Sea Scallop Salad

plate of spinach salad topped with breaded sea scallops

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5 from 1 vote

You'll love this Sea Scallop Salad with lemon vinaigrette! It features breaded scallops and can be served warm or cold.

Prep Time10

Cook Time13

Total Time23

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Servings:

Calories: 186kcal

Author: Mamma C

Ingredients

Scallops

1 pound sea scallops, thawed See notes if using bay scallops. Don't use "scallop pieces."
¼ cup plain bread crumbs (If you only have seasoned bread crumbs, don't add the seasonings listed next unless you think they need something.)
⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
⅛ teaspoon black pepper
⅛ teaspoon dried basil
1/16 teaspoon salt (a little pinch)
½ tablespoon olive oil

Lemon Vinaigrette

4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 tablespoons olive oil
4 teaspoons white balsamic vinegar
½ teaspoon salt

Salad

lemon zest from two lemons
12 ounces lettuce (such as spinach, Romaine or leafy greens)

Instructions

For the Scallops

If the scallops are frozen, thaw them overnight in the refrigerator. Then, place the scallops in a colander in the sink and run cold water over them for 4-5 minutes until completely thawed.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. (For convection, set it to 450 degrees, which will reduce it to 425.) Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and grease it with cooking spray.
In a fine mesh strainer, lightly rinse the thawed scallops under a thin stream of cold water, being careful to remove any specks of sand by gently scraping them off with a brush or your nail. It's important to closely examine each scallop to look for sand. Remove the side muscle from each scallop, as it will be tough.
Add the bread crumbs to a small mixing bowl. Whisk in the garlic powder, pepper, dried basil and salt.
Leave the raw scallops wet in the colander. Pour the bread crumbs over them. Use your hands to gently mix the scallops to coat them evenly with the crumbs.
Place the breaded scallops in a single layer on the baking sheet, drizzle on the ½ tablespoon of olive oil and bake them on the center rack of the oven for 13-16 minutes. The scallops are done when the breading is golden brown and when you cut into a scallop, the center is no longer pink and shiny, but is white. Be careful not to overcook them, or they will become tough and rubbery.

Prepare the Zest & Lemon Vinaigrette

While the scallops are baking, rinse the lemons and pat them dry. If you want to use lemon zest on your salad, zest the lemons before cutting and juicing them. Use a lemon zester or vegetable peeler to scrape thin ribbons of lemon zest from the lemons and set it aside.
Cut each lemon in half. Squeeze the lemon halves until you have ¼ cup of lemon juice. Add the juice to a small mason jar or container with a lid.
Add the olive oil, vinegar and salt. Whisk to combine or put the lid on the jar and shake it to combine.

Assemble the Salad

To serve, plate the lettuce and top with the warm, breaded scallops, dressing and lemon zest. Store any leftover scallops in the refrigerator for up to four days. You can serve leftover scallops cold on the salad or briefly reheat them in the microwave.
Store any leftover lemon dressing in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to one week. You'll need to run the container under very warm water and whisk the vinaigrette to emulsify it again.

Notes

If using bay scallops, which are smaller, bake them for 8 minutes. Check them after 5 minutes by cutting one open to see the inside.

If you wish to make two pounds of scallops instead of just one pound, you can double the scallops portion of the recipe. See my Breaded Scallops recipe.

Nutrition