My fish guy's 2 minute tip changed how I prep scallops

I was at the Pike Place Fish Market last month and one of the cutters there told me I've been removing the foot wrong on dry scallops. He said to just pinch and twist instead of cutting it off, and it saves the meat from getting bruised. Ever since I tried it my sear has come out way cleaner and I'm not wasting any meat. Anyone else get a random tip from a vendor that totally shifted their technique?

3 comments

3 Comments

gray_morgan10d ago

That salting thing is huge, did you ever try the paper towel trick too? I press a paper towel onto the scallops for about 30 seconds before I salt them, then pat dry one more time right before the pan. It pulls off surface moisture without drying out the meat from the inside, and the salt hits a dry surface so it melts slower. Between that and the pinch and twist for the foot, my scallops have gone from okay to really good.

morgan_king3610d ago

That paper towel trick sounds solid, I'm gonna steal that. smith.parker's point about salting timing makes me wonder if I've been overthinking my prep routine the whole time. Maybe I need to just trust the process more and stop fiddling with stuff.

smith.parker10d ago

Same thing happened to me but with a fishmonger in Portland. He told me to stop salting scallops so early before cooking. I was doing it 20 minutes out thinking it helped dry them out. Nope, he said it draws out too much moisture and makes them tough. Now I salt right before hitting the pan and the crust comes out way better. That little change fixed my scallop game more than anything else I tried.