ISO tips for cooking frozen scallops

urmaniac46

New member
The recipe Buckytom just posted inspired me to pop this question to a wider audience... I got another batch of frozen scallops, the first batch I sort of messed it up, I overcooked them and got them sort of rubbery. I defrosted them first and this could have been the problem for them to lose too much liquid.

Is it suggested that you cook the frozen scallops directly while frozen? Or any trick to defrost them? Any tips for preparing them would be appreciated as I am rather afraid to try again now, as they are not cheap!!:ohmy:
 

chowhound

New member
I thaw mine by running under cold water and then pan sear them. If I remember right, total cook time was like 3 minutes, I just made them a couple weeks ago. Not rubbery at all and perfect to me. I can't wait for them to go on sale again and pick up another bag or two.
 

joec

New member
Gold Site Supporter
I also thaw out frozen shrimp like scallops using cold water as chowhound suggested. I tend to let mine thaw in the refrigerator which takes longer but they don't get rubbery as a rule.
 

urmaniac46

New member
Thanks Joe and CH!! I do try to thaw other items (chicken breast etc.) in the fridge if I can manage to think ahead, as it does maintain the texture better this way. The last time with the scallops I used a microwave to defrost it, I know it is tricky defrosting anything on a microwave, so perhaps that was not a wise move...
 

joec

New member
Gold Site Supporter
Yes a microwave is fine with a steak or chops in a pinch but will make shell fish like shrimp, clams and scallops a bit rubbery. My wife did it with some shrimp the other night and it was like eating rubber bands.
 

urmaniac46

New member
Wow Bucky I never have heard of wet and dry version of scallops (I was ready to go pull out our food dehydrator lol!!), though I doubt the Italian market would doctor them in this fashion and probably that's why scallops are so expensiv-issimo here... but it is worth checking into and study a little more, as wet scallops sounds like a real rip-off once you end up with them. Thanks for the interesting info;)
 

joec

New member
Gold Site Supporter
Damned that was funny Bucky now that I read it again. Yes that would piss me off a bit to say the least. :yum:
 

Fisher's Mom

Mother Superior
Super Site Supporter
Maniac, I defrost mine in the fridge on a little rack. Then, I dry each one with a paper towel before cooking - you get a much better sear that way. Finally, before cooking, I score both sides of the scallop shallowly in a cross hatch type pattern. (I'll try to find a pic of this.) Iron Chef from the other forum told me to do this as it helps them caramelize better during the sear.

All of the above things help in case you've gotten wet pack scallops. (And lots of times, that is all that is available in your area at any particular time.) HTH
 

urmaniac46

New member
Thanks FM!! I will take all the suggestion into consideration as I definitely want a better result this time... and yes I remember IC from "the other forum" he was a real expert when it comes to seafood!:chef:
 

High Cheese

Saucier
Thanks Joe and CH!! I do try to thaw other items (chicken breast etc.) in the fridge if I can manage to think ahead, as it does maintain the texture better this way. The last time with the scallops I used a microwave to defrost it, I know it is tricky defrosting anything on a microwave, so perhaps that was not a wise move...

The only thing I use to defrost in the microwave is frozen spinach, etc. Anything meat, poultry or fish will cook a little bit and totally throw off the finished texture.

Maniac, I defrost mine in the fridge on a little rack. Then, I dry each one with a paper towel before cooking - you get a much better sear that way. Finally, before cooking, I score both sides of the scallop shallowly in a cross hatch type pattern. (I'll try to find a pic of this.) Iron Chef from the other forum told me to do this as it helps them caramelize better during the sear.

All of the above things help in case you've gotten wet pack scallops. (And lots of times, that is all that is available in your area at any particular time.) HTH

Either let them sit in some cold water or hang out in the fridge a bit. Definately pat dry before you cook them. I've always had decent luck just searing in a pan w/o scoring them. I think alot of that is presentation. You can even grill scallops. Your grill has to be ultra hot and clean. Wipe the grates with canola just before you put the scallops on. They will stick a bit at first, just let them release on their own.

ic signed up here, but i guess he didn't have the chops for it...:poke:

That's a different Ironchef.
 

chowhound

New member
I don't think it was Jeeks, a different IC I mean.
The posts and pics sure resembled IC from a distant planet, far, far away...
They were asked a question about technique, more like a why did you do it this way, and they vanished without another post. Sure sounds like the same IC. I do remember someone else signing on as ironchef though. I think there were the two.
 
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