Lemon Garlic Butter Scallops
Paleo, Keto, Grain-Free, Gluten-Free
Getting into Trader Joe’s is like getting into the most exclusive nightclub in NYC right now. I don’t normally shop there as I prefer to support my local mom and pop’s or the farmers’ market but the line was so short I HAD TO just to say I did. They let an elderly woman cut in front of me because they are the VIPs these days, I hope this doesn’t change when things go back to normal.
I was surprised to find wild local scallops. I don’t think I’ve ever cooked scallops before but they looked really fresh and were affordable. Scallops are a great source of protein, zinc, selenium, phosphorous, B12 and iron. What does this jibberish mean exactly? I personally like to eat scallops to boost immunity and when I have skin issues. I picked up skateboarding about two years ago and occasionally end up with cuts and scrapes - that’s not hot, so I like to eat scallops and oysters to speed up recovery and it works well for breakouts too.
Anyways, this dish was super quick and easy to cook (maybe 20 minutes total) and the end result was delish!
Ingredients:
1 lb scallops
1 medium lemon (juice half, thinly slice the other half into rounds
3 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup of chicken or veggie broth
2 Tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp of salted butter
Salt
Pepper
Fragrant green herb like parsley, you know what you like more than I do (I used arugula because I was craving the peppery bitter flavor and I had some in my fridge I really needed to use up)
Let’s Cook!
Pat and gently squeeze your scallops dry with paper towels, this will help them brown and crust up. Season with a little bit of salt and pepper on each side.
In a cast iron pan or skillet heat up the olive oil over high heat until it starts to sizzle. Add scallops, don’t let them touch, each other, you may need to cook in a couple of batches. Fry for 2-3 minutes on each side or until they are golden brown and crusty then flip to the other side and repeat until both sides are crusty and the center is opaque transfer to a plate
Lower heat to medium, melt the butter into the pan, add garlic and stir for about a minute until the garlic starts to brown then add the broth, lemon juice, lemon slices, turn heat to low and let it all simmer together for 1-2 minutes. Add the scallops back briefly to warm up
Garnish with your chopped green herb of choice and salt and pepper to taste as needed