Seared Scallops with Lemon Glaze

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Hi everyone. As you know I have been cooking a lot with sous vide immersion cooker. Things that were normally harder to cook have all of a sudden become a whole lot easier (this is not a plug for one I swear). One of those things that I have generally had a more challenging time with before was pan searing scallops. They either didn’t sear well or came out over cooked. But, with the sous vide, it was pretty simple to sear and keep them well cooked. I made a lemon glaze to go with it and paired it with sautéed kale and crispy sweet potatoes for a perfectly easy and healthy meal.

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Ingredients

  • large scallops
  • 2 large lemons
  • Salt and Pepper
  • Red Chili flakes
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 1 green onion, separating green and white part
  • 4 tbsp dry wine
  • 1/2 cup orange juice
  • 2 tsp honey

Directions

  • Heat water bath to 122ºF
  • Wash and dry scallops
  • Salt and pepper to taste and place them in the vacuum bag (~1lb/bag)
  • Place 2 lemon slices in the bag and seal
  • Place in water bath for 30 minutes
  • At this time, prepare the sauce by heating butter in a saucepan
  • Add the chopped white part of the green onion and chili flakes
  • remove the scallion and in another bowl combine orange juice and juice of a lemon to get 2/3 cup of liquid
  • When the scallops are done cooking, remove them from the bag and pat dry them
  • Sear in skillet over high heat with butter residue from sauce
  • remove the scallops and deglaze with dry wine
  • Add the orange and lemon juice mixture and zest of 1 lemon
  • stir in green onion and bring to a boil until glaze like consistency
  • Add honey if too sour/tart for your liking
  • Pour the sauce over the scallops and enjoy (or I placed the scallops on top of the sauce)

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Citrus Scallops and Quinoa Salad

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As I have been doing this blog (sparingly to be honest), it has made me venture into things that I normally would not eat or attempt. This is especially true in light of the fact that I am trying to eat healthier (venturing into baking isn’t awesome on your body when you live by yourself…). Thus my foray into the magical worlds of quinoa and kale (although there is no kale in this recipe). I bought some quinoa on a whim and decided to try and make it, but man is it boring. So I thought I’d try and spice it up a bit (or in this case, sweeten), by making it into more of a citrus salad. And because I need some kind of protein, I added some seared scallops to go along with it. The result was a really good, light meal that I did not feel guilty about eating. So give it a go and let me know how it turns out for you.

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Ingredients:

  • 1 cup quinoa, cooked to instructions
  • 1 lb large sea scallops, washed and dried
  • 1 grapefruit, cut into slices
  • 2 navel oranges, cut into slices
  • 1 large avocado, cut into cubes
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • 1/8 cup honey
  • salt and pepper to taste

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Instructions

  • Cook quinoa to instructions
  • Mix the olive oil, lemon juice, honey, salt and pepper in a small bowl
  • Wash and pat dry the scallops, salt and pepper to taste
  • Sear the scallops in a large pan over med-high heat
  • Mix the quinoa and the dressing, using a fork to combine
  • Add the avocado, grapefruit, and oranges and mix again
  • Add the scallops and in my case sautéed spinach as well
  • Eat and not feel guilty!

Seared Tuna with Asian Vinaigrette Salad

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My uncle loves to go deep sea fishing, and recently went out for tuna. He caught some yellowtail and some yellowfin. Every time he goes I always ask for some, and this time, he delivered! Tuna is pretty expensive to buy, so getting it fresh for free is pretty awesome. I seared the tuna and served it over a salad with an asian vinaigrette. The salad was made from a spring mix and napa cabbage cut into strips like a slaw.

Ingredients

  • Tuna loin
  • Spring salad mix
  • Napa cabbage
  • Grape tomatoes
  • 1/2 red onion
  • 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1/2 lime, juiced
  • 1 tsp grated ginger
  • Some chopped cilantro
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper

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Directions for tuna and salad

  • Rinse the tuna and pat dry with paper towels
  • Grind black peppercorns onto a plate and roll the tuna loin in the pepper
  • Pour a little canola oil into a pan on high heat
  • Sear the tuna for a few seconds on each side, place on a plate and put it in the freezer for a few minutes to stop the cooking process
  • Cut the napa cabbage into strips, halve the tomatoes, and thinly slice the red onion

Directions for vinaigrette

  • Heat the vinegar in a small saucepan over medium heat, then mix the sugar in until it dissolves
  • Combine the oil, soy sauce, lime juice, sesame oil, ginger, and cilantro
  • Pour in the vinegar and sugar mix
  • Mix the dressing and chill in the refrigerator for ~20 minutes

Slice the tuna into ~ 1/4 inch slices and serve over the salad. This was my first time making an asian vinaigrette, and I really liked it. I was getting tired of balsamic dressings, so this was a nice alternative. The napa also added a different flavor and textural element which was nice. Overall, the salad was really good and I used the leftover dressing again the next day. And then there’s the tuna, which is always delicious. Hope you enjoy!

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Halibut with Lemon Butter

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So like I said yesterday, I would also post the halibut I made for Jenn for our anniversary. It was a halibut filet on a bed of wilted spinach and tomatoes.  It was topped with lemon butter and surrounded with fried shallots.  I got the recipe from here.

Ingredients and instructions for Lemon Butter:

  • Mix 1/2 stick room temp butter with 1tbsp lemon juice
  • Add a little salt, pepper, and lemon zest

Ingredients for halibut:

  • 1/4 cup EVOO
  • 2 tbsp of lemon juice (I just squeezed a 1/2 lemon though)
  • Salt and Pepper
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic minced/smashed
  • Shallots cut into rings

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Instructions

  • Mix the EVOO, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and garlic
  • Marinate and coat the halibut and let stand for 15 minutes
  • On med-high heat add EVOO to a saucepan and fry the shallots until crisp
  • In a skillet on med-high heat, take the halibut from the marinade and sear on both sides for ~3 minutes
  • Plate the halibut (I put it on a bed of spinach and tomatoes) and top with lemon butter
  • Surround with shallots and dig in!