Pan-Seared Sea Scallops with Corn Puree - a delicious, decadent low-calorie meal full of protein and flavor. With dry-cured chorizo, cherry tomatoes, shallots and scallions, it’s the perfect way to bid summer goodbye.
Hey ya’ll! Me and B are kicking it in KC!! And in case you were wondering it’s still summer here. A steamy 90 degrees, full sun without a cloud in the sky.☀️
We’ve been here a few days attending a food blogger conference. It has been informative, motivational and inspiring. But my favorite part was connecting with so many other food bloggers that I admire, like Trevor & Jennifer from Show Me The Yummy!
The first day we participated in a workshop on how to shoot food videos. We were getting the 411 on all those Tasty videos that you love to watch. Stay tuned cause Taste And See is gearing up to get into the video game (pun intended).
During that training session I met a new BFF - Chellie (and her husband Karl) from Art From My Table. She’s super-sweet, so relatable, and hilarious! Plus she’s from Michigan, not too far from where I grew up, and I literally felt like I had known her all my life.
Later in the evening we made our way over to a cocktail party hosted by Mediavine Publisher Network, where I met so many other fabulous food bloggers like Kathryne from Cookie and Kate, Ali from Gimme Some Oven, Traci from Vanilla And Bean, & Tessa from Salted Plains.
I already follow their blogs, so it was pretty exciting for me to get to meet them face-to-face.
The next day was full of lots of informative sessions and panel discussions. It was all so helpful and inspiring. I can’t wait to start applying what I’ve learned.
Although the conference occupied most of our time while we were there, we made sure to hit a few must-see local food joints.
I have two favorites I have to tell you about. Neither one is glamorous but the food is off the charts.
Town Topic Hamburgers is a tiny diner-style spot serving up breakfast all day long, plus tasty hamburgers, fries, onion rings, legendary shakes…. and the finishing touch on any meal, fresh homemade pie. I think the whole building could fit inside my living room. But what it lacks in size, it makes up for in character!
We stopped in late after our blogger cocktail party and scored two seats at the counter. We ordered cheeseburgers and onions rings. Both were super yummy - literally the best onions rings I’ve ever had. The perfect amount of batter on the perfect amount of onion with the perfect amount of seasoning - seriously I can’t stop thinking about them.
We met a few friends while we were there noshing away - Jasper and “Gypsy Steve.” They live in the area and were enjoying some of their favorites… the Biggie and the Truck Stop Omelet. Apparently the B man and Gypsy Steve are starting a new travel reality food show… something involving an RV and traveling around eating food. Think Tiny House meets Triple D. I think their concept needs some refinement before it’s ready to be pitched to the Food Network, but Guy Fieri beware!⚠️
I don’t think I could talk about Kansas City grub without mentioning BBQ. As many of you already know, Kansas City BBQ is a thing. The area is renowned for its own style of slow-smoking and slathering BBQ with a thick tomato and molasses based sauce. Arthur Bryant’s is basically a KC institution, and came highly recommend by almost everyone we met. They’ve been around since the early 1920’s and are still serving up some of the world’s most famous and tasty BBQ.♨️
As you can see it’s another local spot with tons of character. It’s pretty low-key when it comes to décor but that’s alright by me, ‘cause I’m all about the food.
You head up to the front of the joint and get in the amusement park style line that winds back and forth until you reach the window. Then one of the cooks asks for you order (BTW no substitutions unless you call ahead), and you keep moving down toward the cashier while your food is being made.
B ordered the special: Pig in a Bun with Slaw and Fries, sans the slaw. Basically a pulled pork sandwich smothered in BBQ goodness. I ordered the Burnt Ends Open Face Sandwich (this came highly recommended by Jasper and Gypsy Steve - it’s a thing in KC so I took heed.) We thought we were ordering it “to go,” but soon realized this was not finger food. A fork, knife and MANY napkins were definitely required.
We pulled up a couple chairs to dig in. It was literally “heaven on white bread!” For the Burnt Ends Open-Face Sandwich, they place several pieces of white bread down and top it off with ridiculously tender, juicy chunks of pork end meat that were slightly charred. Then they top it off with some of their famous BBQ sauce, a mound of French fries, and some sliced pickles. And if you’re really into your sauce, there are three to choose from on every table: the Original, Sweet Heat, and Rich and Spicy.
Out of this world tasty fare my friend. If you’re in the area be sure to stop by Arthur Bryant’s, but go early ‘cause rumor has it they tend to sell out of their most popular items!
All this food talk is making me hungry. And since it’s still feeling summery around here, how about some Pan-Seared Sea Scallops with Corn Puree!
You cannot beat this combo; it’s like they were made for each other. The delicate, caramelized scallops with the smooth, sweet creamy corn!
And just to “sweeten” the deal even more I added some dry-cured chorizo, cherry tomatoes, shallots and scallions to the mix.
I used some end-of-the-summer fresh corn from our local grocer, but you could also use some frozen sweet corn as well. I boiled the corn on the cob for five minutes, let it cool, then sliced the kernels off the cob. At the same time I sautéed a sliced shallot until it was translucent, added a few tablespoons of butter, and removed it from the heat.
Then added most of the corn, cooked shallots, chicken stock, almond milk, a pinch of cayenne and a little salt in the food processor and blended it until the mixture was smooth and set it aside (when corn is pureed it can be so creamy on its own, so I don’t see the need to add any heavy cream to the dish). The chicken stock and almond milk thin it out a bit and create a silky richness to the dish.
Much like shrimp, scallops only take a few minutes to cook and when over-cooked they get a rubbery texture. So a quick pan sear is all that's required.
I sautéed 3 ounces of finely chopped chorizo in a cast iron skillet.
Then used the oil from the chorizo to sear the scallops for 1-2 minutes a side. Not only was it an efficient use of all the spicy pork had to offer, it gave the scallops amazing flavor.
To assemble this creamy goodness, you spoon some corn puree onto your plate, place four or five seared scallops on top, sprinkle with some of the reserved corn kernels, cooked chorizo, chopped fresh cherry tomatoes and scallions.
With the short cook time on this meal, it all comes together pretty quickly. Which makes it a great meal for a date night in, so you’re spending less time in the kitchen and more time enjoying the one you love most.❤️
These caramelized Pan-Seared Sea Scallops with Corn Puree are an indulgent meal that’s full of flavor and low on calories! And if you really want to put on a seafood feast, I suggest adding in some live lobster with drawn butter, plus some chili lime shrimp!
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Pan-Seared Sea Scallops with Corn Puree Recipe
Pan-Seared Sea Scallops with Corn Puree - delicious, decadent, & low-calorie. Full of protein & flavor! With chorizo, cherry tomatoes, shallots & scallions.
Ingredients
For The Corn Puree:
- 4-5 ears of fresh corn
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1 shallot, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup chicken broth
- ½ teaspoon salt
- A pinch of cayenne
- ¼ cup almond milk
For The Scallops:
- 1 ¼ pounds of medium-sized dry sea scallops, (about 25)
- 3 ounces dry cured chorizo, chopped into small pieces
- 20 red & yellow cherry tomatoes, cut in half
- Scallions, chopped
Instructions
For The Corn Puree:
- Boil corn for 5 minutes, drain in a colander, and allow to cool.
- While corn is cooling, sauté sliced shallots in a saucepan with 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat for about 5 minutes. When finished cooking shallots, turn the heat off and add the butter to the pan so it can melt.
- Once the corn is cool enough to handle, carefully cut kernels from cob. Set aside ½ cup of kernels for garnish.
- In a food processor, combine remainder of the corn kernels, the chicken broth, salt, cayenne, almond milk and the shallots with melted butter. Blend until thoroughly combined into a smooth puree.
- Transfer puree to a medium bowl and set aside.
For The Scallops:
- Divide the scallops into groups of similar size, so you can cook batches of similar size together.
- Salt the scallops and place them on a paper-towel lined plate and blot the excess moisture.
- Heat up a large cast iron skillet or sauce pan over medium high heat then add the chorizo. Cook for 2-3 minutes then using a slotted spoon remove chorizo from the pan but leave the oil.
- Keep the pan hot and add the scallops. Cook for 2 minutes a side, and be sure to not over cook them. Scallops should be golden brown. If needed, cook them in batches (about 7 at a time) to avoid over-crowding the pan. Add a little olive oil between batches if needed.
- Serve the scallops on a bed of corn puree, garnished with remaining fresh corn kernels, chopped scallions, halved cherry tomatoes and cooked chorizo.
Notes
Dry scallops are preferred to wet scallops! If you are uncertain ask your fish market which they are selling you. If you are only able to obtain wet scallops, rinse them of any milky residue & dry with paper towels.
Frozen corn can be substituted for fresh corn. Thaw and heat up in a sauce pan for a few minutes.
Nutrition Information
Yield
5Serving Size
5 scallops w/pureeAmount Per Serving Calories 266Total Fat 17gSaturated Fat 6gUnsaturated Fat 0gCholesterol 54mgSodium 1123mgCarbohydrates 7gSugar 2gProtein 18g
Starla
Pinned! This looks so good! I love that it is low calorie and scallops are my favorite... yet I have never attempted to try and make them, lol.
holly
Thanks so much Starla! I love scallops and I love that they are so easy to make. The two main things to remember is to buy dry scallops from a place that sells good quality seafood and don't over cook them. Dry scallops have no addition of water or preservatives and their flavor is more pure and concentrated. I understand cooking things for the first time can be intimidating but scallops are really easy and quick to prepare. I'm excited for you to try them - You've so got this!