Salty, smoky, seared scallops rich in umami

Chef Mark McEwan, one of Canada’s most celebrated chefs, serves up everything you need for a special weekend meal, including a recipe and expert at-home cooking tips.

This dish is salty, smoky and rich in umami.

The combination of scallops, speck and anchovies creates an incredibly exotic flavour profile. Make sure you buy fresh scallops for this dish — and make them large!

I’d suggest serving this dish with an appetizer of a small portion of pasta (or risotto) with contrasting ingredients and a bright medium-balanced Chardonnay.

And for dessert: a sweet finish of panna cotta with salted caramel. Keep the richness going!

Chef tips

á Buy a large, fresh-fry pack of scallops and remember to remove the side connective tissue. Pat the scallops dry on a paper towel before pan frying. Patting the scallops before cooking allows the scallop to brown and cook more evenly. á When cooking the scallops, controlled medium-high heat is essential. Scallops should sizzle immediately upon entering

the pan, so don’t overload the pan and, as the temperature rises, tone down the heat, which will help keep the temperature of the pan even through cooking. Too little heat and the scallops will bleed water, too hot and they will colour too early and ensuring even cooking will be more difficult. á Blanching the kale well is essential and stewing the vegetables tender — after that, the dish just falls together.

Seared Scallops with Cured Tomato, Speck and Anchovy

3 oz (90 g) Italian speck, diced 3 oz (90 g) double-smoked bacon, diced 1/4 cup (60 mL) grapeseed oil

5 shallots, very thinly sliced

10 anchovy fillets (preferably salt-packed), rinsed, drained and chopped

1/4 cup (60 mL) oven-dried tomatoes, chopped

2 tbsp (30 mL) red wine vinegar

1 tbsp (15 mL) grainy mustard Salt and pepper

2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil

12 large sea scallops

3 tbsp (50 mL) butter

Garnish

1 tbsp (15 mL) chopped parsley

1 tbsp (15 mL) crispy-fried

capers (optional)

Sweat speck and bacon in half the grapeseed oil until it begins to crisp. Remove the speck and bacon to a bowl with a slotted spoon. Add shallots to pan; sweat until wilted. Transfer shallots and cooking oil to the bowl. Add anchovies, tomatoes, remaining grapeseed oil, red wine vinegar and mustard; stir well. Season lightly, cover, and set aside on the counter overnight.

Heat a large non-stick skillet on medium-high. (Use two skillets if necessary to avoid crowding and thus steaming scallops.) Add olive oil. Pat scallops dry and season with salt and pepper. Sear until well-bronzed on one side, about 3 minutes. Add butter, turn the scallops, and cook for another 5 or 6 minutes for medium (or to desired doneness). Remove scallops from pan and let rest on 4 warm plates. Pour fat from skillet, wipe with a paper towel; add speck and anchovy sauce. Stir until thoroughly heated, adjust seasonings, then spoon over the scallops. Garnish with a scattering of parsley and, if desired, fried capers. Serves 4.

Fried capers

1 cup (250 mL) canola oil

1/4 cup (60 mL) rinsed and drained capers

In a small skillet, heat oil until nearly smoking. Pat capers dry with a paper towel. Standing well back, add them to hot oil. As they puff up and crisp in the heat, remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.

Sautéed Tuscan black kale with speck 3 bunches black kale

4 oz (125 g) speck, diced

2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil

3 tbsp (45 mL) basic soffritto Salt and pepper

Cut away and discard stems from kale. Blanch leaves in boiling, salted water until they wilt, 8 to 10 minutes; drain in a colander. Meanwhile, in a large sauté pan, fry speck in olive oil over medium heat until it begins to crisp. Add kale to pan; toss to mix with speck and to heat through. Add the soffritto; toss and heat through. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Soffrittos

1/2 cup (125 mL) olive oil

2 cups (500 mL) onion, minced

1 cup (250 mL) fennel, minced

1 cup (250 mL) celery, minced

1 cup (250 mL) carrot, minced

Heat oil in sauté pan on medium-high. Add all vegetables and stir frequently to prevent their acquiring any colour. After 5 minutes, lower heat to lowest setting. Continue cooking until vegetables are completely soft, about 1 hour.

Chef Mark McEwan is a Torontobased chef, entrepreneur, mentor and writer of bestselling cookbooks. He is a freelance contributor for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: @chef_MarkMcEwan

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