Starter
Seared scallops with pea purée
Ninety seconds a side — and still the most refined plate you've ever made.
Scallops sound like chef's work, but they're mercilessly simple: sear hard, don't touch them, turn after ninety seconds. On a smooth swipe of pea purée with crispy pancetta it looks like you've earned a star.
Method
- Boil the peas 3 min, drain and purée with the butter, a pinch of salt and mint if using until smooth. Keep warm.
- Fry the pancetta until crisp and drain on kitchen paper.
- Pat the scallops bone-dry and season with salt. Heat a pan with oil until it's really hot.
- Sear the scallops 90 sec a side until golden and caramel-coloured, just glassy inside. Don't move them while they cook.
- Swipe purée across each plate, set 3 scallops on top, crumble over the pancetta and finish with a few drops of lemon and oil.
The bluff
Dry, hot, hands off
The whole bluff is in the crust: pat the scallops bone-dry, use a truly hot pan and leave them alone so they caramelise. Turn only after ninety seconds. Plate with a spoon-swipe of purée — that ‘restaurant streak’ does eighty percent of the work.
Plating — how to make it look expensive
- Draw a smooth swipe of purée with the back of a spoon.
- Set the scallops evenly spaced, caramelised side up.
- Crunch (pancetta) and a few micro leaves for colour and texture.
- A thin drizzle of oil for shine; no sauce poured over.
What you say at the table
“Scallops are honestly this quick to sear, nothing to it.”
“Mainly just don't go poking at them in the pan, that's it.”
What to drink
A crisp Chablis or a dry white Burgundy.
Foto via Pexels