Curtis Stone/ Savory/ Seafood

Seared Scallops and Peas

This is the inaugural post cooking with another IHCC’s new chef, Curtis Stone. “If you get your hands on good ingredients and treat them properly, you don’t need to do much,” Stone says about his philosophy. I like the idea of cooking with fresh ingredients, which requires stopping by the seafood department of the grocery store. The local farmer’s market won’t be operating for another month. Too bad, I’d have gotten fresher seafood closer to the source, from the Jersey shore. In turn, I picked up some large sea scallops from the store, source unknown.

A few hours later, dinner was on the table. A simple seared scallops and peas. Curtis Stone’s recipe (seared scallops and peas with bacon and mint, page 156, in the five-ingredient Fridays section in What’s for Dinner?) calls for fresh peas. I used frozen ones. I have no qualm using frozen peas in view of the flash freeze technology which preserves peas at their maximum freshness. I substituted pancetta for bacon and chive for mint; that’s what I had on hand.

It is a dish like this that makes it increasingly harder for us to eat out and order something, that wows us, and that we can’t cook in our own kitchen. Are we so overexposed with food, or curated food, if you will? Food TV have certainly changed the culinary culture and experience. It seems to me that eating out in a restaurant has become more of a social encounter than an adventure in food. That’s a whole different discussion all together!

The flip side of this conundrum is: there is no greater pleasure than enjoying a fine home-cooked meal around the dinner table with friends and family.

 

 

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14 Comments

  • Reply
    Tina
    April 7, 2016 at 10:42 am

    I love scallops. They can be an easy dinner to get on the table fairly quickly yet they look so elegant, great meal.

  • Reply
    flour.ish.en
    April 7, 2016 at 12:47 pm

    Your nailed it: this dish was easy and elegant. We enjoyed it.

  • Reply
    Vicki
    April 8, 2016 at 6:41 pm

    I'm not a seafood fan but it looks so good I'd try it.

  • Reply
    Kim
    April 9, 2016 at 3:44 pm

    Yes! This is one of those gorgeous meals that screams spring. I love how the peas create a vibrant canvas for the scallops. The chive garnish is a simple way of making it look so elegant and special.

  • Reply
    Diane Zwang
    April 9, 2016 at 6:22 pm

    Love this quote: "there is no greater pleasure than enjoying a fine home-cooked meal around the dinner table with friends and family". It looks like a wonderful spring meal.

  • Reply
    flour.ish.en
    April 9, 2016 at 6:30 pm

    I did not think of that. The peas do scream spring. You are so perceptive.

  • Reply
    flour.ish.en
    April 9, 2016 at 6:32 pm

    Cooking for family and friends motivates me to become a better cook.

  • Reply
    Zosia
    April 9, 2016 at 6:39 pm

    That's such a classic combination of ingredients and it's always delicious.

  • Reply
    flour.ish.en
    April 9, 2016 at 8:23 pm

    You are right. If in doubt, always go with the classic.

  • Reply
    Susan Lindquist
    April 9, 2016 at 9:34 pm

    Perfectly seared scallops are a thing of beauty! Your dish looks perfectly prepared! And I love that little flourish of spring onion draped so prettily!

  • Reply
    Deb in Hawaii
    April 11, 2016 at 4:03 am

    What a perfectly gorgeous plate of food! I don't know why I don't cook with scallops more–they are so quick to cook and so delicious. 😉

  • Reply
    Joyce Rachel Lee-Bates
    April 11, 2016 at 6:51 am

    I love the chive blossoms too. I will gladly eat the entire plate: peas, scallops, and all their juices! 🙂

  • Reply
    flour.ish.en
    April 11, 2016 at 2:07 pm

    Certain dishes are worth perfecting. This is one of them.

  • Reply
    kitchen flavours
    April 11, 2016 at 2:47 pm

    Beautiful dish to welcome Curtis Stone! We love scallops and I like everything about this dish. Simple and delicious!

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