Pan Seared Scallop with Lobster Hash and a Tomato-Curry Butter

[ironchef]

Haven't posted a food pic in awhile. Was thinking about some combinations of flavors, had an idea, then tried it at work the other day. This one came out really, really good.

The lobster hash was made with Yukon gold potato, fresh local sweet corn, Hawaiian lobster knuckle meat, fresh lobster stock, and butter. The sauce was made with slightly roasted brandywine heirlooms, extra virgin olive oil, garlic, Madras curry, and butter.

Pan Seared Atlantic Diver Scallop
Keahole Lobster, Kahuku Sweet Corn, and Yukon Gold Potato Hash, Madras Curry and Heirloom Tomato Butter, Truffled Micro Green Salad, Basil Oil

 

[bullseye]

I'm intrigued and inspired, Ironchef. We used to make a pan seared scallop dish with lobster quinoa and a carrot/lobster stock sauce that was well received. I was never fond of the sauce--I may attempt the tomato-curry butter you created. Any tips? Beautiful presentation, BTW. May I have a double order?

 

[pdswife]

I love looking at your food! Thanks!

 

[Uncle Bob]

IC

I'll have a double shot of Booker's, and a half dozen of those for starters!

 

[ironchef]

I'm intrigued and inspired, Ironchef. We used to make a pan seared scallop dish with lobster quinoa and a carrot/lobster stock sauce that was well received. I was never fond of the sauce--I may attempt the tomato-curry butter you created. Any tips? Beautiful presentation, BTW. May I have a double order?

The sauce is surprisingly easy. You don't have to use heirlooms. Very ripe high quality vine ripened tomatoes will work just as well. I don't have the exact proportions since I was just playing around, but here's a rough estimate:

Madras Curry and Tomato Butter

Ingredients:

6 very ripe medium sized heirloom or vine ripened tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
3 Tbsp. Madras Curry powder(or similar Indian-style curry powder)
4 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Kosher Salt to taste
Unsalted Butter (approx 1 Tbsp. per order)

Method:

Pre-heat oven to 350. Core the tomatoes and quarter. Toss the tomatoes and garlic with 2 Tbsp. of the oil, lay out in on a sheet pan and roast until the tomatoes are just heated through and hot, about 8 minutes. Remove immediately and transfer the tomatoes, garlic, oils, and juices to a blender and puree until smooth.

Meanwhile, heat the curry powder in a saute pan or small sauce pan over medium heat until fragrant. Add the remaining olive oil and stir into the curry while still on the heat. This will help "bloom" the curry and give it more flavor when adding to the tomatoes. Continue to cook for about a minute more then remove from heat. Add enough of the curry mixture to the sauce until the desired flavor is achieved. Season to taste with kosher salt, pass the sauce through a chinois, and reserve.

To serve (per order), heat approximately 3 Tbsp. of the sauce in a small saucepan, but do not boil or burn. Emulsify 1 Tbsp. of unsalted butter with the sauce and plate immediately.

 

[BBQ Mikey]

Respect.......

 

[Loprraine]

Wow!!! It looks and sounds delicious!!!

 

[bullseye]

The sauce is surprisingly easy. You don't have to use heirlooms. Very ripe high quality vine ripened tomatoes will work just as well. I don't have the exact proportions since I was just playing around, but here's a rough estimate:

Thank you!

 

[Chopstix]

Thanks Ironchef for generously sharing not just your ideas but even your recipes!

 

[ironchef]

Thanks Ironchef for generously sharing not just your ideas but even your recipes!

I have no problem with sharing any recipe of mine. I'm not in that school of chefs who don't like to give out their "secret" or whatever. I want people to try new things and to broaden their culinary horizons.

It's funny because you know what I was actually most proud of in the dish? It was how perfectly even I diced the potatoes. Knife skills are one of the most underrated aspects in cooking professionally. I don't know how many times I've gone out to eat in an upscale restaurant and on my plate, something that should be cut so that every piece is almost even looks like the knifework was done by Stevie Wonder.

 

[Chopstix]

I don't know how many times I've gone out to eat in an upscale restaurant and on my plate, something that should be cut so that every piece is almost even looks like the knifework was done by Stevie Wonder.

Btw, I've always loved the way you describe your dishes. They sound straight out of a fine restaurant menu!

 

[ironchef]

Btw, I've always loved the way you describe your dishes. They sound straight out of a fine restaurant menu!

Thank you. LOL, but that's also because they are.

In culinary school we learned about menu topics like wording, item placement, etc. We learned that sometimes items don't sell just because of how they are worded or their location on the menu. Whenever I go out to eat I always check out how the restaurant's menu is laid out. Sometimes I get ideas from it. But then a lot of it comes down to personal preference. I've seen menus where the items are listed almost like mini-paragraphs, and others (and I'm talking fine dining--$70-100 per person) where an item was listed simply as "Hamachi and Avocado". Of course there was much more than just the hamachi and avocado, but that's how it was listed.

 

[buckytom]

ic, that looks awesome. thanks.

cuanto cuesta? about $35?

i'm curious, how does hawaiian lobster stack up to north atlantic homerus, and caribbean lobsters? i noticed you used knuckles, not tail or claw.

i was cutting an onion the other day, and wondered if there's a mathematical way to make every bit perfectly even. ya know, dissecting a sphere with a plane at certain angles... i'll think of you and your potatoes, and elfie's perfect onions next time.

 

[*amy*]

The lobster hash was made with Yukon gold potato, fresh local sweet corn, Hawaiian lobster knuckle meat, fresh lobster stock, and butter. The sauce was made with slightly roasted brandywine heirlooms, extra virgin olive oil, garlic, Madras curry, and butter.

Pan Seared Atlantic Diver Scallop
Keahole Lobster, Kahuku Sweet Corn, and Yukon Gold Potato Hash, Madras Curry and Heirloom Tomato Butter, Truffled Micro Green Salad, Basil Oil


Isn't it lov-ly! Isn't it won-der-ful! I'm a huge lobster fan, but don't care for scallops. I tried to enlarge the pic to get a better look. Curious, is the lobster hash a separate dish from the scallops, or is it all incorporated into one dish (using a ring mold maybe?). Haven't heard of lobster knuckles. Is that part of the lobster, or does one purchase it separately? Could I possibly ask you any more questions? LOL. (You don't learn if you don't ask, right?) It does look gawgeous, & the sauce sounds/looks yummy too. Thanks for sharing these delites.

 

[ironchef]

ic, that looks awesome. thanks.

cuanto cuesta? about $35?

i'm curious, how does hawaiian lobster stack up to north atlantic homerus, and caribbean lobsters? i noticed you used knuckles, not tail or claw.

It was an appetizer so only $15. If I served maybe 3-4 scallops, increased the lobster hash portion, and added 1-2 more components to make it an entree than yeah, probably in the $33-37 range. They're jumbo U-8 scallops so they're pretty big.

The Keahole Lobsters are actually the same species as Maine Lobsters. The meat is sweeter though. I'm not sure if it's from the water temperature or their diet, but the flavor is really delicious. So I guess it's a cross between the two that you listed. There are also Hawaiian spiny and slipper lobsters which are also good.

The reason I used only the knuckles are because we use the claw and tail meat for two other dishes that are on the regular menu. The knuckle meat goes unused except for specials. We did a lobster knuckle and foie gras shumai (Chinese-style steamed dumpling) that was really good too. The hash was really simple though as to keep the natural flavors of the sweet corn, potato, and lobster. The potatoes were cooked about 90% of the way in salted water, then shocked. The lobster was steamed and then butter poached to about 80% of the way. The sweet corn was sauteed in butter until about 80% of the way. To order, I sauteed the potato in butter until cooked through, added the corn and lobster to finish cooking, then added fresh lobster stock which was reduced to concentrate the flavor, and mounted the hash with a little more butter to get the hash creamy and to help the starch from the potato thicken the mixture. The lobster stock also added more lobster flavor throughout the hash. The hash was then seasoned and had some chives added in before plating.

 

[ironchef]

Isn't it lov-ly! Isn't it won-der-ful! I'm a huge lobster fan, but don't care for scallops. I tried to enlarge the pic to get a better look. Curious, is the lobster hash a separate dish from the scallops, or is it all incorporated into one dish (using a ring mold maybe?). Haven't heard of lobster knuckles. Is that part of the lobster, or does one purchase it separately? Could I possibly ask you any more questions? LOL. (You don't learn if you don't ask, right?) It does look gawgeous, & the sauce sounds/looks yummy too. Thanks for sharing these delites.

1. No, the hash is part of the dish. It is formed with a ring mold and then the scallop is placed on top.

2. The knuckles are the meat from the appendage that connects the lobster's claw to the body, so yeah, it's part of the lobster. I don't know if you can purchase it seperately. We get our lobsters whole and reserve the meat when we remove the shells and clean them.

 

[*amy*]

I had a feeling that was how it was done (ring mold) & the knuckle was around the claw somewhere. Thanks IC.