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I made this dish for Valentine’s Day last year and it was AMAZING! Everything goes really well together and creates an impressive meal.
Gina
So Luscious! So Fancy! So Christmas-Date-Night-In Perfect.
Say hello to this bowl of brown butter scallops + risotto that is about to take you by storm with all of its brown butter glory.
But back it up. Brown butter is just the beginning, er, more accurately, the finishing touch.
Get Ready To Be Dazzled
This feels-like-a-fancy-restaurant meal combines the love that is a pile of creamy Parmesan risotto (with a splash of white wine bcz this is a fancy restaurant, remember?) and seared scallops, garlic sautéed greens, and THEN, like we weren’t already 😍😍😍 enough, the brown butter gets drizzled all up on top of everything. Just so you can go to heaven and back again in one bite.
In real life, while I was making this, Bjork walked into the kitchen and announced that our house smelled like a fancy restaurant.
Like, are you even ready for this level of food celebrity status? Prepare yourself.
Can’t Stop Swooning Over This One
Two of my very favorite things about this recipe are the process – or maybe better called an adventure 😁 – of searing the scallops (um, PS. hi, I’m a complete novice at the scallop game, so just wanted to throw that out there) and the slow simmering of the risotto.
I am usually all-in for quick and easy meals that require little to no hands-on time. I embrace slow cookers (see also: Midwest born and raised). Short ingredient lists inspire me. I love fast food processor meals, because you can count Magic Green Sauce as a meal, right?
But slow, constantly-stirred, creamy risotto is not necessarily fast, and I love it all the more because of it.
There is something so super zen, so calming and relaxing for your always-on-the-go self when you’re standing over the stove and gradually stirring the liquid into the barely-bubbling pan of creamy arborio rice while talking to your people sitting on the other side of the counter. You’re just lazily pouring, stirring, pouring, stirring, and together you’re just talk-talk-talking. And your house smells amazing like you CAN’T EVEN because garlic + butter + white wine is basically the same thing as aromatherapy. And obviously you can and will manage to find time between stirs to take five hundred bites, you know, just to test it. It’s the purist form of food therapy.
How To Get The Perfect Scallop Sear
The scallops are almost sweet and so perfectly light and luscious, but let’s tell it like it is: searing them might not be food therapy and might require some YouTube studying beforehand.
A few things that help:
- use a non-stick pan
- use grapeseed oil (high smoke point)
- get that pan pretty darn hot
- shake the pan around with the scallops in there so they don’t stick and tear
- keep a fire extinguisher handy
- just kidding
- maybe
For real: You can do this. We can do this.
Fancy restaurant status is coming at you in the form of golden brown scallops, creamy Parmesan risotto, and garlic sautéed greens! 👇
Prefer To Watch Instead Of Read?
Brown Butter Scallops with Parmesan Risotto
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 3-4 1x
Description
Brown Butter Scallops with Parmesan Risotto! So Luscious! So Fancy! So Christmas-Date-Night-In Perfect. Say hello to this delicious meal!
Ingredients
PARMESAN RISOTTO:
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 minced clove garlic or 1 minced shallot (or both)
- 1 cup arborio rice
- 1/2 cup white wine
- 3-ish cups of chicken broth
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
SEARED SCALLOPS:
- 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil
- 1 pound jumbo scallops
SAUTEED SPINACH OR KALE:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 clove minced garlic
- 4 cups spinach or kale
BROWN BUTTER:
- 3 tablespoons butter
Instructions
- For the Risotto: In a large non-stick skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the garlic or shallots and saute for a minute or two, until soft and fragrant. Add the arborio rice, stir to coat with butter. Add the white wine and enjoy the sizzles. Add the broth, 1/2 cup at a time, and simmer/stir after each addition until the rice is soft and creamy. I usually err on the side of more liquid to get a creamier texture. Add the parmesan and stir until incorporated. Salt + pepp to taste.
- For the Seared Scallops: Heat oil in nonstick skillet. Pat scallops dry (VERY DRY, as dry as possible), sprinkle with salt, and add to pan. They should sizzle (if not, you need a hotter pan.) Shake gently to prevent sticking. After 2-3 minutes, flip each scallop over. They should have a pretty golden brown exterior and an opaque inside. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate to absorb excess oil. Serve immediately.
- For the Sautéed Spinach: Heat the oil over medium low heat. Add the garlic, stir for a minute to get the flavor going. Add the spinach or kale and stir until wilted.
- For the Brown Butter: Put a few tablespoons of butter in a clean skillet over medium heat and stir it while watching it closely – when it starts to look golden and foamy, remove from heat, transfer to a heat-proof bowl to cool slightly, then drizzle over the risotto, scallops, and greens.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Sauté
- Cuisine: Italian
Keywords: brown butter scallops, parmesan risotto, scallops with risotto
Brown Butter Scallops: FAQs
This was a helpful video tutorial I watched for searing the scallops! Thanks, Martha.
Shrimp would be really tasty!
Around 20-30 minutes should do the trick!
More Date Night Deliciousness
- Slow Cooker Beef Ragu with Pappardelle
- Date Night Rigatoni with Sausage and Kale
- Coconut Curry Ramen
- Perfect Baked Salmon with Lentils and Lemon Herb Sauce
Time To Show You Off!
Tag @pinchofyum on Instagram for a chance to be featured
I was excited by the high reviews for this recipe – but then a little hesitant after seeing that so people who’d rated this five stars hadn’t actually tried to make it yet.. but I needn’t have worried because it worked out great! A little more instruction around temperature of the pan for cooking the scallops would have been helpful – we found ourselves looking it up online. Scallops are on the pricier side so messing them up is an expensive mistake to make!
There is an error in the conversion to metric. 3ish cups chicken stock is being converted to 3ml stock
I liked the recipe, and the scallops were amazing. I found the Risotto quite bland, as did my wife. Next time I will add some more ingredients to give it more depth.
All in all decent, 3 of 5 stars for me.
This brown butter scallops recipe looks absolutely incredible! I love the idea of pairing them with parmesan risotto. Can’t wait to give it a try—thanks for sharing such a delicious dish!
I’m 1.5 cups of broth in and 30 minutes and risotto is still not creamy. I’m on simmer (3 on electric stove). Should heat be higher? Lower?
We’d try increasing the heat!
You don’t say that broth should be hit as you add to risotto?
I’ve never heard it not being
Can you enlighten me ?
Thanks
This was delicious my husband and I loved it
This was delicious my
Husband and I loved it
Absolutely delicious!!!!! yum!!!!!!!!
This recipe is amazing! I had some pretty thick Arborio rice so the risotto took about 4 cups of broth. I also had Tuscan (black) Kale that really balanced the sweetness of the scallops/risotto. Will make again!
Absolutely delicious!! Just made this for Valentine’s Day dinner and it was incredible! I need to work on my scallop sear but they were delicious nonetheless.
I’m not seeing anywhere in the recipe where it tells you to heat the stock? Stock should always be added to risotto hot any tradition simmered until it’s almost dry
This was amazing!!! I got a bit nervous about the scallops when reading and getting into a research spiral. I’m pretty sure I got wet ones. I wiped them and then sprinkled all sides with kosher salt and let them rest for about 45 minutes (while making risotto). Took them out and patted them super dry and they seared perfectly with a stainless steel pan!!
Entire recipe was amazing! Will def be making again!
Glad to hear it, Amy!
I love scallops but have been too intimidated to make them. Gordon Ramsay makes it look so hard!
I decided to try this for New Years and am so glad I did. I subbed coconut oil for grapeseed and steamed the spinach to let the other flavors stand out. The scallops were succulent & tasty and the saltiness of the risotto offset the sweetness of the scallops perfectly.
Thank you for this recipe. I will definitely be making it again!
So glad you enjoyed it, Kate!
Are you using salted or unsalted butter?
Salted!
Maybe a dumb question- but how do you manage your time with getting the risotto done and the scallops also done at exactly the same time? I assume reheating either is a bad idea that leads to over cooked rice or rubbery scallops.
Hi there! We’d suggest stirring the risotto after each broth addition and in between adding the broth to the risotto, you can add your scallops to the pan to start cooking them. It’s definitely a little bit of a juggling act. 😉
My girlfriend and I made this for Valentine’s Day and it was amazing. We both loved it.
So glad to hear that, Steve!
Unreal good. Made it for Valentine’s Day & it was such a hit my boyfriend said he wants this every Valentine’s Day & birthday from now on 💖
This recipe. OMG! I’m writing this as I eat it because it’s DELICIOUS. This was so quick, so easy and it’s tastier than anything you would find at a restaurant. 12/10. Would highly recommend. Even a beginner could make this gourmet meal.
Lindsey,
You hit it out of the park with this recipe. My risotto comes out creamy and delicious. My wife loves it more than most of the local restaurants. The brown butter dripping over some quality dry scallops and onto the risotto brings the dish to the next level.
Great recipe! Would a paella pan be too large for making the risotto? First time!
Great question! It’s hard to say since we’ve never cooked risotto in a paella pan. I’m thinking it’d be okay!
We’ve made this recipe several times – my absolutely favorite scallop recipe! I have to ask…where did you get the bowl in the photographs. It looks handmade. I love it and would like to purchase one or something similar from the artist. Thank you!
So glad you’ve enjoyed the recipe! Lindsay’s father-in-law makes the bowls, but I don’t believe he’s selling them at the moment.
This was delicious! I used my instant pot for the Risotto- life changing if you haven’t tried it. Using sauté, melt the butter and then cook the garlic/shallots. Add the risotto, brown a bit, then deglaze the pot with your wine. Add the chicken broth and then set to 5 minutes on high pressure with a quick release. Then mix in your Parmesan and it’s ready! I doubled the Risotto (2 cups) and used 4.5 cups of liquid (1/2 cup wine, 4 cups of broth). Fancy eating with a weeknight time crunch. Thanks for such a yummy recipe!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Marcy! We appreciate the comment!
Made this for our anniversary dinner (COVID style at home) to rave reviews! It was simple and for my first time making risotto and scallops, less intimidating than I thought!! The brown butter was the key. I used carnaroli rice and dry sea scallops (on sale for $19.99/lb) so the searing was easy since they weren’t treated and I didn’t have to dry them much.
So glad you enjoyed it, Kristen! Happy anniversary!
My husband and I made this recipe for Valentine’s Day this year. It was incredible! This risotto is my new favorite food – seriously…I haven’t stopped thinking about it since we had it. The scallops were easy and delicious. We did roasted Brussels sprouts on the side versus spinach. Thanks for this recipe and all your others – I love your blog! 🙂