Lynne's Country Kitchen
lynnescountrykitchen.net

The secret to preparing great scallops is to cook them gently. As soon as they turn opaque, they're done. Fresh scallops suit a variety of menus from traditional to casual. Sweet and tender, they are delicious baked, sautéed, stir-fried, or marinated. They're an excellent source of vitamins, minerals and high-quality protein which is extremely low in fat.

Scallops are also responsible for the cooking term "scalloped," which originally meant seafood creamed, heated and served in a shell. Scallops available at market are almost never the whole mollusk but are instead the edible sections of its adductor muscle, which controls its very spectacular movement.

If you do get scallops in the shell, wash and scrub them thoroughly. Place in a 300 degree oven, deep shell down, until they open. Remove, trim, and wash the hinge muscle. In Europe, both the handsome beanlike coral and the beard are used, as well as the meat. The former is treated as for any roe; the latter is cut up, sautéed briefly, and then simmered, covered, in white wine 30 minutes.

Many people prefer the small, tender, creamy pink or tan bay scallops to the larger, firmer, whiter, but also quite delicious Sea Scallops. If only the large ones are available, slice them, after cooking, into 3 parts, against the grain, for use in salads and creamed dishes or sauces.

To test scallops for freshness, see that they have a sweetish odor. If in bulk, they should be free of liquid.

For sautéing or broiling, allow about 1/3 pound of sea scallops or 1/4 pound bay scallops per serving.

Cooked scallops may be used in any recipe for fish salads or creamed fish, or they may be skewered and grilled. The blandness of scallops suggests combining them in sauced dishes with more robustly flavored shellfish like shrimp and crab.