Fry
Seared Scallops with Fried Shiitakes and a Sweet Relish Served with Lemon Basil Oil
- Serves 16
Author Notes
For a certain special chef's recent graduation, I created this appetizer as part of our final assignment. Everyone was extremely pleased with the results! —Mariya
What You'll Need
Ingredients
-
2 tablespoons
olive oil
-
1 1/2 cups
red onion, brunoise (very small dice, about 1/8 inch)
-
1/2 cup
yellow peppers, brunoise
-
1
green chili, minced, seeds and all
-
3/4 cup
raisins
-
1/4 cup
dried currants
-
1 cup
tomato concasse, pealed, seeded, and finely diced
-
3/4 cup
white wine
-
1/2 bunch
chives, sliced very thin
-
1 cup
basil leaves
-
2 cups
canola oil
-
3
lemons, zested
-
16
shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, caps wiped with a slightly damp cloth
-
4 cups
all purpose flour
-
4
beaten eggs
-
4 cups
breadcrumbs
-
7 cups
canola oil for frying
-
8
scallops, sliced in half, horizontally
-
2 tablespoons
olive oil
-
salt
to taste
-
pepper
to taste
Directions
- FOR THE RELISH: Heat olive oil in a large saute pan and add red onions; sweat until translucent, about 15 minutes.
- Add orange peppers, chili, raisins, and currants and saute until peppers are soft, about 4-6 minutes.
- Add tomatoes and saute about 5-7 minutes, until all contents are soft through; season well with salt and pepper.
- Add white wine and reduce until it's almost gone; taste and adjust seasoning; mix in the chives and reserve.
- FOR THE LEMON BASIL OIL: In boiling water, blanch the basil and immediately submerge it in an ice bath (bowl with ice and water), to stop the cooking process; remove from water and dry well.
- Heat 2 cups canola oil and add in lemon zest; cook until the oil is infused, about 6-8 minutes (dont let the lemon zest turn brown).
- In a blender, blend the infused oil with the blanched basil; season well (you may need to add a bit of sugar, depending on your preference, as well as a few drops of lemon juice from one of the lemons).
- FOR THE MUSHROOM CAPS: Bread shiitake caps by dipping in flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs (shaking off any excess).
- Heat 7 cups canola oil to 380 degrees and fry shiitake caps in batches (until just golden); remove from oil onto a towel lined tray and lightly salt right away; reserve.
- FOR THE SCALLOPS: season the scallops and saute in olive oil until cooked through, about 1 minute per side.
- ASSEMBLE: place one fried mushroom cap on a plate, top with scallop, top with relish, top with a bit of lemon-basil oil.
- Optional: fry some basil leaves (in 350 degrees canola oil, for 15 seconds) and garnish on top of the dish.
Tags:
See what other Food52ers are saying.