Review: Thai Scallops and Asparagus

[Mamasue]

Well DH is away fishing this weekend with the guys and my daughter and I had a girl's night tonight. We both enjoyed this scallop dish very much and will absolutely make it again. I couldn't find the chile puree with garlic sauce and bought Taste of Thai Garlic Chili Pepper Sauce which seemed to work well, of course not knowing what chile puree with garlic sauce tastes like. We had this with rice and of course a mixed green salad. It was so good I think I had more than one serving allowed. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif This recipe was taken from the Recipe Search here at CL.


* Exported from MasterCook *

Thai Scallops and Asparagus

Recipe By : Cooking Light Recipe Search
Serving Size : 4 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Fish and Seafood

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 1/2 pounds sea scallops
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger
2 garlic cloves -- minced
2 cups sliced asparagus (about 1/2 pound) -- (2-inch)
1/2 cup fat-free -- less-sodium chicken
broth
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon chile puree with garlic sauce
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon rind
2 cups hot cooked long-grain rice
Basil sprigs (optional)

Combine the scallops and cornstarch. Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add scallops, and stir-fry 4 minutes. Remove scallops from pan. Add minced ginger and garlic, and stir-fry 10 seconds. Stir in sliced asparagus and next 4 ingredients (asparagus through chile puree), and cook, uncovered, 2 minutes. Return the scallops to pan; cover and cook 1 minute. Remove from heat, and stir in chopped basil and grated lemon rind. Serve with rice. Garnish with basil sprigs, if desired.

Preparation Time:
10 mins.

Cooking Time:
8 mins.

Total Time:
30 minutes

Servings/Serving Size:
4 servings (serving size: 1 cup scallop mixture and 1/2 cup rice)


Nutrition Facts
(per Serving):
338 calories

35.3 g carbohydrates

56 mg cholesteral

6.6 g fat

474 mg sodium

32.9 g protein

72 g calcium

2.1 g iron

2.1 g fiber

Last minute note: Sorry, I just noticed that valchemist posted this recipe a couple of days ago and she gave great reviews too. Yes, this would be great with shrimp too! I should also tell you that the scallops came from Trader Joe's (frozen) and they were nice and tender. I will buy them again from Traders. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif




[This message has been edited by Mamasue (edited 05-26-2001).]

[valchemist]

yep, mamasue, there is a similar recent post! I am going to go back there and add my review shortly.

I used the exact same Taste of Thai sauce you used. The recipe was wonderful. All of the flavors (chile sauce, ginger, garlic, lemon, basil) held their own...you could taste each of them individually, but the flavors also blended so well.

I served this with the garlicky brown rice (posted a while back). It, too, was wonderful.

[Mamasue]

Val...didn't you notice that the last minute ingredients of fresh basil and lemon actually gave this recipe an added boost! I was going to make brown rice but did the white instead. Next time!

[valchemist]

mamasue

I scooped out my husbands portion before adding the last minute ingredients of basil and lemon zest (which were sitting right next to the pan). As he was taking his plate from me, he said "oh, what is that?" as he pointed to the lemon and basil. Doh!!

So I sprinkled some in the pan on my portion. Too bad he didn't get to taste the full dish. You are right, those two ingredients added a nice finishing touch.

val

[Lynn B]

Mamasue,

THANK YOU for this recipe and review. I will try it! I have scallops right now ready for this!

And never fear about repeating Valchemist's post - because... I MISSED HERS!!!! So had you not done it, I wouldn't have seen it, so I doubly appreciate yours!

See what I mean?!!!!! I swear I am BB-challenged!!! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

Lynn

[valchemist]

Here is one of the threads where there are reviews of this recipe...
http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/Forum1/HTML/007421.html

[This message has been edited by valchemist (edited 05-28-2001).]

[KarenW]

Thanks for the recipe. I also missed the last posting on this topic. I had scallops in the frig so I made this for dinner tonight & thought it was very good. I substituted sugar snap peas and zucchini for the asparagus since my asparagus had some nasty white fuzz on it. The dish was super easy and quite yummy. I'll definitely make it again.

[Tiger]

Thanks Mamasue- I too say never fear of a double posting. We all hate to miss something.
I always see these big scallops at BJ's that look so good and I love asparagus. I'm printing the recipe out now!

[karen w]

Hey KarenW,

This must be a "KarenW" thing. I made this for dinner last night too! I substituted broccoli for the asparagus since our store did not get any asparagus on Friday. I served it wth garlicky brown rice. We really enjoyed it as well. And it went together so quickly.

karen w

[lorilei]

I made this dish for dinner the other evening too ... well, with a few changes.

I tripled the amount of chili/garlic paste (which gave it just the right heat, IMO), doubled the amount of asparagus and used 1 lb of bay scallops instead of sea scallops. I also used THAI basil instead of regular basil -- I couldn't picture the dish without it. I cooked everything in grapeseed oil in my wok and served it over black Japonica rice. We even ate with chopsticks!

The dish was fabulous -- not to mention remarkably fast. (JUST as fast as any other stir fry I make on weeknights.) The lemon added a significant amount of depth to the chicken broth, and the addition of Thai basil really brought out the flavor of the scallops!

[aggie94]

I made these last night and YUM. Normally I just saute scallops in a little bit of butter, garlic, and fresh herbs, but I wanted something different. I used Thai chile paste with garlic, veggie broth, and about half the lemon rind. I also served it over angel hair pasta. It was delicious! DH thought it a little too "Thai" for him, not to mention a tad too spicy, but I thought it was perfect, although next time, I would used sliced ginger instead of minced, so that I can pick the pieces out after the dish is done.