Add scallops and marinate in the fridge for 2 hours

3. Remove scallops from marinade and set aside. Heat marinade in a small sauce pan to boiling and reduce to about half of original volume. Add butter and parsley to marinade and keep warm until scallops are cooked.

4. Heat a cast iron skillet (or very heavy-bottomed skillet) on medium-high and add about a tablespoon olive oil. Allow oil to heat up then add scallops. If they don’t start to sizzle immediately, turn up the heat. Pan fry on both sides until caramelized (a few minutes on each side).

5. Remove scallops from skillet. Drizzle the sauce over the scallops and serve immediately.