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BY Karina | 55 Comments
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Have These Super Easy and Crispy Lemon Garlic Butter Scallops on your table in less than 10 minutes! Coated in a deliciously silky lemon garlic butter sauce!
Cheaper than going out to a restaurant and just as good as chef made scallops! These crispy, pan seared and juicy Lemon Garlic Butter Scallops are the ultimate treat when it comes to scallop recipes!Serveas a starter or main, nothing melts in your mouth quite like tender-crisp and buttery scallops.
Scallops
With so many shrimp recipes on this site, it was high time I gave the mic over to scallops. And what a recipe to kick us off! You have all been writing in telling us how much you loved this Garlic Butter Shrimp Scampi recipeand this Lemon Garlic Butter Shrimp recipe. Both are so similar to how we cook scallops, I had to share this one with you in time for Good Friday!
Lemon Garlic Butter Scallops
Just one of the many ways we love our scallops! Most people are extremely intimidated to cook scallops, especially because of their high price tag. Something you don’t want to spend so much money on only to have it go completely hay-wire.But that’s also the beautiful thing about scallops. They are a luxury and a feeling of fine dining washes over you when you have a bowl full of scallops and a glass of your favourite wine in hand.
How To Prepare Scallops
Try to find scallops without the bright orange orcoral coloured crescent-shaped part still attached (or roe). The orange part can be a little bitter, however some people do like this part of the scallop. It’s personal preference. If you can only find them with the roe attached, you can pull it off and discard it. If you have bought whole scallops, you will need to remove that and the muscle that attaches the scallop to the shell. For this reason, we buy frozen wild caught scallops without the roe.
How To Thaw Scallops
- Thaw scallops in a bowl of cold water for about 10-20 minutes until thawed completely, or overnight in the refrigerator.
- Make sure to thoroughly pat them dry with paper towel to absorb all the liquid before searing.
How To Cook Scallops
Understanding how quickly scallops cook means you’ll never be intimidated again! They only take four to five minutes to cook — that’s it! You’ll have no chance of messing them up from now on. Guaranteed.
- Heat an oiled skillet or pan until it’s sizzling. Key step right here. You want them to sizzle and crisp to a golden colour on the outside.
- The first scallop should sizzle as soon as it hits the oil. If it doesn’t, wait and let the pan continue heating before adding any more.
- Use a large pan to avoid over crowding, or cook in batches to make sure they are at least 1-inch apart.
- Sear them without moving them for about 2-3 minutes on each side. Done!
Both sides of a scallop should be seared to a perfect golden-brown ‘crust’ with the sides opaque all the way through. They should be firm to the touch, but still slightly soft with a little bounce to them.
Watch how we make our scallops right here!
Have Crispy Lemon Garlic Butter Scallops on your table in less than 10 minutes, coated in a deliciously silky lemon garlic butter sauce! Cheaper than going out to a restaurant and just as good as chef made scallops! They are the ultimate treat!
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Prep: 5 minutes mins
Cook: 5 minutes mins
Total: 10 minutes mins
Serves: 4 people
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 1/4 pounds (600 grams) scallops
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 4-5 large garlic cloves, minced (or 1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic)
- Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup dry white wine or broth
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley
Instructions
If scallops are frozen, thaw in cold water. Remove the side muscle from the scallops if attached. Thoroughly pat dry with paper towels.
Heat olive oil in a large pan or skillet over medium-high heat until hot and sizzling. Add the scallops in a single layer without over crowding the pan (work in batches if needed).
Season with salt and pepper to taste and fry for 2-3 minutes on one side (until a golden crust forms underneath), then flip and fry again for 2 minutes until crisp, lightly browned and cooked through (opaque). Remove from skillet and transfer to a plate.
Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in the same pan, scraping up any browned bits left over from the scallops. Add in the garlic and cook until fragrant (1 minute).
Pour in wine (or broth) and bring to a simmer for 2 minutes or until wine reduces by about half. Stir in the remaining tablespoon of butter and lemon juice.
Remove pan (skillet) from the heat; add the scallops back into the pan to warm through slightly and garnish with parsley.
Serve over rice, pasta, garlic bread or steamed vegetables (cauliflower, broccoli, zucchini noodles).
Nutrition
Calories: 254kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 56mg | Sodium: 460mg | Potassium: 334mg | Vitamin A: 580IU | Vitamin C: 8.8mg | Calcium: 22mg | Iron: 0.8mg
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Reader Interactions
Comments
Chuck Sampson says
Wow! This was a surprise. I have never had a better tasting scallop recipe, than this one. Looking forward to making again. The sauce is amazing!!Reply
Linda H. says
I was hesitant to try this as I had never cooked scallops before but your directions were easy to follow and the results were EXCELLENT! I would recommend!Reply
Linda Geraghty says
This sauce is to die for!!! THANKYOU!!!Reply
Karina says
Hi Linda, I’m so glad you loved the sauce!
Reply
Joan says
Really tasty, but was a bit confused about whether to turn down the heat when adding the butter. Can you please clarify?Reply
Amanda Zinsli says
OMG this was to die for. Hubby is not someone who gives compliments and by him saying I can this again and again is a huge compliment. Thank you so much for sharing this. I pared it with garlic prawns, roasted potatoes and gem squash and it was Devine xxReply
Jessica says
This was my first time cooking scallops and this recipe was amazing for being so simple! My husband is calling his friends and bragging on how delicious they were.Reply
Katherine says
OMG! This was so simple and the flavors and taste were out of this world. The scallops seemingly melted in my mouth. Thank you for such a quick, easy and tasty recipe for dinner. Can’t wait to try out more of your recipes on the site.Reply
John says
Came out great and my family was very pleased — thanks!Reply
Wendy W says
Very good! I used a whole fresh lemon 🍋 for the juice. Very tasty, cooked perfectly.Reply
Terry Flaherty says
Terri says
Feb 23 2021
What goes well with scallops is baked brussels sprouts with three cheese tortellini’s with homemade alfredo sauce and croissants.Reply
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