Equipment
Ingredients
Scallops
- 450 g bay scallops, raw, side muscle removed if attached
- 3 g kosher salt
- 1 g black pepper, freshly ground
Brown Butter Sauce
- 55 g unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- 40 g shallot, finely minced
- 15 ml lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 5 g fresh parsley, finely chopped
Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is estimated per serving. Nutrients without complete source data are omitted.
Full nutrition
- Calories
- 185 kcal
- Protein
- 14 g
- Carbohydrates
- 6 g
- Fat
- 12 g
- Fiber
- 0 g
- Sugar
- 1 g
- Sodium
- 736 mg
- Saturated Fat
- 7 g
- Trans Fat
- 0 g
- Monounsaturated Fat
- 3 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat
- 1 g
- Cholesterol
- 57 mg
- Potassium
- 282 mg
- Calcium
- 17 mg
- Iron
- 0.7 mg
- Magnesium
- 28 mg
- Phosphorus
- 386 mg
- Zinc
- 1.1 mg
- Vitamin A
- 101 mcg
- Vitamin C
- 4 mg
- Vitamin E
- 0.3 mg
- Vitamin K
- 22 mcg
- Vitamin B6
- 0.1 mg
- Vitamin B12
- 1.6 mcg
- Thiamin
- 0.02 mg
- Riboflavin
- 0.02 mg
- Niacin
- 0.8 mg
- Folate
- 25 mcg
- Water
- 108 g
Sources: USDA FoodData Central
Method
Preheat your oven to 230°C or 450°F. Place the baking sheet inside the oven while it preheats to help sear the bottom of the scallops later.
Thoroughly pat the bay scallops completely dry using paper towels. This removes excess moisture, preventing them from steaming in their own juices. Wash hands and surfaces thoroughly after handling raw seafood to prevent cross-contamination.
Season the dried scallops evenly with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Carefully remove the hot baking sheet from the oven. Arrange the scallops in a single layer with space between them. Roast for 4 to 5 minutes until they turn opaque and reach an internal temperature of 63°C or 145°F.
While the scallops roast, place the unsalted butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Once melted, add the minced shallots.
Cook the butter and shallot mixture, swirling the pan occasionally, until the milk solids drop to the bottom and turn golden brown. The mixture will smell nutty. Remove from heat immediately.
Stir the fresh lemon juice and chopped parsley into the browned butter mixture using a mixing spoon. The sauce will bubble up briefly.
Transfer the roasted scallops to a serving platter and immediately pour the warm brown butter and shallot sauce over them.
Chef's Notes
- Always seek out dry-packed scallops at the fish counter. Wet-packed scallops are treated with a sodium tripolyphosphate solution that causes them to absorb water, making it nearly impossible to get a good texture and diluting their sweet flavor.
- Keep a close eye on the butter once it begins to foam. The transition from a perfect beurre noisette to burnt butter happens in a matter of seconds. Removing it from the residual heat of the burner is essential.
- Preheating the baking pan is a chef secret for roasting seafood. It jump-starts the cooking process on the bottom of the scallop, mimicking the effect of a pan-sear without the hands-on stovetop management.
- Bay scallops cook exceptionally fast due to their small size. Prepare your sauce ingredients before the scallops go into the oven so you are ready to plate the moment they are done.
Storage
Refrigerator: 1 day — Store in an airtight container. Quality degrades significantly upon reheating.
Reheating: If necessary, warm very gently in a skillet over low heat just until warmed through. Do not microwave.
Troubleshooting
Scallops are tough and rubbery
Cause: Scallops were overcooked or boiled in their own liquid because they were not dried properly
Fix: Cannot be fixed
Prevention: Ensure scallops are patted completely dry and do not exceed the 5-minute roasting time
Sauce tastes bitter or burnt
Cause: The milk solids in the butter cooked past the brown stage into the black stage
Fix: Cannot be fixed. Discard and melt a new batch of butter if time permits.
Prevention: Remove the saucepan from the heat the moment you smell a nutty aroma and see golden specks
Cultural Context
Bay scallops are a treasured late-summer and early-autumn delicacy along the eastern seaboard of the United States, particularly around Nantucket and the Peconic Bay. Their natural, delicate sweetness pairs flawlessly with the classic French technique of brown butter, known as beurre noisette, creating a dish that elegantly bridges rustic coastal American ingredients with foundational European culinary traditions.
