Seared Sea Scallops with Corn Puree and Fennel Pollen

I didn’t have any relationship with scallops until I met them up close and personal. Scuba diving in shallow bays on the east end of Long Island, brushing aside blades of eelgrass, occasionally I would come across a bay scallop, laying on the estuary bottom, valves agape with rows of tiny bright blue eyes rimming its shells. If I swam too close the scallop would clap its shells together forcing out a jet of water and propelling itself in the opposite direction. Their adductor muscle, which holds the two shells together, is especially large, allowing scallops the unique ability among the bivalve mollusks (which also include clams, oysters, and mussels) to swim. It is this thick muscle that is so attractive to us as a source of food, and bay scallops, while smaller than other scallops, are particularly sweet, making their harvest an important historical industry in the eelgrass beds in the bays of eastern Long Island.

I was in graduate school studying the predators of bay scallops with an aim toward re-seeding the stocks after algae blooms known as brown tides devastated their populations. We wanted to identify who ate the juveniles and at what size shellfish hatcheries should release them into the wild to avoid predator devastation. The work involved hours on the shallow bay bottom in scuba gear painstakingly attaching small scallops to the grass blades so they couldn’t swim away. We’d come back days later to see how many and what sizes were gone.

It was rare, but every now and then while doing this research, I would run across an adult bay scallop among the tall blades of eelgrass. I would see other organisms as well. There were spindly brittle stars winding their way among the grasses and one-inch-wide mud crabs climbing the blades as if they were miniature monkeys on the branches in a forest. Sometimes puffer fish would hover above the canopy like little helicopters and if I was observant, I might spot a juvenile flounder lying flat on the bay bottom almost completely camouflaged, with both of its eyes on the same side of its head. I once had to fight off a vicious blue claw crab that nonchalantly wandered into the plot where I was trying to do my work. It was beautiful to watch, but much more agile underwater than I was. One time I spent the night on a boat by myself above our plot with a video camera down below to observe differences between night and day and a sea turtle stopped by to investigate. And as our day of diving and research was coming to a close, we often searched for hard clams, digging up a handful to bring home for dinner.

Despite my research, I never got the chance to eat Long Island bay scallops. The ones we were working with were far too small and those few adults I came across while doing my research I wanted to leave behind in the hopes that they would reproduce and increase the natural population. Plus, one or two bay scallops hardly a meal makes. Since the 1980s baymen have tried to make a living harvesting bay scallops, but the catch has been too small and therefore the price too high for me to partake.

As a result, when you see scallops on a menu – and when I cook them at home – they are usually sea scallops. This cousin of the bay scallop lives much deeper on the ocean bottom in cold, offshore waters. It has a much bigger adductor muscle, perfect for searing the outside, while the inside stays briny and tender.

Hopefully someday the bay scallop population in Long Island waters will return to its previous levels. Until then, I will have to think about my time underwater studying them and observing all manner of marine life, and for now, will continue to enjoy eating sea scallops.

Seared Sea Scallops with Corn Puree and Fennel Pollen

Sea scallops are sweet and rich, a combination that pairs beautifully with corn puree made from perfect summer corn. The fennel pollen is not strictly necessary, but it adds a lovely note if it is available.

Since this dish is so rich, it needs something with a little acidity on the side to cut its intensity. A simple tomato salad works nicely if you’re cooking it in late summer when both corn and tomatoes are at their peak.

When purchasing sea scallops ask your fishmonger for “dry” scallops. Other scallops (i.e., “wet” scallops) have been treated with sodium triphosphate, which causes them to retain water (and therefore weigh more). When they cook, they exude this moisture preventing them from searing.

serves 2, 1 hour

2 ears fresh corn

4 Tbsp. butter, divided

½ of a large shallot, minced

2 fennel stalks, very roughly chopped, divided

½ cup chicken or vegetable stock

1 tsp. kosher salt

½ tsp. fresh ground black pepper

⅓ cup heavy cream

1 Tbsp. olive oil

6 to 8 sea scallops

fennel fronds

½ tsp. fennel pollen

1. Peel corn and then boil, covered, in a large pot with about 3 inches of water for 5 minutes. When done remove from pot and allow to cool. Place corn flat in a sheet pan and cut kernels from the cobs. Turn knife over and using the dull side remove the “milk” from the corn by pressing firmly and running the knife down the cob. Set aside.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons of butter in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Add minced shallot and half of fennel. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add corn, stock, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper, and cook for an additional 5 to 10 minutes. Set aside to cool. Remove fennel pieces. Reserve about ¼ cup for garnish, if desired.
3. When corn is cool, add to blender along with heavy cream and process into a puree. Taste and add more salt if necessary. Place in a small saucepan to be re-heated over low heat when ready to serve.
4. Remove side muscle from scallops, if present, and gently blot scallops dry with a paper towel. If they are moist, they will not sear. Sprinkle remaining salt and pepper on both sides of the scallops.
5. Heat a medium-sized skillet over medium-high heat and add olive oil. As the first wisps of smoke begin to rise from the pan, add the scallops. The key to getting a good crusty sear is to leave the scallops alone for about 2 minutes untouched. Do not move them, poke them, or prod them. Just leave them.
6. After about 2 minutes, if they look seared, flip the scallops and sear the other side without moving for another 2 minutes or so.
7. Butter baste the scallops. Add remaining 2 tablespoons of butter to the side of the pan closest to you, along with additional chopped fennel. Allow the fennel pieces to cook and flavor the butter as it melts. Tilting the pan with the bottom towards you, spoon melted butter over each scallop for about a minute.
8. Spread warm corn puree evenly on two plates. Place scallops on corn puree and top with fennel pollen and fennel fronds, if using. Serve hot.

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