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17 Quick Scallop Recipes You Can Make in 45 Minutes or Less

17 Quick Scallop Recipes You Can Make in 45 Minutes or Less

By Bridget Hallinan

Updated August 07, 2019

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Credit: CON POULOS

Creamy, soft, and slightly sweet, scallops remain one of our favorite seafoods to cook. The best part? They happen to be incredibly quick-cooking. Whether we’re grilling outside or heating up a pan come winter, we like to buy scallops when we want something that’s fast, but still tastes indulgent. We love to sear them, grill them, steam them, and serve them raw in a carpaccio—they even make for a luxurious pizza topping, paired with bacon and a garlicky béchamel. (Trust us on this one.) Read on for more scallop recipes we love.

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Scallops with Fennel Grenobloise (12 minutes)

Quick-cooking scallops are excellent with sweet fennel and a buttery lemon-caper sauce.

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Cilantro Scallops (12 minutes)

Marcela Valladolid tosses scallops in a spicy, vibrant combination of garlic, lime, soy and crushed red pepper before quickly grilling them.

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Bay Scallop-Marsala Cream Toasts (15 minutes)

These bay scallops are set in a luscious Marsala cream sauce, served over hot crispy bread and garnished with fresh chives. It's a simple dish to prepare, yet so special and decadent. Best to enjoy these toasts with a knife and fork.

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Scallop Crudo with Mango and Pomegranate (25 minutes)

Credit: Greg DuPree

Chef Paxx Caraballo Moll uses lemon, lime, and orange along with mango and pomegranate for a huge hit of tropical fruit flavor that skews savory thanks to chopped white onion and serrano chile. The sweet, vegetal balance complements fresh raw diver scallops.

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Scallop Carpaccio with Hand-Cut Ginger-Chive Pesto (25 minutes)

Credit: © Con Poulos

People don't think to eat scallops raw, but sliced thinly and marinated they're delicious in ceviches, crudos and carpaccios like the one here from Kay Chun. To add texture, Chun tops the dish with crunchy flakes of sea salt and crisp radish slices.

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Steamed Scallops with Garlic (25 minutes)

Credit: © DL Acken

These garlicky steamed scallops make for a quick and easy appetizer.

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Grilled Scallops with Miso-Corn Salad (30 minutes)

Credit: Victor Protasio

In summer, Gail Simmons cooks scallops on the grill until just kissed by the flames and then piles them on top of warmed veggies with a bright dressing. This version, a favorite for quick and easy backyard dinners, incorporates miso, ginger, and toasted sesame, adding a savory dimension to the salad and a rich contrast to the corn and scallops’ inherent sweetness.

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Butter-Basted Scallops with Spring Greens and Snap Peas (30 minutes)

Credit: Jennifer Causey

You’ve likely seen the restaurant technique of tilting a skillet so that the butter pools at one edge and can be spooned repeatedly over meat or seafood. Justin Chapple uses the technique with seared sea scallops, letting the butter caramelize until browned and nutty. Crisp-tender snap peas, spinach, and dandelion greens finish in the same pan for a truly springy, masterful main dish.

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Hominy with Blistered Padron Peppers and Seared Scallops (30 minutes)

With so many excellent textures and flavors in this soup-like dish, it's hearty enough to be served as an entrée and it goes well as an accompaniment to pork or served with warm tortillas.

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Bacon-Wrapped Scallops (30 minutes)

Credit: Abby Hocking / Food & Wine

These two-bite quintessential cocktail-party scallops never get old. The bacon adds nice smoky flavor, but you can also prepare this recipe with prosciutto or pancetta.

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Chilled Celery Soup with Nantucket Bay Scallops (30 minutes)

Overhauling her mother's celery sticks with cream cheese, Barbara Lynch finishes this cool, silky soup—flavored with parsley and crème fraîche—by adding a luxurious touch: a generous mound of tender bay scallops, which she gets from a friend who lives on Nantucket.

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Sancerre-Poached Scallops with Soft Grits (35 minutes)

Credit: © Con Poulos

Justin Chapple uses white wine—Sancerre especially—to delicately poach scallops. If you don’t have Sancerre, Sauvignon Blanc is delicious, too.

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Chilled Shrimp and Scallops in Spicy Tomatillo Sauce (40 minutes)

Credit: Cedric Angeles

At TrasLomita in Valle De Guadalupe in Baja California, Mexico, chef Sheyla Alvarado tosses chilled cooked shrimp and raw bay scallops in Key lime juice and serves them in a pool of cold habanero-tomatillo sauce for a riff on traditional aguachile from Sinaloa. A raw vegetable garnish completes this summery appetizer.

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Pan-Fried Sea Scallops with Caponata (40 minutes)

This luxurious eggplant based relish is a delicious accompaniment to a wide range of meats and fish. Here, the caponata is topped with seared scallops. Serve warm or at room temperature with torn basil throughout.

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Scallop-and-Bacon Pizza (40 minutes)

A quick, garlicky béchamel stands in for crème fraîche and cheese in this luxurious white pizza.

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Scallop Tartare with Green Apple–Endive Salad (45 minutes)

Credit: © Roland Bello

In this luxurious winter salad, Le Coucou chef Daniel Rose contrasts the buttery sweetness of scallops with the tangy crunch of fresh apples and endive.

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Scallop Rosettes with Avocado and Creamed Tandoori Chayote (45 minutes)

Credit: CON POULOS

For this delicious recipe, chef Daniel Boulud quickly cooks scallop slices, then serves them with a rich, tangy avocado-tomatillo sauce and Indian-spiced hearts of palm (we substitute chayote, which is easier to find).

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By Bridget Hallinan