Seared Sea Scallops and Cauliflower Purée a Recipe - Perfectly Provence (2024)

• 1 head Cauliflower broken into small pieces
• 1 liter milk semi-skimmed or whole
• 12 Scallops the best quality and as dry as possible
• 4 strips of Bacon or lardons
• 3 sprigs parsley chopped finely for serving
• Salt and Pepper
• Butter for frying

• Heat the oven to 375°F and place the bacon on a tray lined with baking parchment.

• Bake for about 15 minutes until very crispy. If your bacon is quite fatty, you may need to drain the fat halfway through. Reserve on kitchen paper towel.

• Place the cauliflower into a saucepan with enough milk to just cover it.

• Bring the milk to a boil and simmer on a low heat for about 10 minutes or until the cauliflower is soft. Leave to cool.

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• Purée the mixture until smooth. Sieve for extra smoothness.

• Place back into the saucepan to reheat.

• Season liberally with salt and pepper to taste.

• Pat the scallops dry with kitchen paper. This is the key to allow them to become crispy.

• Place a frying pan on medium-high heat and add a generous tablespoon of butter.

• Allow the butter to melt and the pan to get hot.

• Fry the scallops for 1-2 minutes on each side depending on the size. The scallops above are quite large so they were 2 minutes each side. You may need to do this in batches depending on the size of your frying pan.

• Season the scallops with salt and pepper while in the pan.

• Squeeze the bacon in the paper towel into create little bits.

• Chop the parsley.

• Dish out the reheated cauliflower purée to just cover the bottom of your plate. Next, place the scallops on the plate with the garnish. It helps if you have an extra pair of hands to assist with this step.

• Drizzle with good quality olive oil and serve with crisp white wine.

This recipe serves 4, with 3 scallops per person.

The scallops should be served HOT so make sure you have your garnishes (bacon and parsley) ready.

The scallops should be cooked but remain a bit translucent in the middle after frying, the way a restaurant would serve them. Overcooked scallops are rubbery.

For some extra spice, use pan-fried crispy chorizo instead of bacon.