Seared Scallops with Asparagus

A white dinner plate filled with seared scallops topped with sautéed asparagus topped with a brown sauce.

Course: Seafood

Cuisine: American

Keyword: asparagus, scallops, searing

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 20

Total Time: 35

Servings: people

Calories: 351kcal

Author: Kris Longwell

Gently seared sea scallops in a lovely white wine butter sauce with asparagus are simply amazing. And easy to make! This is a show-stopper of a meal that comes together in about 20 minutes.

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Ingredients

1 lb asparagus ends trimmed
3 tbsp olive oil
1½ lb sea scallops
½ tsp black pepper freshly ground
¾ tsp Kosher salt
⅓ cup dry white wine
2 tsp white wine vinegar
4 tbsp unsalted butter

Instructions

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.
Saute the asparagus, stirring every now and then, until tender...about 3 minutes.
Transfer the asparagus to a plate. Don't clean out the skillet.
Pat the scallops dry with a paper towel, then sprinkle with the pepper and 1/2 teaspoon of salt.
Add another tablespoon of oil to the skillet and heat over medium high heat.
Saute half of the scallops, flipping once, until nicely browned and just cooked through, about 6 to 8 minutes total.
Transfer the scallops to another plate, as they are cooked.
Wipe out skillet, and add the remaining oil, and repeat with the remaining uncooked scallops. Once cooked, transfer to plate (don't wipe out skillet this time).
Carefully add the wine and vinegar to the skillet and boil, scraping up browned bits, until the sauce has reduced to about ¼ cup, about 4 minutes.
Add any scallop juices that have accumulated on the plate and bring to a simmer.
Reduce heat to low and whisk in the butter until melted and incorporated.
Add asparagus and the remaining ¼ teaspoon of salt and cook for about another minute.
Serve scallops topped with asparagus and sauce.

Notes

See the video in the blog post for a visual tutorial.

Nutrition