I made this dish for dinner when mom came over on the eve of National Day. It was a recipe adapted from Thomas Keller’s “The French Laundry Cookbook”. Soft and tender pan-seared scallops accompanied by mushrooms and asparagus puree. This dish has a myriad of interesting flavours and textures. Everything turned out really tasty and mom raved about it. Dinner was completed with a serving of homemade passion fruit ice-cream with dark chocolate ganache.
Pan-seared scallops with Mushrooms and Asparagus Puree
Serves: 2
Ingredients
- 10 stalks of asparagus
- ¾ cup chicken stock
- 6-8 brown button mushrooms, chopped into cubes
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 small sprig of thyme
- 2 cloves of garlic, meshed and finely chopped
- ½ tablespoon chopped shallots
- 1 tablespoon cubed tomatoes
- 8 medium sized scallops
- Canola oil
- white pepper and sea salt to taste
Instructions
- Trim away the bottom ⅓ of the asparagus. Cut 1.5 inch long tips from the spears and reserve the stalks.
- Blanch the tips in boiling water till just tender and remove to an ice-water bath. Blanch the stalks in boiling water till fully cooked and remove to an ice-water bath.
- Puree the stalks in a blender with just enough stock for them to turn. Alternatively, use a hand-held blender.
- Pour the puree into a fine sieve and allow to stand for 5 to 10 min to allow the excess liquids to drain. Set aside.
- Heat 1 tablespoon butter in a saute pan. When hot, add mushrooms, thyme and garlic. Add the shallot and cook for another minute or so. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper. Keep warm.
- Warm the asparagus tips with the tomatoes and 1 tablespoon of butter over low heat. In a small saucepan, warm the asparagus puree and whisk in the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter. Season both with salt and pepper. Keep warm.
- In a skillet, heat the canola oil over medium heat. Dry the scallops and season with salt, place them on the pan. Cook the scallops for only a minute or so on each side, or until they're golden browned. Do not overcook them or they'll become tough and stringy.
- To serve, place a spoonful of puree on each plate. Centre a spoonful of mushroom mixture over it and top with the scallops. Arrange the asparagus tips and tomatoes over the scallops.
