Brown Butter Scallop Pasta

Browned butter makes everything better, including plump and delicious scallops. Perfectly pan-seared scallops finished with sage browned butter and served over pasta, this Brown Butter Scallop Pasta is a delectable restaurant-quality meal you can make at home. Sounds fancy? It’s not, really, but it is oh-so-delicious! 

A Restaurant Quality Meal at Home

Scallops aren’t an everyday meal, at least not in my house. I save dishes like this pasta and shrimp risotto for date nights and special occasions like Valentine’s Day. It’s perfect for those nights when you prefer to linger over your meal in the comfort and unhurried ambiance of your own home. 

The simple sauce of this pasta is browned butter, which adds a toasted, nutty flavor, and a crush of sage that adds an earthy element with a hint of lemon and pepper. Together, they’re an excellent complement to meaty scallops. Served on a bed of pasta with a side of asparagus, all you need to complete the meal is a chilled bottle of your favorite white wine or champagne. 

Fancy enough for a special dinner but still simple, this scallop recipe really satisfies. Like these panko rockfish fillets, it’s ready in about 20 minutes. Which leaves you time to make dessert.

What You Need

A simple dish has a simple list of ingredients. If you keep a well-stocked pantry, you may find that you keep everything needed for this dish on hand, with the exception of the scallops.

• Jumbo Dry Scallops – if you are unfamiliar with scallops, keep reading!
• Spaghetti – Fettucini, angel hair pasta, or another long noodle will work well.
• Avocado Oil – Or another oil high-heat oil for searing the scallops. Refined olive oil will work, but I wouldn’t use extra virgin olive oil.
• Salted Butter – Adds richness and, when browned, adds oodles of flavor.
• Sage – Fresh sage to season the browned butter.
• Parmesan cheese – Helps thicken the sauce so that it sticks to the pasta. Freshly grated for the very best flavor.
• Salt & Pepper – Use to taste for seasoning both the scallops and the pasta.
• Lemon wedges – Optional, but a bit of lemon really highlights the subtle flavors in this dish.

Recommended Kitchen Tools

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• large pot – for boiling pasta
• sharp knife
• cutting board
• 10″ – 12″ cast iron skillet or stainless steel skillet – searing the scallops

How To Make Browned Butter Seared Scallop Pasta

Making scallop pasta is pretty simple, but things will move fairly quickly once you get started. Make sure you read through the entire recipe card and prepare your ingredients before you start cooking.

• Start the water for the pasta and prepare the scallops. You’ll want to start the scallops once you drop the pasta in the boiling water. If this is your first time cooking scallops, I have included details below about buying and cleaning scallops.
• Sear the scallops. Heat avocado oil in a large skillet – preferably a cast iron skillet – over medium-high heat, then sear both the top and bottom sides of the scallops to create a golden brown crust. Don’t move them while cooking. When a crust starts to form around the edges, you’ll know it’s time to flip. Remove them from the pan and set them to the side.
• Make the Sage Brown Butter. In the same pan, reduce the heat, then add the butter. Swirl it around by tilting or rotating the pan until the butter sizzles, foams, and browns. Add the sage leaves and allow to fry for about 30 seconds. Return the scallops to the pan, spoon the browned butter over the scallops, then remove the scallops from the pan.
• Drain and sauce the pasta. Drain the pasta, then add the cooked pasta and freshly grated cheese to the skillet with the browned butter. Toss to coat, cooking another minute or two to melt the cheese and reduce the sauce so that it will thoroughly coat the pasta. Season to salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve immediately. Divide the sauced pasta between 2 plates and top with the pan-seared scallops. Serve with an optional lemon wedge and a dusting of Parmesan.

What Are Scallops

Scallops are mollusks related to clams, oysters, and mussels. There are many different kinds of scallops, but the most common – at least in the USA – are small bay scallops and large sea scallops found in the deep, cold waters of the ocean. Scallops and pasta go hand-in-hand, but you need to ensure you’ve got the right scallops. For this scallop pasta recipe, you’ll want large sea scallops.

Dry Scallops vs. Wet Scallops

There are two different ways to buy scallops, dry or wet. The different types are used in different applications, but for searing, I recommend you use dry scallops.

Wet Scallops

Wet scallops are treated in sodium tripolyphosphate. This solution adds moisture and extends its shelf life. They’re generally not as expensive, but the fluid leaks out when cooked and makes getting a perfect sear nearly impossible.

The preservatives in wet scallops can have a chemical-like taste, masking their natural sweetness. Wet scallops are best in recipes where the texture of the scallop isn’t as important. Things like seafood chowders or casseroles or any recipe that calls for them to be baked, steamed, or poached.

Dry Scallops

Dry scallops, also called dry boat scallops, aren’t dry to the touch. Instead, the name refers to the fact that after harvesting, instead of being chemically treated, they are flash-frozen. These scallops are more perishable and are generally more expensive, but the flash-freezing process captures their flavor so well that they taste like freshly shucked scallops.

When seared, the natural sugars in the scallops caramelize, giving you a perfectly golden brown crust. This is the type of scallop you want to use in any recipe that calls for seared scallops.

How To Buy Scallops

To purchase pan-seared scallops, start at your fishmonger or local seafood specialty store. They tend to carry higher quality seafood than a typical grocery store and will be more likely to stock dry scallops. If you don’t have a local seafood store, check with your fancier grocery stores.

If you aren’t planning on using them the same day, go ahead and buy them still frozen. Since dry scallops must be frozen within four hours of harvest, almost all scallops you purchase will have been frozen at some point between the sea and your kitchen.

I wouldn’t buy “fresh, never frozen” scallops unless I can see the ocean they came out of, and perhaps the boat too. When buying scallops, look for plump scallops that are milky white with smooth, not jagged edges. 

Regardless of scallop size, look for about 1/2 pound of scallops for two entree-sized portions.

How To Clean Scallops

Like shrimp, scallops must be cleaned before cooking. The first step is to remove the side muscle. It’s a small, tough piece of the scallop that really isn’t edible. Side muscles will peel off – no knife required. Feel around the sides of the scallop, and if you find a slightly discolored bump or ridge, peel it off with your fingers.

The next step is to clean them under fast-running tap water. Due to their natural environment, scallops can be very sandy, and holding them under fast-running tap water can help dislodge that sand.

How To Cook Perfectly Pan-Seared Scallops

1. Start with dry scallops (dry boat scallops) and completely pat dry with a paper towel or clean kitchen towel.
2. Make sure your pan is hot but not smoking.
3. Use an oil with a high smoke point, like avocado or peanut oil.
4. Don’t move the scallops around in the pan. Let them sit until golden brown.
5. Flip them once. They cook very quickly.
6. Unlike a thick-cut steak, it is not necessary to sear the sides of a scallop, only the top and the bottom.
7. Scallops love lemon – a bit of fresh lemon juice and a grind of freshly ground black pepper will accentuate their flavor.

Tips For Success

This really is an easy recipe, but here are some tips to help you make the best scallop pasta recipe ever!

• Start your pasta water boiling before starting the browned butter scallops.
• Cook the pasta while you’re making the scallops.
• Don’t burn the butter! Brown butter should be dark chocolate brown but not black. If it’s black, you’ve burned the butter solids.
• Use about ½ pound of scallops for 2 hearty portions.

Recipe Variations

The best part about making food in your own kitchen is that you can follow the recipe as closely or as loosely as you wish. As with most recipes, there are things you can successfully swap and things that you shouldn’t change if you want to get great results.

• Try different herbs – herbs like fresh thyme, fresh parsley, and fresh basil can be fried in the brown butter like the sage, while others like cilantro and dill can be sprinkled on top just prior to serving.
• Add a bit of spice – add one or two crushed, sliced, or minced garlic cloves in the brown butter or sprinkle a few red pepper flakes on top prior to serving.
• Citrus zest can add a new layer of flavor – lemon zest and/or lime zest sprinkled on top of the scallops before serving can elevate this dish to a completely different flavor
• Add Vegetables – Bulk out the dish with crisp raw vegetables like halved cherry tomatoes, tender garden fresh asparagus, or chopped cucumber.

The only hard and fast rule of this recipe is to use a high-heat oil for searing your scallops. Using something that isn’t rated for high heat means that the oil may burn before the scallops cook, leaving you with off flavors in the final dish.

Serving Suggestions

One of my favorite food pairings with seafood is asparagus and a glass of white wine. You can serve the asparagus on the side or chop it up and put it right into the pasta while saucing it in the pan.

How To Store

This dish is best served hot, straight from the stovetop.

Due to food safety concerns, I wouldn’t recommend keeping cooked scallops or any other cooked seafood in the fridge for more than a day or two at most. Once the pasta is combined with the scallops, the same bacteria can start to grow even if you remove the scallops before serving.

You can store any leftovers in the fridge for 1-2 days in an airtight container.