How to make seared scallops with almond beurre noisette, crispy seaweed chiffonade and mint leek & pea purée (Serves 6)
Ingredients:
Seared Scallops
18 Scallops
Butter
Salt & Pepper
Pea Purée
50g butter
400g frozen peas
2 leeks - finely sliced
½ an onion - finely sliced
2 small potatoes - peeled diced and pre-cooked until soft
handful mint
Salt & Pepper
Almond Beurre Noisette
50g butter
50g slivered almonds
1½ cups cream
Salt
Crispy seaweed
3 nori sheets (sushi seaweed) - finely sliced
2 cups vegetable oil
Salt & Pepper
To Garnish
A handful of petit pois peas
Micro-herbs or pea shoots
Method:
To make the pea puree, melt the butter in a small pot before adding the leeks & onion.
Gently fry the onions & leeks on a low heat until they are soft but not brown.
Add the peas and the cooked potato and allow to cook for around 5 minutes.
Stir in the mint before transferring the pea mixture to a blender, and blend until smooth.
To make the Beurre Noisette, melt the butter and then add the almonds.
Allow these to cook until they turn a lovely nutty brown.
Add the cream and reduce for around 10 minutes.
Season with salt and pepper before blending to a smooth, thick cream.
To make the crispy seaweed, simply slice the nori sheets into fine ribbons and fry in a little sunflower oil heated to around 180°C for a few seconds. The Nori goes crispy very quickly and burns even more quickly so try to be swift.
Drain the crispy seaweed on some paper towel and season with salt & pepper.
Now that all your accompanying elements are ready It’s time to sear those scallops. Start by heating your griddle pan. I would suggest using some spray and cook as these are sticky little guys!
Brush the scallops with some melted butter and season well with salt & pepper before searing for around 1or 2 minutes per side. You don’t want to overcook the scallops, as they become dry & rubbery.
To plate, make sure that your scallops, pea purée and almond cream are nice and hot before plating as we have done on the show, or in whatever creative way you choose.
Finish with sprinklings of whole peas, micro-herbs or pea shoots and crispy seaweed.
Serve immediately alongside some tasty melba toast.
Recipe provided by Lorna Maseko of The Hostess on SABC 3, Wednesdays at 8.30pm