Creamy Garlic Butter Scallops with Prosciutto – This is the best way to enjoy fresh and succulent scallops; coated in a creamy white wine sauce with prosciutto, lots of garlic and butter.
There’s just something so romantic about a beautiful scallop dinner, don’t you all agree? When it’s prepared perfectly this dinner is an absolute show stopper guaranteed. If you’re looking for a quick and delicious dinner to impress a special someone, this dish is for you!
Scallops are really great because you don’t need a lot of ingredients to make them delicious, they simply are on their own. I did want a somewhat rich sauce here, however, so I used butter and garlic, some white wine and heavy cream, turning this into a luscious rich sauce.
Scallops
Scallops are great because they’re super quick to cook. In 10 minutes you have yourself a fancy dinner of tender and succulent scallops. They are not inexpensive, at about $20 a pound you want to make sure you cook them just right, so make sure to read the tips below.
Ingredients
Detailed measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Olive oil – We want a nice neutral tasting oil to saute our scallops in.
- Butter – We’re going to use both butter and olive oil to give us that brown butter flavor without any burnt butter bitterness.
- Scallops – I used 10 large scallops today.
- Prosciutto – Roughly chopped to be crisped up.
- Garlic – Use as much or little as you like.
- Liquids – We’re using both white wine and heavy cream for our beautiful dreamy sauce.
- Herbs – Chopped fresh green onion and parsley
- Seasoning – Salt and pepper to taste.
Prepping Your Scallops
If your scallops have a side-muscle (a little rectangular tag of tissue on the side of the scallop), pinch it with your fingers and tear it away. Don’t worry if you can’t find it, mine came with the side-muscle already removed.
How To Make Garlic Butter Scallops
- Prep the scallops: Season the scallops with salt and pepper.
- Brown the scallops: In a medium size skillet heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the scallops to the skillet in a single layer and sear them on each side for about 1 to 2 minutes per side, or until it gets slightly golden. Remove the scallops from the skillet to a plate and set aside.
- Crisp up the prosciutto: In the same skillet add the chopped prosciutto and fry for about 3 to 5 minutes until nice and crispy. Add the butter and the garlic to the skillet and cook until the butter melts and the garlic becomes aromatic.
- Finish the dish: Stir in the heavy cream, white wine and season with salt and pepper if necessary. The prosciutto could be a bit salty so there may not be a need for additional salt. Cook for about 2 minutes then add the scallops back to the skillet.
- Garnish: with fresh parsley and chopped green onion and serve immediately.
Not A Scallop Fan?
Well that’s no problem! Feel free to substitute in some shrimp instead if you’re not into cooking with scallops or if you can’t find any. This sauce tastes equally delicious with some perfectly cooked shrimp.
How To Make This Dish Without Wine
You can substitute some chicken or veggie stock if you don’t want to use wine. Be sure to choose a low sodium stock as we want to control the sodium content of this dish.
How To Serve
You can serve these over cooked rice or pasta, or how I love to eat this is with some fresh crusty bread that I can use to dip into that sauce and soak up all those incredible flavors. That’s all there is to this recipe, simple but a truly scrumptious meal.
Tips For Cooking Scallops
- Scallops sometimes have a side muscle that needs to be removed. It’s a little tag of muscle tissue on the side of the scallop which will feel a bit tough. Just pull it away. If you don’t remove this muscle, no worries, it’s safe to eat, just a little tough to chew.
- Always pat your scallops dry with a paper towel and once you add them to the pan to sear them. Make sure you season them generously with salt and pepper.
- Make sure you serve your scallops immediately, so if you’re serving them over rice or pasta, make sure it’s already cooked and ready to go.
Leftovers
Scallops are best served right away after they’re cooked. However, if you have some leftover scallops, store them in an airtight container, in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days.
Freezing
I don’t really recommend freezing scallops after they’ve been cooked, the texture just won’t be the same. If you’re going to sear them, eat them right away. However, if you really needed to freeze them, store them in an airtight container in the freezer.
Other Seafood Recipes To Try:
- Creamy Garlic Butter Scallops with Prosciutto
- Maple Mustard Glazed Salmon
- Spicy New Orleans Shrimp
- Baked Lemon Garlic Halibut
- Firecracker Baked Salmon
- Shrimp Scampi
- Bruschetta Salmon
- Tomato Shrimp Pasta
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Creamy Garlic Butter Scallops with Prosciutto
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 8 oz scallops about 10 large scallops
- 3 oz prosciutto roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp butter
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 cup white wine
- 1/4 tsp salt or to taste
- 1/4 tsp pepper or to taste
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
- 1 green onion chopped
Instructions
- Season the scallops with salt and pepper.
- In a medium size skillet heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the scallops to the skillet in a single layer and sear them on each side for about 1 to 2 minutes per side, or until it gets slightly golden. Remove the scallops from the skillet to a plate and set aside.
- In the same skillet add the chopped prosciutto and fry for about 3 to 5 minutes until nice and crispy. Add the butter and the garlic to the skillet and cook until the butter melts and the garlic becomes aromatic.
- Stir in the heavy cream, white wine and season with salt and pepper if necessary. The prosciutto could be a bit salty so there may not be a need for additional salt. Cook for about 2 minutes then add the scallops back to the skillet.
- Garnish with fresh parsley and chopped green onion and serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
- You can substitute some chicken or veggie stock if you don’t want to use wine.
- This recipe can also be used for shrimp
- If your scallops have a side-muscle (a little rectangular tag of tissue on the side of the scallop), pinch it with your fingers and tear it away. Don’t worry if you can’t find it, mine came with the side-muscle already removed.
- Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
