Mayonnaise…Scallops?

Sometimes ideas pop into my head that just work.  Of course, I’m not like my oldest sister, who has the ability to make something out of cocoa powder, a box of spaghetti, and a jar of pickles.  But I like to think every once in awhile I bring something new to the dinner table.

Take a couple weeks ago, for instance.  We happened to have a couple of beautiful, succulent scallops that were leftover from a night of sushi and burgers with the neighbors (somehow that combo just worked for us).  Ordinarily, I would automatically turn to my resident grill master, or pan sear them with some garden herbs.  However, a rummage in the fridge produced some broccoli grown all but 2 miles away, which had somehow gotten lost in our sea of CSA and farm market vegetables.  Too often do our vegetables end up blanched, sauteed, or roasted as an afterthought.  What would help us learn to appreciate both the protein AND the vegetable?

For some reason I thought of one of Hubby’s favorite dishes – mayonnaise shrimp.  If you’ve never had it at a Cantonese restaurant before, here’s an example.  I’ve never made it at home, and I shudder when I think about how the shrimp and walnuts are deep-fried, then coated with a heaping combination of mayonnaise and condensed milk.  It is OH SO GOOD though.

Combine that inspiration with my Dad’s love of cornstarch in his cooking, a basic awareness of fat consumption, and great ingredients, and I present you with:

Mayonnaise Scallops
Original Recipe

Serves 2

Make the candied walnuts:

1/2 cup walnuts
2 cups water
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Bring sugar and water to a boil in a small saucepan until sugar dissolves.  Add walnuts and boil for 5 minutes.  Remove walnuts and drain on paper towels.  Sprinkle with sesame seeds.  Place walnuts on a small cookie sheet and bake in oven, stirring occasionally, until toasted, 5 more minutes.  Set aside.

Make the mayonnaise sauce:

1/2 cup light mayonnaise
1 tsp rice wine vinegar
1 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp honey

Whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl, quickly to prevent curdling. Adjust acidity or sweetness if necessary. Set aside.

Make the broccoli and scallops:

Broccoli
1 head broccoli, chopped, stems peeled
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 clove garlic, minced
Salt

Scallops
4 large scallops, sliced in half vertically
1/2 cup cornstarch
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

Blanch the broccoli: Boil a large pot of water.  Meanwhile, prepare a large bowl with water and ice.  Add broccoli stems and boil for 2 minutes.  Add broccoli florets and boil for 2-3 minutes, until florets are bright green and tender crisp.  Transfer broccoli to the ice bath to stop cooking, then drain well.

Meanwhile, dredge the scallops: Pat scallops dry with paper towels.  Combine cornstarch, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.  Dredge each scallop half in the cornstarch mixture and shake off the excess.

Pan fry the broccoli: Heat a large saucepan on medium high heat with 2 tsp olive oil.  Add garlic and red pepper flakes; stir until garlic is aromatic but not burned, about 1 minute.  Carefully add broccoli (it may splatter) and saute until tender but not mushy, about 3 minutes.  Remove from pan onto serving plates and scrape out any debris.

Pan fry the scallops: Add 2 tsp olive oil to the pan.  Add scallops and fry for 2-3 minutes or until scallop releases easily from the pan and is golden brown.  Flip over scallops and cook for an additional 2 minutes or until golden brown.  If necessary, fry the sides of the scallops as well.  Drain on paper towels and place on top of broccoli.

Top scallops with mayonnaise sauce, then walnuts (reheat walnuts in oven at 300 degrees for 5 minutes, if needed).  Serve with rice.