Baked Scallops with Cheese

This is a fuss-free recipe for scallops baked with cheese and creamy mayonnaise. I love scallops and I think there is something so beautiful about scallops served in their shells.

See Also:

• Cherry Tomato and Scallop Pasta Recipe
• One-Pan Scallops and Cherry Tomatoes Recipe
• More Easy & Delicious Scallop Recipes

The creamy sauce is non-cooking (just softened butter and mayonnaise mixed into a smooth paste) and very easy to prepare. This appetizer dish is low on effort, high on taste and asthetics.

These are the cheese scallops before baking.

I used the scallops broth (don’t throw the good stuff away!) to make a quick-cooking second dish of aglio olio and the result was really good as well.

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Baked Scallops with Cheese Recipe

To prevent soggy baked scallops – Bake the scallops without toppings for 5 minutes and drain the broth collected from the first round of cooking, before returning it to the oven with the toppings.

Serves: 2

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 8 mins

Ingredients:

• 6 half-shelled scallops if using frozen, thaw before use
• 30 grams unsalted butter cubed
• 2 tbsp mayonnaise
• a small pinch of salt to taste; omit if using salted butter
• freshly cracked black pepper to taste
• 60 grams shredded mozerella cheese
• dried parsley flakes garnishing

Directions:

1. Remove scallop meat from the shell, rinse the meat thoroughly and remove any dirty bits. Scald the scallop shells in hot water for a few minutes to disinfect, discard hot water and rinse the shells. Return scallop meat to the shell.
2. Place cubed butter in a small bowl and microwave for 40 seconds. Use a spoon to stir the butter vigorously to form a smooth paste. Add mayonnaise, salt and pepper; stir to combine well.
3. Place scallops on foil or parchment-lined oven tray. Bake scallops in pre-heated oven of 200°C (392°F) for 5 minutes.
4. Using kitchen tongs, carefully drain the scallop broth collected in the shells in a small bowl. You can use the broth for flavouring other dishes.
5. Divide and spoon the mayonnaise mixture evenly among the scallops. Top with shredded cheese.
6. Return scallops to the oven and bake for another 8 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and slightly browned at the edges. Top with dried parsley flakes before serving.

Noob Cook Tip

As the scallops cook, they will release a sweet tasting scallops broth which are collected in the shells. Drain the broth collected in the shells after baking for 5 minutes, before returning it to the oven for the second time with the cheese toppings. You can use the scallops broth in your cooking – I used mine right away to make a quick and satisfying angel hair aglio olio to go with the baked scallops, using the scallops broth in place of pasta water for a naturally sweet unami flavour.

Ingredients Used: black pepper • butter • cheese • mayonnaise • parsley • salt • scallop