Seared Scallops with Bread and Butter

The more I read about other bloggers having to head back to work, the more I am dreading Monday. It's not so much the idea of being back at work, but the idea of having to tackle the mess that I left behind on my last day!

But being at home for the final week of my holiday has been perfect for coming to terms with reality. For one, I got to see my two gorgeous cats again (and they have loved having me home for a week). Secondly, it's been a great opportunity to organise my life and get things done around the place.

For one, I'm starting a vege patch in the downstairs garden of our flat! I am ridiculously excited about this, though the area which is built for it is a rather shady section. We've been given the ok to trim back the many sycamore trees which seem to have popped up around the patch, but even so, it's not exactly an 'all day sun' piece of land. So I'd love to hear from those of you in the know, as to what I will successfully be able to grow. I'm looking at you Five Course Garden!

Onto these scallops. I mentioned the diabolical fishing trip that our holiday up north was, didn't I? Well, Matt and Matt (yes, there were two Matts) went out diving most days but only came home with a fish once, after a close encounter with an elusive kingfish which got away, and a rather nasty trip down 'tidal rip' alley (from which they returned rather tired, but alive and unscathed). To make things worse, my Matt managed to leave the fish in the sun all the next day, rendering it inedible.

After too many days of swell, our little boat being in the shop for work, and unsuccessful dives, my Matt - it became hard to differentiate between the two in conversation, so I resorted to referring to my Matt as "my Matt" - called a friend who was in the area, and hitched a ride on his boat to the back of Kawau Island and other unmentionable secret spots, and came back with a mighty kingfish each, and a whole pile of scallops. The Matts returned at 8pm at night to two rather disdainful girlfriends, given their lack of communication and their previous encounter with said tidal rips. Needless to say, the scallops weren't eaten that night.

However, as scallops deserve to be eaten as fresh as possible, this called for the breakfast of champions; scallops very simply seared in butter and garlic, with a squeeze of lemon juice, and served on beautiful home made bread.

And how stunning they were. The scallops up north are much bigger, juicier and sweeter than the scallops we occasionally get down here in Wellington. I've never had scallops so beautifully sweet and tender. While it's nothing overly fancy, this truly was a breakfast delicious enough to warrant blogging about.

Seared Scallops with Bread and Butter (Serves 4 very happy breakfasters)

20 scallops, shucked (Al Brown's book Go Fish has a very good rundown of how to do this at page 125, or see Gordon Ramsay's video here for a demonstration. Just please, leave the orange coral on the scallops, rather than taking it off - damn foreigners always take it off, but this is considered sacrilege in New Zealand)
50g butter
Splash of oil (1-2 T or so)
1 big clove of garlic, smashed once with the flat side of a knife
1 lemon
Salt and pepper
Bread and butter to serve

Start by zesting the lemon, reserving both the lemon and lemon zest.

Get a pan onto a medium-high heat, and pop the butter, oil and garlic into a pan. Using oil helps to increase the smoking temperature of the butter, so it doesn't burn as fast.

As soon as the garlic is fragrant and the pan is hot (careful not to burn the butter though), add the scallops one by one to the pan. Don't overcrowd the pan, or they won't colour up properly. Use two pans, halving the butter and garlic if you need to.

Fry the scallops for 1-2 minutes each side, turning them as soon as they are golden brown underneath. Don't over-cook them or they'll go all rubbery. It's better to have them slightly underdone than overdone, and as long as the scallops are fresh, it won't do you any harm whatsoever.

When both sides are golden brown, squeeze over the juice of half a lemon, sprinkle over the lemon zest, and season with salt and pepper. Lift the scallops onto a serving plate, and eat immediately!