Saint Mussels Jakub, or scallops (also called more familiarly-suckers) are one of the noblest and tastiest seafood. Unfortunately, it is not easy to buy them (in principle, it is possible only in large cities) and we will not try them in the first better pub. How to cook scallops?
Many myths have arisen around them, e.g. that they are difficult to make. Fried scallops in the form of an appetizer, however, are made extremely simple – the main thing is not to keep the mussels in the pan too long (they get too fried in rubber). In my version I serve toppings with a simple sauce. Wine and butter sauce perfectly emphasizes their delicate, sweet taste. I admit that for me it is the perfect appetizer – it’s worth trying to make it at home, because they can go out as good as from the best restaurant.
How to serve them
In Europe, white scallop meat and coral eggs are a delicacy. We can eat them raw, fry, grill, cook and bake. In the preparation of this mussel, the most difficult is to remove the meat from the shells. We use a fairly long knife for this. Holding the clam, put the blade on the right when joining two shells and moving the knife slightly, open it for about a centimeter, holding the two shells together all the time. Then gently cut the meat that is attached to the upper flat shell, guiding the blade flat below its surface. Then gently cut the ligament of two shells and open the scallop. With our hands, not to pierce the bitter guts with a knife, we remove the so-called the chin, stomach and membrane that covers the muscle. We tear it off with a spoon and translate it into a plate. Finally, use a knife to cut off a small part of the pearly muscle that is too hard to eat.
Fried Scallops
- scallops (3-5 per person)
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil (for frying)
- 4 tablespoons of cold butter
- 1 large shallot
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1/3 cup dry white wine
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley
- sea salt
- freshly ground pepper
- to serve: baguette
- to serve: quarters of lemon
Scallops can be bought in shells * or not, which is pure meat by weight. We take the mussels out of the fridge at least half an hour before frying to let them reach room temperature. We prepare all ingredients for ourselves: we peel and finely chop the shallot and garlic, wash and chop the parsley, put the measured wine, butter, salt and pepper on hand. Warm up two tablespoons of oil together with two tablespoons of butter in a frying pan. The fat should be very hot. We put the scallops (after placing them in a pan, do not move them and do not move them to caramelized on top) and fry for 1 to 1.5 minutes, then quickly rotate them and fry another 1 to 1.5 minutes. Remove from pan and gently sprinkle with salt and pepper. We immediately add the chopped shallot and garlic to the hot frying pan. Mix for a while and pour white wine. Mix and spatula gather all the flavors from the bottom – to dissolve. The wine begins to evaporate very quickly, so after a minute of cooking, remove the pan from the heat, add a pinch of salt and pepper and throw (diced) the remaining two tablespoons of butter (cold). Mix vigorously so that the butter creates an emulsion with the wine. We add parsley and serve with scallops in the company of lemon and fresh baguette.
