Wednesday 1 August 2007

Recipe: Scallops & Leeks with Pernod


I always find Pernod an agreeable surprise in cooking. Somehow, it isn't a flavour that I expect, and when it inserts itself, it manages to add a whole different dimension to whatever dish it's in. A simple mixed leaf salad with a dressing of Oil, Raspberry Vinegar and Pernod is quite stunning, for example. In the recipe given here, the aniseed flavour from the Pernod manages both to challenge and complement the creamy unctuousness of the Scallops and the Leeks.

For Four.

Ingredients: 1 pint Scallops (if very large, quarter them) ; 6 tablespoons Butter; 2 medium Leeks; 3 tablespoons dry Vermouth; 3 tablespoons Cream; 3 tablespoons Shallots, finely chopped; Salt & Pepper; 2 tablespoons Pernod.

Method:

1. Slice the Leeks thinly and saute in 2 tablespoons of Butter over medium heat for one minute. Add Salt & Pepper to taste. Add the Vermouth and cook, stirring, for one minute, and then the Cream. Cook for a further five minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Meanwhile, in a separate pan, saute the Shallots for a minute in 2 tablespoons of Butter. Add seasoning, and then add the Scallops to the pan. Cook for another minute, then add the Pernod and stir.

3. Combine the contents of the two pans, and mix together, along with the remaining 2 tablespoons of Butter.

Serve.

3 comments:

The Passionate Palate said...

You've inspired me to dig out my bottle of Pernod and put it to use. Besides the delicious sounding scallops, I am very curioius now about trying it in a salad vinaigrette.

Pomiane said...

One tip about Pernod - good idea to wipe the neck of the bottle before you screw the cap back into place. If, like me, you don't use it that often, then the sugar in the Pernod crystallizes under the cap, and you can end up inventing new four-letter words in the process of trying to get it off again......invariably at a time-sensitive point in the recipe!

The Passionate Palate said...

Oh...good tip! Thanks.