Jumbo Sea Scallops and Ratatouille
Huge sea scallops are seared quickly and served with quenelles of ratatouille. The fine dice preferred for the ratatouille ingredients is called brunoise; it is about 1/8 of an inch on all sides. The unusual garnish is a standing “shark’s fin” of cabbage leaf, baked until crisp.
Ingredients
- Cabbage Leaves - 2 large
- Unsalted Butter - 2 tablespoons, melted
- Ratatouille
- Olive Oil - 2 tablespoons
- Onion - 1, diced fine
- Red Bell Pepper - 1, peeled, seeded, deribbed, and diced fine
- Yellow Bell Pepper - 1, peeled, seeded, deribbed, and diced fine
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- Eggplant - 1/2, diced fine
- Garlic Clove - 1, diced fine
- Thyme Sprigs - 1, chopped
- Zucchini - 1/2, minced
- Scallops
- Olive Oil - 3 tablespoons
- Jumbo Sea Scallops - 16, muscle removed
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- Garnish
- Paprika Oil - (see Cooking Basics, “Flavored Oils”)
- Pesto Oil - (see Cooking Basics, “Flavored Oils”)
Instructions
To prepare the cabbage leaves: Bring a pot of water to a boil. Cut the heavy rib out of each cabbage leaf. Boil the leaves for 1 minute, then remove with a slotted spoon and plunge into ice water to set the color. Remove and drain. Preheat the oven to 300 F. Place a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet, letting half of the paper overlap the side of the pan, and brush two places the size of the cabbage leaves with butter. Put the leaves on the buttered spots, folding to close up the gap left from the rib. Brush the tops of the leaves with butter and fold the rest of the parchment paper over the cabbage, pressing down. Bake 5 to 10 minutes, until slightly crisp. Remove and let cool.
To make the ratatouille: Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a medium saute pan or skillet over medium-high heat and saute the onion for 30 seconds. Add the peppers and continue sauteing for 1 minute. Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Add the eggplant and saute for 1 minute. Add the garlic, thyme, and zucchini and saute for 1 minute longer. Season again with salt and pepper and set aside to cool.
To cook the scallops: Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a medium non-stick saute pan or skillet over medium-high heat. Add four scallops, making sure they do not touch. Season with salt and pepper. Sear for 30 to 45 seconds, until lightly browned then turn with tongs and sear on the other side for another 30 to 45 seconds. Remove and set aside on paper towels. Repeat with the remaining scallops, four at a time, adding olive oil as needed.
To serve: Make 3 ratatouille quenelles with two serving spoons and place in a radial design at 10 o’clock, 2 o’clock, and 6 o’clock on a warmed serving plate, leaving space in the center. Place a seared scallop in the center, and one between each quenelle. Repeat with the other three plates. Drizzle and drip the plates with paprika oil and pesto oil. Stand a cabbage leaf like a fin between the center scallop and one of the quenelles on each plate.
