I am finally getting around to sharing some of the fabulous recipes I got when I went to Napa. I saved them until now because most of the dishes would be excellent to serve company and would work well for any holiday party. Today I am sharing the recipe for Seared Scallop Tacos that I learned from Jeffery Saad. This was one of my favorite recipes.
It tasted fabulous and was fun to make. Great thing about this dish is you can remove elements to simplify it and take elements from this dish to use in other dishes. I am sharing the simplified version of this dish by skipping roasted your own chiles and using a canned version. I also left out the step of pureeing the black beans. This is how we made it in Napa. I think I prefer the texture of the whole beans over a puree.
Don’t let the long look of this recipe for seared scallop tacos scare you. It is very detailed and includes several elements, but each element really is simple to make. We used flour tortillas for the tacos, but corn would also work well. Some fresh avocado slices or guacamole would be a welcomed addition to these tacos. Shrimp would also work well as a substitute for the scallops.
Seared Scallop Tacos with Black Beans and Green Chile Chutney
Ingredients
- For Scallop Tacos:
- 8 large sea scallops
- Salt and pepper
- 1 Tbsp canola oil
- 1/2 cup cabbage, shredded
- 6 small flour tortillas
- For Black Beans:
- 1 clove garlic, chopped
- 1 can (15 oz) BUSH’S® Black Beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- For Green Chile Chutney:
- 1 tsp cumin seed, toasted and ground
- 2 tsp oregano, toasted and ground
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 can (7 oz) diced fire roasted green chiles
- 1 each jalapeno pepper, chopped (remove seeds for milder chutney)
- For Chipotle Chile Sour Cream:
- 1 can (7 oz) chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
Instructions
- For Scallop tacos: Pat scallops dry and remove rubbery lip from side of each scallop. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add oil to medium sauté pan over medium high heat. Once oil is hot (you see a haze coming off the oil), add scallops to pan. Sear until you have a nice golden crust. Flip scallops over and continue cooking until you see the side of the scallop go from translucent to opaque. Remove from pan and set aside. The scallops will continue to cook when you remove them from the pan due to the residual heat. Err on the side of taking the scallops out early versus over-cooking them.
- For Black Beans: Add garlic to the same sauté pan. Stir briefly just to soften, then add beans, chicken broth and paprika. Turn to low and cook 5 minutes. Set aside.
- For Green Chile Chutney: In a medium size skillet (non-stick is ideal) over medium high heat add cumin and oregano. Toast for 1 minute, just until you can smell the cumin and oregano. Immediately add vinegar, (don’t breathe in as the vapor of the vinegar rises) sugar and salt. Don’t let the cumin and oregano burn. Have the vinegar ready when you add cumin and oregano to pan. Let them toast for just 1 minute (your pan will be very hot from the scallops you seared) and then add vinegar right away. Bring to a boil. Add Anaheim chiles and jalapenos and simmer until a thick sauce consistency (about 8 minutes). The chutney will thicken as it cools, so stop cooking when the chutney is still saucy (easily flows from side to side as you tilt the pan). Using a rubber spatula, move chutney into a small bowl and let cool. The remaining chutney will last for three weeks in the refrigerator.
- For Chipotle Chile Sour Cream: Puree chipotle peppers in adobo sauce in a blender or food processor. In a medium bow, mix together 1 teaspoon of chipotle puree, sour cream and salt. Squeeze in lime juice and mix well.
- Toast tortillas over an open flame (using tongs), in a non-stick pan or under the broiler, and lay on plate.
- Place three tablespoons of black beans across each tortilla.
- Cut the scallops into rough ½” pieces and lay on tortilla.
- Top with the chutney, cabbage and chipotle chile sour cream mixture and serve.
2 comments
Hi Laura- just found your blog. I made these tonight and they were fantastic! Thanks for the recipe.
This post is wonderful! I adore scallops and have never heard of a recipe like this. A good find. Thanks for sharing your story and recipes.
I’ve been enjoying the blog and would love to link to some of your recipes from our blog.
Thanks,
Sarah
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