Olive Oil Seared Sea Scallops with Lemon Caper Sauce

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Olive oil comes in many different varieties, and it can be hard to figure out which one to buy.  Like wine certain types of olive oil pair best with certain types of dishes, and using the right oil can enhance the flavor and experience of a meal.  I recently tried out the Star Usage Pairing Oils, which are designed to enhance different meals in different ways.

These oils are conveniently available at Walmart, and come in three different varieties:

After pondering the oils for a few minutes I decided to choose the Hojiblanca Olive Oil, because my family loves seafood, and we try to eat it a few times a week.  In addition to being healthy fish is also good for a weeknight meal because it cooks so fast!  There are many nights when I need to get dinner done quickly because of all the kids’ activities, and seafood is an excellent choice for a night like that.

I decided to try this Olive Oil with a simple Scallop dish, using it to sear the scallops and enhance a lemon sauce. It was delicious, and the Olive Oil definitely improved the flavor of the scallops. It was a nice delicate olive taste that didn’t overwhelm the other flavors in the dish. For an everyday cooking recipe like this using a Pairing Oil helps make dinner preparation fast!

Seared Sea Scallops with Lemon Caper Sauce

click here for a printable recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 lb sea scallops
• 3 T Hojiblanca Star Olive Oil, separated
• salt and pepper to taste
• 6 T clam juice
• 2 T lemon juice
• 2 T capers
• lemon wedges

Directions:

1. 1. Heat a medium frying pan over medium heat for 5-10 minutes. Searing works best if you don’t use non-stick cookware.
   2. Right before you are ready to cook the scallops turn the heat up to medium high. Combine the clam juice, lemon juice and capers in a bowl, so the ingredients are ready to use for the sauce.
   3. Put the scallops on a plate and drizzle with 2 Tablespoon of the oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste, and turn the scallops so the olive oil coats them.
   4. Put the scallops in the frying pan in a single layer. Cook 2-3 minutes until they have a nice brown crust.  Flip them over with tongs and cook them 2-3 minutes on the other side.  Remove them to a plate.
   5. Add the clam juice, lemon juice and caper mixture to the skillet all at once.
   6. Cook, stirring, until the liquid reduces by about half, around 2 minutes.  Take the skillet off the heat and stir in the remaining 1 Tablespoon of Hojiblanca Olive Oil.
   7. Pour the sauce over the scallops and serve with lemon wedges.

Right now you can enter to win a set of all three Usage Pairing Oils on the STAR Facebook page! Check out this Pinterest Board full of ideas about how to use these Pairing Oils, and let me know what you’d like to make!