Scallops With Romesco and Marinated Tomatoes

A super easy light starter to counter the heavy mains of a big dinner. It’s a cold starter (apart from the cooking of the scallops) so the preparation of this dish can be done in advance. There’s a lot of late season tomatoes knocking around in grocery stores. Heritage tomatoes have more bite and texture which works perfect for this dish. 

Recipe by Sebastian Skillings @the.hungry.fishmonger

INGREDIENTS (for 3 servings):

• 6 scallops (2 per person and cut in half horizontally)

Romesco sauce:

• 100g roasted pepper
• 50g flaked almonds
• 1 tbsp sherry vinegar
• 30ml olive oil
• 1 garlic clove (minced)
• ½ tsp paprika

Tomato salad:

• (Heritage) tomatoes of different colors and shapes
• Splash of balsamic vinegar
• Splash of olive oil
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of sugar

INSTRUCTIONS:

For the tomato salad:

1. Place cut tomatoes into a mixing bowl and add a splash of balsamic vinegar, a splash of olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix and set aside

For the romesco:

1. In a dry pan, slightly toast the almonds
2. Blend together the roasted pepper, almonds, sherry vinegar, olive oil, garlic, and paprika. Taste and add seasonings if needed

For the scallops:

1. Pat scallops dry and add to a very hot saucepan with a little olive oil. Fry for one minute on each side and transfer to kitchen towel/paper towels to remove excess oil

Place some romesco on a plate, with the tomatoes on top, followed by the scallops. Drizzle some oil across the plate and garnish with micro greens/dry herbs.