Pan-Seared Scallops with Caviar Sauce

By Beleaev Family | Beleaev Caviar & Gourmet

Serve three pan-seared scallops per person over a light crème fraîche sauce, using one 20g Oscietra Royal tin across two starter plates. Eight grams are folded into the warm sauce after it leaves the heat; the remaining 12g are divided over the six scallops. The allocation is 8g + 12g = 20g, or 10g per person.

Starter yield

• Serves: 2
• Scallops: 3 large scallops per person
• Caviar: 4g in each sauce portion and 6g over each plate

Ingredients and pack use

Equipment

• Kitchen paper and tray
• Heavy frying pan
• Small saucepan and whisk
• Tongs or fish slice
• Digital scale, caviar spoon and clean food thermometer
• Two warmed starter plates

Prepare the sauce before searing

1. Dry the scallops. Remove any side muscle, if present, and blot every surface thoroughly. Keep the scallops chilled while the sauce base is made.
2. Warm the base gently. Whisk 60g crème fraîche with 20ml water in the small saucepan over low heat. When smooth and warm, take it off the heat and stir in 5ml lemon juice and half the chives.
3. Ready the plates. Divide the sauce between two plates. Wait until it is warm rather than steaming, then fold 4g caviar through each portion without crushing the pearls.
4. Heat the frying pan. Add 10ml oil to a hot pan. Place the six dry scallops in with space between them and leave the first side undisturbed for about 90 seconds.
5. Turn, baste and check the centre. When the first side is golden, turn the scallops, add 10g butter and baste. The suggested 45 to 60 seconds is a starting point, not a safety check. Continue until the flesh is firm and opaque throughout. Check the centre with a clean food thermometer: use 70°C for 2 minutes, or an equivalent combination in Food Standards Agency cooking guidance. Keep raw-seafood utensils away from the sauce and use clean utensils for plating.
6. Plate immediately. Set three scallops on each sauce pool. Divide the remaining 12g caviar across all six scallops, 2g per piece, and add the remaining chives.

Scallop and sauce troubleshooting

• No crust forms: blot the scallops again, use a fully heated pan and leave enough space for steam to escape.
• The scallops become tough: reduce excessive pan heat and check the centre as you cook; do not shorten cooking below a safe endpoint to preserve texture.
• The sauce splits: remove it from heat and whisk in a teaspoon of cool water. Avoid boiling crème fraîche after thinning.
• The first plate waits too long: portion both sauce pools before the scallops enter the pan, then plate all six in one movement.

Allergens and handling

This starter contains molluscs, fish and milk. Check the exact scallop, dairy and caviar labels, including cross-contamination statements. Keep seafood and dairy chilled until preparation, prevent raw scallop contact with ready-to-eat ingredients and cook scallops using current food-safety guidance. The plated starter is for immediate service; no storage period is established for the finished sauce or cooked scallops.

Choosing and preparing scallops

Ask for the drained edible weight and check whether the scallops are supplied fresh, thawed or frozen. A catch method alone does not establish how they were packed. Blot excess moisture and leave room in the pan so they sear rather than steam. If supplied frozen, follow their exact thawing instructions before preparation.

A little prepared cauliflower or pea purée can sit beneath each scallop as an optional extra. Keep it separate from the measured sauce and caviar allocation. The base recipe has six scallops, 20g caviar and 60g crème fraîche for two people.

Frequently asked questions

Can all the caviar go on top?

Yes. Omit the 8g folded into the sauce and divide the complete 20g between the six plated scallops, about 3.33g each. Do not add a second 20g tin unless you want a larger total portion.

Do I need more salt?

Taste the sauce before adding any. Caviar already supplies salt, and seasoning the raw scallops heavily can make the finished dish too salty.

For a soup starter instead, try cauliflower velouté with caviar.

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