Seared Scallops with Bacon-Braised Chard

• Recipe by Stephanie Izard

“When you learn how to cook scallops with a crisp golden crust, they’re just so good,” says Top Chef winner Stephanie Izard. To help brown the scallops, she adds butter to the pan halfway through cooking. The butter and bacon that flavor the colorful chard make the dish nicely rich, a quality balanced by a fruity, slightly acidic Gewürztraminer.

Ingredients

1. 2 thick slices of bacon, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch strips
2. 1 small onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
3. 2 garlic cloves, minced
4. 1 medium tomato, seeded and diced
5. 1 3/4 pounds rainbow chard—stems sliced crosswise 1/2 inch thick, leaves cut into 1-inch strips
6. 2 teaspoons soy sauce
7. Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
8. 12 large sea scallops (1 1/2 pounds)
9. 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
10. 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Directions

1. In a large, deep skillet, cook the bacon over moderate heat until crisp, 4 minutes. Spoon off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat. Add the onion to the skillet and cook, stirring, until slightly softened, 3 minutes. Add the garlic and stir until tender but not browned, 2 minutes. Add the tomato and cook until it begins to break down, 2 minutes. Add the chard stems and cook until crisp-tender, 4 minutes. Add the chard leaves and cook over moderately high heat, tossing, until wilted, 5 minutes; drain off any liquid. Add the soy sauce and cook until the leaves are tender, 2 minutes longer. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm.
2. Season the scallops with salt and pepper. In another large skillet, heat the oil until just smoking. Add the scallops and cook over high heat for 30 seconds. Reduce the heat to moderate and cook until golden on the bottom, about 3 minutes. Turn the scallops and add the butter. Cook, spooning the butter on the scallops, until just white throughout, about 3 minutes. Spoon the chard onto plates, top with the scallops and serve.