Food Lust People Love: scallop recipes

Wednesday, September 10, 2025

Fresh Scallop Sashimi

More a method than a recipe, this fresh scallop sashimi is easy to make with a little cling film, time in a freezer and a sharp knife.

Back in our Dubai days, before my husband retired, he traveled a lot. I wasn’t alone since our wonderful Boxer boy was still around but I did miss him. One perk though was that with all those miles in the air, he earned platinum status on Emirates Airline, which gave us access to the Emirates first class lounge.

The first class lounge had a fabulous menu of delicious items we loved, like the wild mushroom soup. I ordered that every time, that is, until they added a sushi bar. Manned by Japanese sushi chefs, items were made to order from the freshest of ingredients, flown in from Japan. It was heaven.

Our favorite thing was fresh scallop sashimi, something we had never tried before in a regular Japanese restaurant, and we were hooked.

Now, whenever we are able to buy hand-dived scallops, I always make at least one batch into sashimi.

Fresh Scallop Sashimi

You can make this with as few or as many fresh scallops as you can get your hands on. You will also need a good freezer and cling film. You can fry up the roe with butter and a little garlic and salt or use them in another recipe, like my celeriac mash with scallop roe butter.

Ingredients

Hand-dived scallops

Cling film

Freezer space

Time

To serve: wasabi and soy sauce

Method

Remove the roe from the scallops and trim off the “foot” which is the little tough bit that holds the scallop to its shell and discard.

Stretch a piece of cling film out on a clean work surface and line the scallops up side by side on their long side.

Roll the cling film up as snugly as possible to push the scallops into a cylindrical shape.

Chill in the freezer until just about frozen. (You can also leave them in for a couple of days, just remove and leave to thaw slightly before continuing.)

Remove from the freezer and use your hands to roll and press the scallops to make them even more cylindrical. Imagine you are making a long sausage out of dough.

Slice one at a time with sharp knife into thick circles.

Place single file on a serving plate. Leave to thaw completely then serve with a dollop of wasabi paste mixed in to soy sauce for dipping.

Enjoy!

Welcome to the 19th edition of Alphabet Challenge 2025, brought to you by the letter S. Many thanks to Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm for organizing and creating the challenge. Check out all the S recipes below:

Jolene’s Recipe Journal: Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothies
Karen’s Kitchen Stories: Sourdough Focaccia
A Messy Kitchen: Marionberry Lavender Chiffon Cake
Blogghetti: Spinach and Cheese Crescent Rolls
Sneha’s Recipe: Spicy Peas
A Day in the Life on the Farm: Semitas
Food Lust People Love: Fresh Scallop Sashimi
Culinary Cam: Semifreddo al Miele
Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice: Weeknight Sweet Italian Sausage Gravy with Beer
Magical Ingredients: Shahi Paneer Dip
Palatable Pastime: Seasoned Baked Chicken Legs
Mayuri’s Jikoni: Chermoula Sweet Potato Salad

Here are my posts for the 2025 alphabet challenge, thus far:

A: Roasted Asparagus Soup

B: Blistered Sugar Snap Peas

C. Jersey Royal Chicken Chorizo Traybake

D. Small Batch Dried Apricot Jam

E. Whipped Espresso Cream

F. Fish Sauce Roasted Chicken

G. Extra Herby Gremolata

H. Smoked Herring Spread

I. Fresh Cherry Ice Cream

J. Small Batch Strawberry Jam

K. Kiwi Tomato Feta Salad

L. Lobster Butter

M. Milk-Roasted Chicken

N. Nocciolata Swirl Meringues

O. Jersey Octopus Ceviche

P. Easy Pastina Soup

Q. Shrimp and Quail Egg Garden Salad

R. Celeriac Mash with Scallop Roe Butter

S. Fresh Scallop Sashimi – this post!

Pin this Fresh Scallop Sashimi!

Wednesday, August 27, 2025

Celeriac Mash with Scallop Roe Butter

Celeriac Mash with Scallop Roe Butter is a delightfully fluffy side dish where nutty, celery-flavored celeriac combines beautifully with gorgeously buttery coral scallop roe.

It’s not a pretty vegetable – in fact, some would say it’s downright ugly - and perhaps that’s why celeriac is underrated. I like to use it in soups where it adds a delightfully subtle celery flavor and welcome creaminess, especially when pureed.

But celeriac really shines when you mash it. It becomes fluffy and light, the perfect side dish to serve with any meal.

As for the scallop roe, I know some people cook and eat them along with the scallops but I am not a fan of their texture. This recipe takes advantage of their wonderful flavor to "season" the celeriac and solves my texture issues.

Celeriac Mash with Scallop Roe Butter

If you can’t find celeriac where you live (looking at you, most US grocery stores!) you can certainly make this with your favorite potatoes.

Ingredients

About 1 dozen scallop roe (1 3/4 oz or 50g)

1 3/4 oz or 50g butter, divided

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 celeriac - about 1.1 lb or 500g, before peeling

Fine sea salt

Ground white pepper

Optional for garnish: parsley.

Method

Clean the scallop roe and cut off any dark or unsavory looking bits. I use only the coral-colored bits.

Pan-fry the roe in a little of the butter for 2-3 minutes, stirring and flipping them as you cook.

Remove from the heat and transfer to a small bowl to cool, along with any butter in the pan. Use a silicone or rubber spatula and don't leave anything behind!

Add the lemon juice and cool water to a suitable sized pot in which to boil the celeriac. Use a sharp knife to cut the peel off of the celeriac and cut it into chunks.

Add them to the lemon water as you cut them to stop them turning brown.

When all of the celeriac is cut, drain the lemon water and refill the pot with fresh water to cover. Add 1 teaspoon fine sea salt.

Bring to the boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15-20 minutes or until a knife easily slices through the chunks.

While the celeriac cooks, add the rest of the butter to a small food processor along with the cooled roe.

Process until smooth. Set aside.

Drain the water and return the celeriac to the pan and mash until smooth.

Add in the scallop roe butter and stir well to combine.

Season to taste with fine sea salt and white pepper.

Garnish in a serving bowl with a little parsley, if desired.

I served this with seared scallops and a small tomato and onion salad.

Enjoy!

Welcome to the 18th edition of Alphabet Challenge 2025, brought to you by the letter R. Many thanks to Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm for organizing and creating the challenge. Check out all the R recipes below: