cooking scallops

Haven't made scallops for ages, and I'm not sure why.  May be remnants of memories of water injected scallops.  Yuck!  But these days, more often than not, even plain old grocery store scallops are dry, which means they will sear, and taste sweet and tender, not waterlogged and tough.  The trick to good scallops is to be sure and not overcook them.  In fact, I slightly undercook them, take them off the heat, and let the carryover heat finish the job.

it takes just a couple of minutes to get a sear

on scallops -- patting them dry with a paper towel helps

scallops, cooked just until they are golden brown

I was hankering for some Asian flavors last night, so I decided to serve the scallops over rice, with a coconut curry sauce.  I kept things simple.  I grated a bit of ginger and lemongrass, minced some serrano pepper and scallions, and chopped a bit of cilantro.  I contemplated grating some garlic, but decided that the flavor might overwhelm the delicate scallops.

left to right: minced serrano chiles, sliced scallion, 

chopperd cilantro, and grated ginger and lemongrass

everything but the cilantro gets a quick saute in 

the scallop pan in just a dollop of peanut oil

Then in goes a can of coconut milk.  Try the Thai Kitchen brand.  It is especially thick and creamy.  That gets simmered for just a few minutes with the aromatics.  At the last minute, toss in cilantro, adjust for salt and pepper, and pour the sauce over good basmati rice.  Dot on the golden scallops, and dinner is served.

the sauce can be a little runny -- no matter --

the rice just soaks up all that coconut goodness