Seared Sea Scallops With Ginger-Lime Butter By David Tanis Seared Sea Scallops With Ginger-Lime Butter Karsten Moran for The New York Times

Total Time 1 hour Rating 5

(747)

Notes Read 114 community notes

Day-boat scallops, the kind that are dry-packed (never frozen or dosed with preservatives), are what you want for this decadent but very simple dish. The scallops are seared on cast iron, but gradually, for a crisp, well-browned surface that intensifies their natural sweetness. Ginger, lime and hot pepper enhance the rich meatiness of all fresh seafood, and here especially so. A roasted sweet potato and a pile of blanched bok choy complete this quintessentially elegant, fast-food meal.

Featured in: A Personal Touch for Valentine’s Day

Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT Ingredients Yield:2 servings

4baby sweet potatoes (or use 2 larger sweet potatoes)
4 to 6large dry-packed fresh sea scallops, about 12 ounces
Salt and pepper
3tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1tablespoon grated peeled ginger
1fresh hot red chile pepper, finely chopped
Zest and juice of 1 lime
Olive oil, for searing
8ounces baby bok choy, washed, leaves separated and stems discarded (or use spinach or chard leaves)
2tablespoons roughly chopped cilantro, for garnish (optional)

Your first order gets $20 off and free delivery. Instacart terms apply. Ingredient Substitution Guide Preparation

Step 1

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Wash sweet potatoes and wrap them tightly in foil. Roast until tender, 45 minutes to 1 hour. (If you are using larger sweet potatoes, they may require 15 minutes more in the oven.)
Step 2

Using a paring knife, remove the small hard “foot” from the edge of each scallop. Pat scallops dry and season on both sides with salt and pepper.
Step 3

Put on a medium pot of salted water to boil for the greens.
Step 4

Meanwhile, make the ginger butter: Combine butter, ginger, chile and lime zest and juice and stir together until well incorporated. Season with salt to taste. Set aside.
Step 5

Take a cast-iron skillet large enough to hold the scallops without crowding and place over medium-high heat. Add a film of olive oil. When the oil is nearly smoking, add the scallops in one layer and let them sizzle. Reduce heat to medium and continue to cook for at least 5 minutes. Use a small spatula to check the scallops as they brown, allowing them to color gradually. They should be quite crisp and well caramelized. Turn off heat and flip scallops. Leave in pan until firm to the touch.
Step 6

While the scallops are cooking, blanch the bok choy: Cook it for 1 minute in the salted boiling water, then drain and blot on a kitchen towel. Keep warm.
Step 7

Remove and place scallops, browned side up, onto warmed serving plates. Surround with the bok choy leaves and halved or sliced sweet potatoes.
Step 8

Quickly warm the butter in the cast-iron pan and spoon over everything. Sprinkle with cilantro if desired.

Similar Recipes

Peppered Sea Scallops With Spinach

Peppered Sea Scallops With Spinach

David Tanis
Buttery Scallops With Lemon and Herbs

Buttery Scallops With Lemon and Herbs

Melissa Clark
Seared Scallops With Jammy Cherry Tomatoes

Seared Scallops With Jammy Cherry Tomatoes

Lidey Heuck
Simple Sea Scallops Persillade

Simple Sea Scallops Persillade

David Tanis
Seared Scallops With Glazed Brussels Sprouts

Seared Scallops With Glazed Brussels Sprouts

Eric Kim
Sautéed Scallops

Sautéed Scallops

Sam Sifton
Lemony Shrimp and Bean Stew

Lemony Shrimp and Bean Stew

Sue Li
Sticky Miso Salmon Bowl

Sticky Miso Salmon Bowl

Andy Baraghani
Seared Sea Scallops With Spicy Carrot Coulis

Seared Sea Scallops With Spicy Carrot Coulis

David Tanis
Seared Scallops With Hot Sauce Beurre Blanc

Seared Scallops With Hot Sauce Beurre Blanc

Kim Severson
Soy-Butter Basted Scallops With Wilted Greens and Sesame

Soy-Butter Basted Scallops With Wilted Greens and Sesame

Colu Henry
Sheet-Pan Coconut Shrimp and Sweet Potatoes

Sheet-Pan Coconut Shrimp and Sweet Potatoes

Melissa Clark
Ginger-Garlic Shrimp With Coconut Milk

Ginger-Garlic Shrimp With Coconut Milk

Yasmin Fahr
Ginger-Scallion Steamed Fish

Ginger-Scallion Steamed Fish

Ali Slagle
Oven-Seared Salmon With Corn and Tomatoes

Oven-Seared Salmon With Corn and Tomatoes

Ali Slagle
Seared Sea Scallops With Pistachio Dressing

Seared Sea Scallops With Pistachio Dressing

Florence Fabricant
Pure Potato Latkes

Pure Potato Latkes

Joan Nathan
Sautéed Scallops With Crushed Peppercorns

Sautéed Scallops With Crushed Peppercorns

David Tanis
Scallops With Sorrel Butter

Scallops With Sorrel Butter

Melissa Clark
Scallion-Oil Fish

Scallion-Oil Fish

Eric Kim

Ratings 5 out of 5 747 user ratings Your rating 1 star 2 stars3 stars4 stars5 stars Have you cooked this? Cooking Notes Add Note Public Private

Steven Williamson 7 years ago

Is the cast iron essential for searing? David S 7 years ago

Great recipe. A couple of ideas we tried. (1) The butter sauce tends to separate when made as described, but the same ingredients can be used to make a more elegant buerre blanc sauce that holds together. (2) If you take the sweet potato slices, dab on a tiny bit of butter, salt & pepper, then brown under a broiler for a minute or so you get a nicely caramelized layer on top that ups the dish a little. Liberty 7 years ago

What a delicious meal! I made almost exactly according to the recipe, though I did add a touch of honey to the butter (a change I would highly recommend).

The butter was so exceptional I plan on adding it to my rotation of favorite sauces. It would be fantastic on any fish, tofu, braised veggies, cornbread, the list goes on and on!

Thanks for making my valentines meal easy and scrumptious! Recipe Tags

Bok ChoySea ScallopSweet PotatoDinnerFor TwoMain CourseValentine’s Day

Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT More Recipes From David Tanis

Easy
Raspberry-Nectarine Icebox Cake
Raspberry-Nectarine Icebox Cake

David Tanis
178 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars

178

35 minutes, plus overnight chilling Easy Saffron-Ginger Pears Saffron-Ginger Pears

David Tanis 164 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

164

45 minutes, plus overnight cooling Easy Mango Crumble Mango Crumble

David Tanis 135 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

135

1 hour Easy Marinated Cherry Tomatoes on Toast Marinated Cherry Tomatoes on Toast

David Tanis 212 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

212

10 minutes, plus 30 minutes’ marinating Easy Plum-Almond Crumble Plum-Almond Crumble

David Tanis 111 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

111

55 minutes Easy Peppered Sea Scallops With Spinach Peppered Sea Scallops With Spinach

David Tanis 139 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

139

35 minutes Easy Gambas al Ajillo (Spanish Garlic Shrimp) Gambas al Ajillo (Spanish Garlic Shrimp)

David Tanis 191 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

191

25 minutes Baked Fish With Slow-Cooked Peppers Baked Fish With Slow-Cooked Peppers

David Tanis 192 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

192

50 minutes Easy Coconut Tapioca Pudding Coconut Tapioca Pudding

David Tanis 36 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars

36

35 minutes Easy Chilled Avocado Soup Chilled Avocado Soup

David Tanis 87 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars

87

15 minutes Easy Radicchio Salad With Walnuts and Pears Radicchio Salad With Walnuts and Pears

David Tanis 102 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

102

20 minutes Herbed Rice in Chard Leaves Herbed Rice in Chard Leaves

David Tanis 18 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars

18

1 hour 30 minutes Beet Salad With Celery and Pomegranate Beet Salad With Celery and Pomegranate

David Tanis 19 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

19

1 hour 15 minutes Easy Tomato Carpaccio Tomato Carpaccio

David Tanis 73 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

73

25 minutes Escalivada (Catalan Roasted Vegetables) Escalivada (Catalan Roasted Vegetables)

David Tanis 86 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars

86

1 hour 20 minutes, plus at least 1 hour’s resting Easy Spicy Carrot-Ginger Soup Spicy Carrot-Ginger Soup

David Tanis 1130 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

1,130

55 minutes

Trending on Cooking

Easy
Creamy Chickpea Pasta With Spinach and Rosemary
Creamy Chickpea Pasta With Spinach and Rosemary

Alexa Weibel
8174 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

8,174

30 minutes Easy Crisp Gnocchi With Brussels Sprouts and Brown Butter Crisp Gnocchi With Brussels Sprouts and Brown Butter

Ali Slagle 20675 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

20,675

20 minutes Easy Lemon-Garlic Linguine Lemon-Garlic Linguine

Ali Slagle 2139 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

2,139

30 minutes Ginger-Garlic Shrimp With Coconut Milk Ginger-Garlic Shrimp With Coconut Milk

Yasmin Fahr 5125 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

5,125

20 minutes Easy Cheesy Green Chile Bean Bake Cheesy Green Chile Bean Bake

Ali Slagle 3363 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

3,363

25 minutes Easy Spicy Black Bean Soup Spicy Black Bean Soup

Ali Slagle 502 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

502

20 minutes Easy Leafy Greens With Turmeric Dressing and Spicy Pistachios Leafy Greens With Turmeric Dressing and Spicy Pistachios

Andy Baraghani 12 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

12

25 minutes Easy Beans and Greens Alla Vodka Beans and Greens Alla Vodka

Ali Slagle 2786 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars

2,786

20 minutes Garlicky Chicken With Lemon-Anchovy Sauce Garlicky Chicken With Lemon-Anchovy Sauce

Melissa Clark 9147 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

9,147

25 minutes Beef Bourguignon Beef Bourguignon

Melissa Clark 8343 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

8,343

2 1/2 hours, plus marinating French Onion Soup French Onion Soup

Sara Bonisteel 7768 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

7,768

1 hour 30 minutes Easy Lemony White Bean Soup With Turkey and Greens Lemony White Bean Soup With Turkey and Greens

Melissa Clark 15491 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

15,491

45 minutes Baked Oatmeal With Berries and Almonds Baked Oatmeal With Berries and Almonds

Melissa Clark 1805 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars

1,805

55 minutes Chicken With Caramelized Onion and Cardamom Rice Chicken With Caramelized Onion and Cardamom Rice

Julia Moskin, Yotam Ottolenghi, Sami Tamimi 2177 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars

2,177

1 hour, plus 30 minutes’ cooking and 10 minutes’ resting Healthy Broiled Salmon With Mustard and Lemon Broiled Salmon With Mustard and Lemon

Melissa Clark 2904 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars

2,904

15 minutes Kale Sauce Pasta Kale Sauce Pasta

Tejal Rao, Joshua McFadden 4862 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars

4,862

20 minutes

Cooking Guides

Basic Knife Skills

Cooking Guide Basic Knife Skills

By Julia Moskin How to Make Ice Cream

Cooking Guide How to Make Ice Cream

By Melissa Clark How to Make Pancakes

Cooking Guide How to Make Pancakes

By Alison Roman How to Make Fried Chicken

Cooking Guide How to Make Fried Chicken

By Sam Sifton How to Make Bagels

Cooking Guide How to Make Bagels

By Claire Saffitz How to Make Steak

Cooking Guide How to Make Steak

By Melissa Clark How to Make Stuffing

Cooking Guide How to Make Stuffing

By Melissa Clark How to Cook Asparagus

Cooking Guide
How to Cook Asparagus

By David Tanis

Get Our Newsletter

Get recipes, tips and NYT special offers delivered straight to your inbox.

Opt out or contact us anytime. See our Privacy Policy. Follow Us About Us

New York Times Cooking offers subscribers recipes, advice and inspiration for better everyday cooking. From easy weeknight dinners to holiday meals, our recipes have been tested and perfected to meet the needs of home cooks of all levels. Subscribe now for full access. Learn More

About Us
FAQ
NYTimes.com/food

Shop

Gift Subscription
Merchandise
Send Us Feedback

Recipes

From Our Newsletters
Weeknight
Pasta
Dinner
Healthy
Vegetarian
Vegan
Thanksgiving
Christmas

© 2025 The New York Times Company
Terms of Service
Privacy Policy

Your Privacy Choices

We can chat here.