Wood Fired Scallops with Parsley & Garlic Butter
A favourite at The Double Red Duke and something about that wood smoke makes all the difference. They can also be cooked on a BBQ with a lid.. Executive Chef Henrik Ritzén shares his tips on how to make these delicious little nuggets of joy. It’s best to make the butter in advance as it’s great to have in the freezer, it can be kept for up to 3 months. Not only does it work with scallops but also great nice with steaks, langoustines, grilled prawns or lobster. We use medium to large diver caught scallops from isle of Orkney and we use the shells as the roasting dish, but you can use a cast iron dish as a substitute.
Serves 4Difficulty: EasyPrep time: 30 minsTime: 10 mins
- 25g flat leaf parsley, picked and blanched
- 30g butter, melted
- 25ml Pernod or Pastis
- ½ tsp tabasco
- 220g butter soft
- 2 tsp salt
- 25g garlic, finely chopped
- 25g picked flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
- 12 medium-large scallops
- 40g panko breadcrumbs
- To make the butter, purée the melted butter with the blanched parsley in a food blender or a Nutribullet then add the Pernod/Pastis and tabasco until it separates. Let this cool slightly in the fridge before mixing with the rest of the butter, salt, garlic and chopped parsley.
- Tip the butter mixture onto cling film or baking parchment and then roll it into a log – the circumference of which should be big enough to cover a scallop. Twist the ends to seal and store it in the fridge until it’s solid enough to slice.
- In the meantime, remove the scallops from their shells along with the roe and the muscle attaching them to shells. Clean them by running them under cold water and then pat dry. If you’re using the shells, then they also need to be cleaned before cooking - we steam or boil them for a few minutes to make sure they are sterilized.
- Once the shells and scallops are clean, place them in the shells or a cast iron pan with a thick slice of the butter on top of each. Sprinkle over a little bit of sea salt and the panko breadcrumbs over. Finally drizzle with some olive oil.
- Place in hot wood- fired clay oven or straight on top of the hot coals it will take about 3-5 minutes to cook depending on how hot your oven is, and the size of your scallops. They should feel firm and hot when you touch them. Once cooked serve straight away with some fresh lemon.
