Roasted Maine Scallops with Snail Butter

Nina June’s Roasted Maine Scallops with Snail Butter

Nina June’s Roasted Maine Scallops with Snail Butter

Author: Chef-owner Sara Jenkins of Nina June Restaurant, Rockport
One of Sara’s earliest memories is eating escargots in a Paris bistro with her parents when she was just three years old. Those garlicky, buttery flavors have stayed with her ever since and seem perfect with rich seafood like these seared and roasted Maine scallops.First make the snail butter, then sear the scallops, and add the butter to them before popping the pan in the oven for just 5 minutes.

Ingredients

Snail Butter
  • 1 ¼ cups loosely packed flat-leaf parsley leaves
  • 2 plump garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
  • 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • Grated zest of half a lemon
Everything Else
  • 4 ounces fresh salad greens (aruula, baby spinach, watercress, or mâche)
  • 2 pounds medium scallops
  • Sea salt and black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • Juice of 1 lemon (about 2 tablespoons)
  • Crusty bread, sliced and toasted

Instructions

  1. Make the snail butter: Chop the parsley and garlic together to a fine mince. Combine in a bowl with the butter and lemon zest and, using a fork, mash the ingredients together thoroughly.
  2. Set the oven on 350ºF.
  3. Spread the greens to make a bed in a bowl large enough to hold the greens and all the scallops.
  4. Dry the scallops with paper towel, then season generously with salt and pepper. Set a large cast-iron skillet over high heat and heat the pan until it is quite hot. Add the oil and the scallops, slowly feeding them into the pan, being careful not to crowd the pan or to lower its temperature. As the scallops sear to a crusty brown bottom, 3 to 4 minutes, move the scallops on top of each other and add more to the pan.
  5. When all of the scallops are browned on one side, remove the pan from the heat and dot the scallops with the snail butter. Transfer to the hot oven and cook just 5 minutes to melt the butter and finish cooking the scallops all the way through—but not overcooking them.
  6. Transfer the scallops and all the butter to the bowl with the greens, add the lemon juice and toss like a salad. Serve immediately with crusty bread to sop up the buttery juices.