Surf and Turf Recipes

By Food & Wine
Updated December 20, 2016
Not all surf and turf is steak and lobster, as proven by these recipes that feature the best of both land and sea. From a delicious grilled salmon and bacon sandwich to seafood-chorizo tacos, these dishes will prove that seafood and meat can be the perfect pair.
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Grilled Salmon Sandwiches

Credit: © Tina Rupp
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One of the great things about roasting a whole salmon is that there are usually leftovers. Love uses any extra fish in his exquisite riff on the BLT, layered with bacon and watercress. The sandwich would be equally good with another roasted fish, such as bluefish or cod.

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Vitello Tonnato

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Nothing says hello to the warm-weather months like cool food. Consider this Italian classic: vitello tonnato, or cold, sliced veal. Although it's traditionally served with veal top round or poached breast of veal, I like it even better with calf tongue. The acidity and salinity of the sauce is perfect with the rich tongue. You will love it. It's the ultimate surf and turf. In some of my recipes for this dish, I season the sauce with some of the braising liquid or add cayenne, cover the veal with sauce and let it sit overnight, garnish it with more capers... Here, I do none of these things. I love the recipe as is and it's easier than all the others without sacrificing any complexities or nuance. Is it Italian? You bet. I am really tired of people hammering away at chefs who bring in new ingredients to a classic dish, criticizing it as inauthentic. First, who cares? If it tastes good, it's a good dish. Second, Italian food is predicated on freshness, simplicity, regional relevance and seasonality. This dish has it all in spades and remains true to the original concept. Get over it, people. Whew.--Andrew Zimmern

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Seafood-Chorizo Tacos

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Fresh chorizo, the highly seasoned Mexican fresh sausage, is the primary flavoring in these rustic and robustly flavored shrimp tacos.

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Bacon-Wrapped Tuna Steaks with Frisée and Avocado Salad

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Katy Sparks likes to treat tuna steaks like beef. Here, she wraps them in bacon as she would a beef tenderloin, which not only adds a subtle smoky flavor to the fish but also keeps it moist.

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Eric Ripert's Surf and Turf

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This luxe surf and turf features escolar, a deliciously fatty fish, and extravagantly marbled Kobe or wagyu beef.

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Seared Scallops with Bacon-Braised Chard

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"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.

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Scallops with Grapefruit and Bacon

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A tangy, buttery white wine and grapefruit sauce with smoky bacon is the perfect accompaniment to sweet sea scallops.

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Corn Chowder with Bacon and Sea Scallops

Credit: © ERICKA MCCONNELL
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Look for sugar-cured bacon, which is smoky and sweet but mild enough not to overpower the other flavors here.

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Skewered Shrimp and Ham with Apple Jelly

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Andrew Zimmern's grilled shrimp-and-ham hors d'oeuvres are sweet, savory and spicy all at once--making them the perfect party food.

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Spicy Uni-Lardo Sushi in Lettuce Cups

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These lettuce cups are filled with surprising and boldly flavored ingredients--crisped balls of sushi rice wrapped in paper-thin sheets of lardo (pork fat) and topped with fresh uni (sea urchin).

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Braised Pork with Clams

Credit: © David Malosh
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George Mendes updates this classic Iberian combination by adding pickled vegetables. At Aldea, he makes his own pickles a day in advance; the version here calls for giardiniera, the jarred pickled-vegetable mix.

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Pan-Seared Trout with Serrano Ham and Chile-Garlic Oil

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"This dish is almost a cliche in Navarra, but it's absolutely delicious," says Alex Raij. "The Spanish ham keeps the fish from drying out, basting it with its inimitable fat."

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