Sea Scallops

Impress your guests with scallops as a starter.  I made these on the Vineyard with my family and they were a hit.  Lucky for us, we had the most delicious, luscious sea scallops available.  They were so large I cut them into quarters and halves.  You don’t have to buy many to impress your guests, but anticipate that they will be quickly enjoyed!

Ingredients:

Makes an appetizer for 4

8 Large sea scallops

2 Tbsp butter

1 Clove garlic

Chimichurri sauce to drizzle on top

1. Clean the scallops well, be sure to remove any granules of sand.  Pat the scallops dry or leave them on a paper towel to soak up some of the remaining water. Cut the scallops into small bites, I cut some of mine in half and others into quarters depending on their size.

2. Sauté your garlic on a low setting in butter. Be sure to watch it so it does not burn. When your garlic has sautéed and has become fragrant, add your scallops.

3. Cook your scallops on low to medium heat for 5 minutes, turning them over mid way. Do not over cook. You want them to be cooked through but remain tender. Do a taste test to be sure they are ready.

4. Plate your scallop pieces and drizzle the chimichurri sauce on top.

Ingredients for the chimichurri sauce

1 Cup packed fresh parsley (you are welcome to add any other fresh green herbs, some people use basil, sage, or rosemary to give it an additional flavor, there’s no right or wrong so add what you like, just be sure to use a cup of fresh parsley as the base).

2 Cloves fresh garlic

1 Tbsp dried oregano

2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar

3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Fresh ground pepper & Salt

2 Chinese chili peppers, I’d add a little at a time to make sure that the level of spicy is not more than you want (thanks Steve!)

1 Tsp fresh lemon juice

Blend your ingredients in a food processor at least 2 hours before serving. It’s important that the ingredients marinate together to strengthen the flavor.  Before you remove the ingredients from the food processor be sure to taste.  You should taste mostly herbs, olive oil, garlic and a slight bite from the vinegar/lemon and chilies.  You want the sauce to have a pesto like consistency.  I would recommend you leave the sauce at room temperature while it sits.  If you choose to refrigerate, be sure to take it out with enough time for the sauce to return to room temperature naturally.  You can store the leftover sauce in your fridge, although I would suggest no longer than a week.

Serve the scallops on a serving plate with either toothpicks or mini-forks for your guests. This is one of those starters that you want to keep classy, no fingers please. 🙂