Go to the Article: Shopping Tips: How to Buy Fresh Scallops
Be careful when buying scallops to get 100% natural scallops, not scallops that have been soaked in Sodium triphosphate, STPP, for short. Its used by many scallop producers to gain weight, (the scallop retains water), and makes the scallop appear firmer and look better.
If your scallop sheds water and its foamy when cooking, then it was treated with STPP.
. . . I eat 4 or 5 U-10 scallops at a time . . .
In my defense, I'm extremely active and seared scallops are really delicious.
I am small, female and eat three at a time. In my defense, I am a glutton.
Two is my usual, along with the sides. I figure that makes it a pretty cheap but elegant dinner.
Any thoughts on frozen scallops?
I live in a rural area, and fresh scallops are hard to come by :-(
They're tougher to work with since you have to get them really dry after thawing to get a good sear on them instead of inadvertently steaming them. It's been a while since I've had to do this with frozen scallops, but I remember a lot of pressing thawed scallops with paper towels to get as much excess water out of them as I could. If I had to do it again today, I would also probably try salting them after and letting them rest in the fridge with paper towels on top and bottom like I sometimes do to get fish skin drier for searing. Aside from that bit and double checking that you're not getting scallops treated with STPP (in addition to making them retain water, it tastes bitter if you haven't gotten it off the surface of the scallops), you should be fine flavorwise. Unless you're right by the water in a scallop producing area, the scallops you get have already been frozen after catching for transport. The unfrozen ones at the market were just thawed out and dried prior to being put at the counter.
Thank you for the detailed answer Simon!
I eat three too.
For us not living in the US... any other definition of size available than "U/10"?
I know this should go without saying, but I was surprised at how many people didn't know to remove that little piece of excess muscle that is sometimes on scallops.
I don't know about this.
I will eat as many as you put in front of me. This is like the fastest way for me to go broke.
Slayer south of heaven
When I was in culinary school,and topic of seafood was being discussed, I mentioned my grand fondness for sea scallops, My instructor, commented all the same points and tips about selecting scallops as the ChefSteps staffer. Yet he added another point I thought was very important if you love scallops, that being,"Look for the pinkish ones, there 'female' scallops and are usually a little sweeter." I always go to a fresh seafood market and first I look for are the pinkish female sea scallops...
I need a little good advice on Dry Scallops. Not too long ago I retired from Massachusetts to Key West, Florida. Coastal MA and KW are Both great seafood towns, and offer only in that one features COLD WATER North Atlantic fare and the other WARM WATER. After 30 +years living on the water in Massachusetts, I have been utterly spoiled with an abundance of cheap lobsters (with claws), cheap clams and oysters and (drumroll please) the delectable Nantucket Cape scallops!
Now I eat, yellowtail, red snapper, yellow and blacken tuna, MahiX2, Cobia, chalky spiny lobsters, Hogfish (YUM), etc.
BUT!!!!! I miss my cold water faves. So, for all you pro chefs, here's my question: If I spend a bomb to overnight Cape Scallops to me in season, and if I overnight U10 dry sea scallops from Alaska, will the "frozen in 1 lb portions of Foodsaver vacuum bags yield good results when I often wish to remember the best of the cold water?
I wouldn't buy those - were is the roe, if a scallop doesn't have roe on it its not worth eating....
