Pan-Fried Scallops with Crunchy Apple

Ingredients

-Olive oil, for frying
-6 large scallops, cleaned
-Juice of ½ lemon

For the salad
-1 sharp apple, e.g. Granny Smith
-2 handfuls of lamb’s lettuce
-Juice and zest of ½ lemon
-Olive oil
-Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

First make the salad. Peel, core and cut the apple into julienne strips. Mix with the lamb’s lettuce and season with salt and pepper. Add some of the lemon zest (keeping a little back to garnish) and squeeze over the juice. Drizzle the salad with olive oil and mix well.

Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a high heat until smoking hot, then add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Lay the scallops out on a board, pat dry with kitchen paper and season one side with salt and pepper.

Think of the frying pan as a clock face and add the scallops, one by one, seasoned side down, in a clockwise order, then fry for 1–2 minutes until golden brown. Season the unseasoned side of the scallops, then flip them over in the same order you placed them in the pan and repeat the process. Squeeze the lemon juice over the scallops and give the pan a good shake.

When the scallops are cooked, tip the contents of the pan onto a plate lined with kitchen paper. This will instantly stop the cooking process, while the kitchen paper will absorb any excess oil.

Divide the salad between 2 serving plates and arrange the scallops around each pile. Garnish with the remaining lemon zest and serve immediately.By Chef Gordon Ramsay