639481 Sat Jul 25 23:54:22 -0700 2009 28 31 Home Cooking 0 4890979 I'm talking dry scallops, of course. Do any you give your scallops a quick (about 3-4 minute) soaking in a brining solution before pan searing? I tried this the other night and really enjoyed the results. Not only was the flavor much "cleaner" but the texture seemed a bit firmer. Sat Jul 25 23:54:23 -0700 2009 11583 ipsedixit 1 4891043 1. how was flavor "cleaner" than a vaguely sweet-ish but savory straight-forward sea scallop flavor? 2. why would you want it firmer? isn't it firm already? 3. why did you even think of brining in the first place; were they old or too dry from sitting somewhere too long? ~~~~~ i wouldn't do it, because i don't think it would benefit. but if you like it, good! i pay enough for good scallops to then have to brine them. <my thoughts were also, "why brine dry scallops? why not just buy the gloppy wet scallops, then?"> Sun Jul 26 03:11:23 -0700 2009 4890979 105717 alkapal 2 4891475 My sentiments exactly. Dry scallops come at a semi- premium price, so why degrade them with brine? Sun Jul 26 09:16:57 -0700 2009 4891043 74301 harrie 3 4891819 What IS a "dry scallop"? Sun Jul 26 12:10:04 -0700 2009 4891475 131001 c oliver 4 4892009 I dunno, just love 'em! Actually, I sorta know, but this Fine Cooking blurb explains it better than I ever could: http://www.finecooking.com/articles/dry-scallops-sear-better.aspx Sun Jul 26 13:56:24 -0700 2009 4891819 74301 harrie 4 4892025 Dry scallops are all wild and natural. They are not treated with any chemicals whatsoever. Sun Jul 26 14:03:01 -0700 2009 4891819 115579 Mother of four 5 4892031 And if it's not "dry scallops" then it HAS been treated with things? I never knew that. Are they real yucky kinds of things???? :) Sun Jul 26 14:06:34 -0700 2009 4892025 131001 c oliver 6 4892160 Sodium tripolyphosphate sound yucky to me, but to each his own. It's been my experience that "scallops" at your basic fish counter are wet scallops. "Dry scallops" -- again, my experience -- are noted as such and cost more than the wet/preserved ones. But to me, they're sooooo worth it. Sun Jul 26 15:09:04 -0700 2009 4892031 74301 harrie 7 4898712 Yes, Dry Scallops are sold as Dry Scallops, and yes they are not inexpensive. But. they do go on sale and are worth waiting for. WF's had Dry Fresh Scallops on sale for $10.95 a lb. I bought about three pounds and froze them for future use. They sear beautifully, and yes, in my estimation there is a difference in taste. Tue Jul 28 18:38:50 -0700 2009 4892160 115579 Mother of four 6 4892162 They sometimes soak them in water and a light bleach solution. Beware of any scallops that look stark white. That's why I am puzzled as to why you would pay more for the dry scallops, then go ahead and soak them in water & salt, to plump them up? I believe you will leach out the natural juices of the scallop and replace with the brine. Why are you paying extra for them then? Sun Jul 26 15:10:11 -0700 2009 4892031 90755 Phurstluv 7 4892174 Try it with just one or two scallops and let me know if you taste a difference. I, too, was skeptical at first, but it actually turned out well. And, yes, dry scallops are indeed quite pricey. Sun Jul 26 15:15:10 -0700 2009 4892162 11583 ipsedixit 8 4892353 I will try, but I like to have scallops on hand, and have a pound frozen in my freezer, so when those are gone and I'm feeling it a special occasion, I will search them out. Where do you buy yours in SoCal? Sun Jul 26 16:57:13 -0700 2009 4892174 90755 Phurstluv 6 4894190 If they're not "dry" scallops, then yes, they have been treated with Sodium tripolyphosphate, and often sit in a pool of milky liquid at the fish market. To me, those treated scallops have a faint but unmistakable taste of soapsuds. YUCK! Mon Jul 27 10:48:07 -0700 2009 4892031 52499 ChefJune 1 4891122 This seems counterintuitive. I love the sweet taste of sea scallops. I don't want clean, I want "sea". I buy from a very reputable fishmonger and I don't rinse my scallops. I try and preserve the liquor (the milky liquid) I'm going to cook them anyway! I often dust them with flour or press into panko. Sun Jul 26 05:54:12 -0700 2009 4890979 137946 Scargod 2 4891282 I agree this seems counterintuitive. And having actually eaten scallops you've prepared, I can attest they're as delicious as any I've had in some of my very favorite restaurants. Whatever it is you do, don't change a thing! Now, the question is, how do you pronounce the last word in your post--esp. since you live in CT? See other thread. HA! Sun Jul 26 07:44:18 -0700 2009 4891122 249664 kattyeyes 1 4892300 brining scallops? heresy. Sun Jul 26 16:29:52 -0700 2009 4890979 30273 hotoynoodle 1 4893419 before dry-pack scallops became available in our market i used to dry brine and even press the treated ones looking for any sort of sear. i even sprinkled a little sugar on them hoping to generate a little brown. i don't brine the dry scallops i can now buy. at the same time i recall a regional chef almost muffling me with his toque when i suggested that i preferred sea bass soaked in brine for 3-4 minutes. it seemed to taste more like it'd just come from the sea. after that near-death experience i just put a bit more salt on sea bass before cooking it, though honestly, i don't think the very short brine bath altered the texture at all. usually, one brines chicken or pork to denature some of the proteins--not to impart a saltier taste. my guess is that any perceived advantage of a short brine of seafood is related to saltiness and not to the undesirable unfurling of proteins. Mon Jul 27 07:03:45 -0700 2009 4890979 270283 silverhawk 2 4893518 you brine to denature proteins? as in"cook" them like citrus denatures fish protein? i think of "denaturing" meat with something like papain. <maybe i'm mis-remembering something i heard ;-)> i thought brining was to infuse the chick or pork with the salt seasoning and additional moisture. ~~~~~ ps, rather OT, but i just saw mary ann esposito (repeatedly) PRESSING DOWN sea scallops searing in the cast iron skillet. i (honestly) was yelling "STOP IT" at her "through" the tv! Mon Jul 27 07:32:07 -0700 2009 4893419 105717 alkapal 3 4893626 That drives me crazy. Don't do that or you will indeed find out what a "dry scallop" is. Mon Jul 27 08:11:10 -0700 2009 4893518 50431 chef chicklet 3 4893685 Brining does in fact denature proteins. A higher concentration of salt inside meat cells causes protein strands to denature, making meat more tender. Brining also helps make meat juicier. It is not done to make it taste saltier, though brining does make meat more savory. People brine shrimp all the time, but personally I wouldn't brine a good scallop. Mon Jul 27 08:30:38 -0700 2009 4893518 43893 C. Hamster 4 4893811 The brine does season the food throughout, tho I don't call this making it saltier, some who are super sensitive to the taste may consider it so. Mon Jul 27 09:02:47 -0700 2009 4893685 90755 Phurstluv 1 4893519 Hmmm...seems like a helluva thing to do to a scallop. It's certainly common to treat shrimp this way (though if they are extraordinarily fresh shrimp I certainly wouldn't) but I haven't heard of brining scallops before cooking. So I agree with the majority here that scallops just don't need this treatment. Most scallops, as pointed out, are already treated with phosphates (to help them retain moisture no doubt) but if you are lucky enough to have dry scallops then they especialy should not be brined or otherwise marinated. Of course, do whatever floats your boat...but scalllops have such a beautifully delicate flavor that is seems a shame to do anything but sear them up plain. Mon Jul 27 07:32:09 -0700 2009 4890979 116047 The Professor 2 4893585 common to treat shrimp this way? where? why? it might help with beat up mushy shrimp, but i wouldn't abuse good shrimp this way. acid, not salt, is what denatures proteins. if your brine is heavy with citrus, it will help do this. when brining, the meat's cell fluids are less concentrated than the salt water in the brining solution. Water flows out of the cells in the meat and salt flows in. The salt then dissolves some of the fiber proteins, and the meat's cell fluids become more concentrated, thus drawing water back in. meat, especially the cheap cuts we tend to brine, is obviously far denser, and the fat is in pockets, as opposed to evenly distributed like it is in fish. admittedly i am spoiled living in new england. we have easy access to some of the finest seafood in the world, especially scallops. soaking scallops, especially in a brine, is just leaching out the sweet delicate flavor and the natural moisture. modern shipping gets "fresh" seafood most places within 24 hours. if your fish or shellfish isn't sweet and naturally briny you need a better fishmonger. Mon Jul 27 07:57:40 -0700 2009 4893519 30273 hotoynoodle 3 4893701 well, you and alkapal might be correct in suggesting that salt does not denature proteins. the editors of cooks say otherwise--eg on p. 137 of <best recipes.> their explanation of brining asserts that salt--like acids and alcohol--denatures proteins--the result being a looser matrix of protein strands that trap water and plump meat. i am not defending the practice of brining fresh, dry scallops by defending my assertion. the folks at cooks are wrong from time to time--though not routinely, and perhaps not in this case. Mon Jul 27 08:34:36 -0700 2009 4893585 270283 silverhawk 4 4893784 http://www.exploratorium.edu/cooking/meat/INT-what-makes-flavor.html Mon Jul 27 08:56:07 -0700 2009 4893701 30273 hotoynoodle 5 4893834 i'm confused now. what did you mean by your initial assertion that "acid not salt denatures proteins." doesn't the salt relax --or "denature" the coiled proteins? since we don't seem to disagree, i'm not sure why you took issue with my statement that the salt in brine denatures proteins. am i missing something? Mon Jul 27 09:11:36 -0700 2009 4893784 270283 silverhawk 4 4894143 McGee says that salt denatures proteins. As does Wolke and Corriher. Mon Jul 27 10:36:15 -0700 2009 4893701 43893 C. Hamster 3 4893817 I agree wholeheartedly with HN. Yes, you're spoiled. And yes, get a better fishmonger. Don't leach out the sweet delicate flavor of the scallops. Mon Jul 27 09:05:14 -0700 2009 4893585 90755 Phurstluv 3 4894811 " if your fish or shellfish isn't sweet and naturally briny you need a better fishmonger" Couldn't have said it any better. Mon Jul 27 13:41:52 -0700 2009 4893585 253154 Fritter