What can I use to substitute for sherry vinegar in this recipe? Will attempt this recipe tonight! Thanks!

You could use red wine vinegar, balsamic or even rice wine vinegar if you have it. You may just need to add a touch of sugar depending on the tartness of the vinegar. The sherry vinegar does add a unique taste but it's more about the acidity that it adds. Hope this helps!

Thank you, Dawn, for the balsamic vinegar suggestion. (You are always so fast and helpful in responding to questions!) Turns out, I didn't need to add any more sugar because the vinaigrette was already sweet enough. It worked really well. The whole dish was a hit - restaurant quality!

My family is not a big fan of sherry. Could you substitute a white wine instead?

You could use white wine...there are also a few other options...see comment above your question for other ideas :-)

Great recipe, I will make them for more often . I am learning with your videos so much, thanks.

What side dish or dishes would you use to compliment the scallops on baby spinach to make a complete meal?

This may be tricky to exactly pair with a side dish, as it sort of a complete appetizer as is.

That being said you could serve maybe a nice pasta dish, such as the Aglio e Olio or maybe even some
Toasted Middle Eastern Couscous...for a vegetable you could something like the Sauteed Green Beans.

Hope this helps!

This was a lot of fun to make! I used large scallops, so serving 3-4 on a plate as the main dish actually worked well. I ended up making some risotto and using the extra baby spinach as sides with the remaining reduction as the salad dressing. I've never cooked scallops before and the instructions and results were fantastic! I think this is my 5th or 6th Rouxbe recipe I've tried. Thanks Rouxbe! I love trying these recipes.

Every time I sear scallops, the scallops would be nice and dry. However, a lot of whitish water would come out of the scallop on the serving platter. Does this mean that I didn't dry it enough before searing it? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

If you are drying the scallops well before cooking as you say, perhaps it is your pan temperature. Have you watched any of the lessons on Pan Frying or Searing. I am sure there you will find some valuable information and tips. Good luck and happy scallop cooking.

Okay, I've had it. When your knife goes "crack, crack, crack" like that against the cutting board when slicing things like shallots, it means your knife is not sharp.

I mostly like the things this site demos, but I really hate poor technique. Poor technique should not be taught.Poor technique is dangerous.Dull knives are dangerous.Knives should be sharp, and they should not make that "crack" noise when they chop through something, nor should all the sawing I often see be necessary. A slice through a tomato, for instance, should be one smooth motion.

This site has some excellent videos about sharpening knives, in fact some of the best I have seen. NOT sharpening your knives is poor technique in itself.

I guess I am overly-picky, but if I saw some of this in my own catering company, I would send my "chefs" back to school.

Last night I made the scallop recipe and the taste was excellent. I had to make them in batches because I had so many. That's where my problem came in. I couldn't figure out if I had the pan too hot or not hot enough.

At first, I know the pan was hot enough and the scallops didn't stick. I had to turn it down a little bit because it started to smoke a little more. I got a nice sear on that side, then, that's when they all stuck to the pan.

Instead of using the pan again, I cleaned it out, reheated it correctly to make the second batch. This time, I thought I would leave the heat up so that they wouldn't stick. It started to smoke but I let them in there. Then, I flipped them over; it was still smoking but those buggers still stuck to the pan.

I had to yet make another batch and the same thing happened. So far, everything I have made has been great, the scallops tasted great too but I'm not sure what to do about that sticking to the pan business?

This is one question that keeps coming up in my head wether it's scallops or chicken is when I have to pan fry anything in batches, I am nervous to burn the sucs, the pan isn't as "non stick" with the second batch and am just not sure how to do say three batches. Or would I just use two pans?

Anyway, The scallops were excellent but just those questions on the technique I'm trying to get down. I would appreciate any help. I have 5 lbs of scallops so I want to nail these buggers.

Not sure what the issue is Ana. I believe you did watch the lesson on how to pan fry and how to heat a pan properly, so I don't think that is the issue (you may just want to watch that again, perhaps you are just missing a small detail).

Question, were the scallops nice and dry before you pan-fried them? What are you using as the fat? Butter, oil or a combo of both? I tend to use oil and or clarified butter as they have a higher smoke point than regular butter.

This may just be something you have to practice with. Also there is no harm in using a non-stick pan. In fact, I think that we did use one for these scallops. Don't get me wrong though, stainless steel should also work.

Let me know how things go and keep on practicing. We are here if you have anymore questions. Cheers!

Thanks for writing so quickly again. I think that's what I'm going to do. I will do the non stick pan and just try it that way once. I wanted to really do this without because I know before non stick they had to have made scallops correctly.

I tried to make sure everything was right, I dried the scallops real well, they weren't cold, I used grapeseed oil and with that tried clarified butter to see if that would have helped.

I think I'm just going to have to practice more like you say and when watching that video I did see the non stick pan so that was good.

Ok, I will keep going girlie and thanks so much. Your tips are always so helpful.

Thanks again and talk to you soon.

Can one use ghee instead of clarified butter or would it have too much of a 'nutty' flavor?

Thank you

In many cases you could substitute ghee with clarified butter. Yes it has a slightly more nutty flavor, but you just need to think of the other flavors in the particular dish you are making.

This scallop dish is full of strong flavors; therefore you will not even notice that you used ghee. Perhaps with something delicate like hollandaise, ghee might make a difference, but you are fine here.

I say don't be afraid to try things out; that is the best part of cooking, there are rarely any absolutes!

I served these last night as part of a special birthday dinner for my niece. The scallops were a huge hit and so easy to prepare. They came out perfect even after a few glasses of wine! I used balsamic in place of the sherry vinegar and it tasted amazing. I will definitely make this again (and again!). This dish is perfect for entertaining in the evening after you have worked all day and don't have much time to prep.

I have read that if you season the scallops with salt before cooking the salt will draw out the liquid and inhibit the browning. What's your thoughts on this?
Why not just season the scallops after they are cooked?

This is one of those things that you need to test out for yourself to see if you prefer one method over the other. Some chefs season just before the scallops hit the hot pan and some season after with a finishing salt. To each their own. If the pan has been properly heated, the scallops should obtain good color either way. For more information be sure to check out the lesson on "Pan Frying" and also the lesson on "Pan Frying Fish". Cheers!

These were fabulous. Whipped up for dinner last night and we were licking our plates! Easy simple and straight forward instructions. Loved THEM!

I live in a small town in Kansas and have to drive an hour to a large city to find decent seafood. However, the only scallops I can find are frozen. They are large diver scallops - just frozen, so they will contain more moisture after they're thawed. What is the best way to thaw them to reduce as much moisture as possible?

Frozen scallops are fine. Please refer to the lesson on How to Buy and Store Fish, specifically Topic 5. These same techniques apply seafood such as scallops and shrimp.

No matter how they are thawed according to the lesson, it is vital that the scallops are patted dry with paper towels prior to cooking. If they contain any surface moisture, you won't get a good sear. Cheers!

Hi, I am a new student. I very much want to try this recipe but just wonder what i can do with the unused cream sherry. I don't drink and it's quite expensive to buy cream sherry in Hong Kong. I googled that cream sherry, once opened, can only last for one week, which means I cannot use the leftover cream sherry for any cooking after one week? Is there any subsitute I can use? Or what can I do with the cream sherry so it can last at least one month or two for more cookings!

Hi- You can use any off-dry wine as a replacement (maybe drier-style Riesling) or any type of sherry really. A full flavored sake may even work! There are lots of brands that are used for drinking exclusively and lesser brands are good for cooking.

As for the shelf-life, sherry is very stable. It does not need to be kept in the refrigerator and since it is a fortified wine (like port or madeira), it can last many months (or even years!) after opened. In short, it was designed to be stable so it could be transported without having issues of spoilage.

I hope this helps! Enjoy.