Recipes Scallops with Chestnut Sauce and Crisp Sage 5.0 (1,181) Add your rating & review "In 1994, when I enrolled at the Culinary Institute oh America in Hyde Park, I had to catch up on so much—it was like I had a virgin palate for food and wine," says Rajat Parr. "For instance, I'd never had a scallop before; I didn't even know what they were. I had never seen a chestnut before, either. So cooking school was an eye-opening experience."Plus: F&W's Fish and Seafood Cooking Guide More Seafood Recipes By Rajat Parr Rajat Parr World-renowned wine expert Rajat Parr is a sommelier, winemaker, and co-founder of Sandhi, Domaine de la Côte, and Evening Land Vineyards. He co-authored two books on wine, the James Beard Award-winning Secrets of the Sommeliers (2010) and the André Simon Drink Book Award-winning The Atlas of Taste (2018). Parr has demonstrated his unparalleled scent memory with appearances in such wine documentaries as SOMM, SOMM3, Cellar Stories, and Blind Tasting Sessions. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on March 19, 2018 Print Rate It Share Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: © Anna Williams Total Time: 40 mins Yield: 4 1-course servings Ingredients 2 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 thick slice of bacon (1 ounce), finely diced 1 leek, white and pale green parts only, coarsely chopped 2 tablespoons Cognac 1 1/4 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth 1 cup vacuum-packed chestnuts Salt and freshly ground pepper 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 8 large sea scallops (about 1 pound) 8 sage leaves Directions In a saucepan, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter. Add the bacon and cook over moderate heat until the fat has been rendered, about 4 minutes. Add the leek and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add the Cognac and carefully ignite it. When the flames subside, add the chicken stock and chestnuts and bring to a boil. Simmer over moderate heat for 3 minutes. Transfer to a blender and puree. Return the chestnut sauce to the saucepan and season with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, heat the vegetable oil. Season the scallops with salt and pepper. Add the sage leaves to the skillet and cook over moderately high heat, turning once, until crisp, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the sage to a plate. Add the scallops to the skillet and cook over high heat until starting to brown, about 1 minute. Reduce the heat to moderately high and cook the scallops until they're well glazed, about 1 minute. Turn the scallops and add the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter to the skillet. Continue cooking the scallops, basting with the butter, until browned and just cooked through, about 2 minutes longer. Reheat the chestnut sauce and pour it into shallow bowls. Arrange the scallops in the chestnut sauce and garnish with the fried sage leaves. Serve right away. Suggested Pairing Parr discovered the terrific Chenin Blancs of Loire during a seminal wine class at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, and loves to serve them with these caramelized scallops in a smoky, bacon-infused chestnut sauce. Rate it Print