How to Sear Scallops with a Golden Crust Like a Restaurant Chef
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Producing crisp-crusted restaurant-style scallops means overcoming two obstacles: chemically treated scallops and weak stovetops. We wanted to achieve superior pan-seared scallops that had a perfectly brown crust and no hint of off-flavors. We decided to work with wet scallops (those that are chemically treated with STP, a solution of water and sodium tripolyphosphate, to increase shelf life and retain moisture) first. If we could develop a good recipe for finicky wet scallops, it would surely work with premium dry (untreated) scallops. We found that waiting to add the scallops to the skillet until the oil was beginning to smoke, cooking the scallops in two batches instead of one, and switching to a nonstick skillet were all steps in the right direction. But it wasn’t until we tried a common restaurant technique—butter basting—that our scallops really improved. We seared the scallops in oil on one side and added butter to the skillet after flipping them. (Butter contains milk proteins and sugars that brown rapidly when heated.) We then used a large spoon to ladle the foaming butter over the scallops. Waiting to add the butter ensured that it had just enough time to work its browning magic on the scallops, but not enough time to burn. Next we addressed the lingering flavor of STP. Unable to rinse it away, we decided to mask it by soaking the scallops in a saltwater brine containing lemon juice. For dry scallops, we simply skipped the soaking step and proceeded with the recipe.
The best way to pan-sear a steak:
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Chinese Salt and Pepper [Anything]
Salt and pepper dishes! Probably the most internationally famous are the Cantonese sort of these, but they're a style that you can see throughout the country.
0:00 – What is salt and pepper seasoning?
1:57 – Version 1, salt and Sichuan pepper seasoning
2:59 – Version 2, salt and white pepper seasoning
3:35 – How to salt and pepper anything
4:17 – Salt and pepper mushrooms
5:45 – Salt and pepper ribs
7:21 – Community Sponsor, Mutclord Whetstones
8:18 – Other salt and pepper mixes?
MUTCLORD WHETSTONES
Link is here, be sure to click the coupon to get 15% off:
HOW TO MAKE THE SALT & PEPPER MIX
* Whole Sichuan peppercorns (花椒) -or- white peppercorns (白胡椒), ~1/2 tbsp
* Salt, ~1/2 tsp
* MSG (味精), 1/4 tsp
Over a medium-low flame, toast the peppercorns for about three minutes until fragrant (and if using Sichuan peppercorns, until the peppercorns have a slight oily sheen to them). Transfer to a mortar, pound into a powder. Pass the powder through a fine mesh sieve to catch the bits that aren't broken down enough - you should have about 1 tsp of powder in the end.
Toast the salt and also pound that into a powder. If your MSG is the sort that's larger crystals, also pound that into a powder as well.
The final ratio of the mix will be 1 tsp toasted and pounded peppercorns, 1/2 tsp toasted and pounded salt, and 1/4 tsp MSG.
SALT & PEPPER MUSHROOMS
This dish is originally a Sichuan dish, and goes great with the Sichuan peppercorn version of the salt & pepper mix.
* Oyster mushrooms, 500g
* To marinate: salt, 1/4 tsp; sugar, 1/2 tsp; soy sauce (生抽), 1/2 tsp
* Starch coating: cornstarch (玉米生粉), ~3 tbsp and rice flour (粘米粉), ~3 tbsp (the rice flour can be subbed with additional cornstarch)
* Oil, for deep frying
* Salt & pepper seasoning from above (it should be ~1.75 tsp)
Wash your mushrooms, then blanch for about three minutes. Remove, let them cool down. Once they're cool enough to handle, squeeze out the liquid that's in the mushrooms. Pat dry. Mix with the ingredients from the marinade.
Immediately before frying, mix the mushrooms with the starch. Get a wok of oil up to ~180C (or until bubbles are rapidly forming around a pair of chopsticks), and drop the mushrooms in one by one. Fry until they've released their moisture and feel obviously 'hard' if you pulled a pair of chopsticks through them, ~7 minutes.
Remove the oil from the wok. Wipe with a paper towel. Over a medium-low flame, combine the mushrooms with the salt & pepper seasoning in the wok.
SALT & PEPPER RIBS
This dish is originally a Cantonese dish, and goes great with the white peppercorn version of the salt & pepper mix.
* Pork ribs, cut into ~2 inch sections, 1kg
* For the alkaline soak: sodium carbonate (碱面) -or- kansui (枧水), 1 tsp; enough water to submerge the ribs
* To marinate: salt, 1/2 tbsp; soy sauce (生抽), 1/2 tbsp; liaojiu a.k.a. Shaoxing wine (料酒/绍酒), 1/2 tbsp
* Starch coating: cornstarch (玉米生粉), ~3 tbsp and rice flour (粘米粉), ~3 tbsp (the rice flour can be subbed with additional cornstarch)
* Oil, for deep frying
* Garlic, 1 clove, minced
* Salt & pepper seasoning from above (it should be ~1.75 tsp)
* Optional: mild chilis -or- bell pepper, mix of green and red (for looks)
Soak the ribs with the alkaline solution for one hour. Then drain, and leave the ribs running under a trickle of running water for 5-10 minutes, jostling every so often.
Remove the ribs, and move to a towel/rag. An old t-shirt is perfect. Wrap the ribs and *really* make sure you've dried them out. I like to also pat dry with a paper towel for good measure. Transfer to a bowl, marinate the ribs.
Immediately before frying, coat the ribs with the starch. Fry the ribs at 145C for about 5 minutes, or until a chopstick can poke through. Remove, crank the temperature to ~195C, give a second fry for ~30 seconds.
Remove the oil, wipe down the wok. Medium low flame, fry the garlic until fragrant. Add the ribs, mix. Add the seasoning, mix. Add the optional chilis, mix.
SICHUAN PEPPERCORN SOURCING
In this video we used quality Sichuan peppercorns - often the ones exported to the west can be seed-y, stem-y, and generally a little sad. For good Sichuan peppercorns online, check out Mala Market, Fly By Jing, or 50 Hertz:
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Outro Music: คิดถึงคุณจัง by ธานินทร์ อินทรเทพ
Found via My Analog Journal (great channel):
How to Cook the Perfect Scallops w/ Asparagus in 10 mins • Chinese Seafood & Vegetable Recipe
How to cook Chinese Style Pan Seared Scallops with Asparagus 扇贝炒芦笋? This is a super easy dish to put together and super yummy too! You just need to thaw the frozen scallops properly to get the best results. Also, by cooking this dish at home, you save a lot more money because this dish is very expensive if you order it at the restaurant.
Refer to the ingredient list below or go to our website here for your easy reference.
We would like to give special thanks to Shogun by La Gourmet for letting us try out their high quality non-stick pan in the video. If you like to buy them, you can go to any of the major departmental stores in Singapore such as Isetan, Robinsons, Takashimaya, BHG, OG, Metro or Tangs.
Hope you can recreate this yummy dish in the comfort of your home. Thanks for dropping by our channel.
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xoxo
Jamie
on behalf of Spice N’ Pans
Ingredients:
Serves 4
Blanching asparagus
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1/2 teaspoon of salt
A few drops of cooking oil
9 plump stalks of asparagus
Pan-sear scallops over medium heat
(New Zealand scallops recommended)
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8 scallops
Making the gravy
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3 cloves of garlic - chopped
1/2 cup of water
1/2 teaspoon of chicken stock powder
1.5 tablespoons of oyster sauce
1/3 teaspoon of sugar
Some cornstarch solution
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Looking for some of the things or ingredients we used in this video but not residing in Singapore? We welcome you for a vacation in Singapore or simply click one of these links to see similar or substitute products on Amazon. Happy shopping!
Granite Wok Pan:
Cooking oil:
Frozen scallops:
Chicken stock powder:
Oyster Sauce:
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If you like this recipe, you might like these too:
Sautéed French Beans w/ Minced Pork & Preserved Olive Veg
Garlic Chives w/ Bean Sprouts & Salted Fish
Stir Fry Bean Sprouts with Salted Fish 咸鱼炒豆芽
Disclaimer:
Spice N' Pans is not related to these products and cannot guarantee the quality of the products in the links provided. Links are provided here for your convenience. We can only stand by the brands of the products we used in the video and we highly recommend you to buy them. Even then, preference can be subjective. Please buy at your own risk. Some of the links provided here may be affiliated. These links are important as they help to fund this channel so that we can continue to give you more recipes. Cheers!
Mouthwatering spicy beef, dry-fried • Sichuan Recipe • Taste Show
Beef stir fry that tastes like nothing else. Recipe:
#beefstirfry #stirfrybeef #chinesebeef
The spicy dry-fried beef is a perfect example of the dry-frying technique unique to Sichuan cuisine. The shredded beef is un-marinated, quickly stir fried in a wok to drive off the moisture and intensify the beef flavor. The shredded beef will be stir fried twice with aromatic spices to absorb more flavor. The end result is spicy and aromatic beef with crispy and chewy bites.
The key to this dish is to control the temperature when dry frying the beef, otherwise the shredded beef can be easily overcooked.
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