Happy Saturday everyone! I haven’t posted a Seafood Saturday recipe in a couple of weeks. I mentioned a few posts ago that I’m trying to give myself some more off days to pursue other things… and basically, to just not drive myself to hard on having to post a new recipes every single day! So, I skipped posting a Seafood Saturday recipe last week. BUT! I am coming to you with an amazingly spicy scallop recipe this week that is to die for!
This dish started out with the intentions of making a piri piri recipe. But, as it unfolded, more and more Asian elements started coming together in the recipe. The one element that still has a a Portuguese root is the chorizo, but it works so well in this spicy Thai dish!
I had a craving for baby bok choy with this dish ~ when it was still at the stage of being a piri piri recipe… but, unfortunately, my local grocery store was out. My husband volunteered to go to the local Asian market to buy baby bok choy and to see if he could find any Thai red chilies. And, he totally scored. One bagful of baby bok choy, a small container of fresh Thai red chilies, and the unexpected purchase of jarred bamboo shoots in chili oil.
This was all in all coming together to be a spicy dish! Even deseeding the Thai red chilies left the sauce quite spicy! If you want it less spicy, you less chilies. If you’re unsure, try one chili at a time until you reach a comfortable level of spicy.
I find breaking up sausages with a wooden spoon very tedious. What I’ve started doing is heating the skillet over medium. Then I squeeze the meat out of the sausage casing and by hand tear it apart as I drop it into the pan. From there, as it cooks, it requires very little additional breaking up with a spoon. And it saved the big headache of breaking it all up! New found kitchen hack!!
So, I cooked up the chorizo first and then drained it on paper towels to absorb all the excess fat. Using that same pan, I wiped it clean and cooked the bok choy. Bok choy cooks down a lot! So don’t underestimate how much you actually need. I seasoned the bok choy with soy sauce and sriracha. One tablespoon of sriracha is not considered a lot in our house, so this was considered mild for us and therefore a nice “non-spicy” accoutrement to the spicy scallops and chorizo…. bbbuuuttt, if that is a lot of sriracha for you and you also want to have a non-spicy accoutrement to the scallops and chorizo, just skip the sriracha! The bok choy will still be delicious seasoned with soy sauce!
As the scallops were just being put on to cook, I scooped the bok choy into a bowl and covered with aluminum foil to keep warm. Then, I returned the chorizo to the pan to reheat. I coated the scallops in some of the spicy sauce I made with the Thai red chilies, olive oil, and lemon juice. The rest of the sauce, I poured over the chorizo, cooking until everything was heated through. The scallops cook super quickly ~ two to three minutes a side.
I served everything over rice and topped it off with cilantro and the jarred bamboo shoots. Talk about another super colorful dish! This was certainly not the most spicy dish we’ve made before, but it does have a fair amount of kick. Basically, my lips weren’t on fire, but I did need a periodic sip of water. For me, it was the perfect level of spice… hot but comfortable. And it was just oh so good! We absolutely love scallops in this house, and I love finding new and unique ways to make them!
Enjoy!
Spicy Thai Scallops & Chorizo with Thai Red Chilies, Bamboo, & Bok Choy
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Asian, Seafood
- Cuisine: Dinner
Ingredients
16 sea scallops
1 lb chorizo sausages, removed from casings
4 garlic cloves
5 red Thai chilies, deseeded
¼ cup lemon juice
¼ cup olive oil
⅛ tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsps paprika
2 tsps granulated sugar
salt and pepper
4 large baby bok choy, cut in half lengthwise
2 TBs soy sauce
1 TB sriracha
1 TB sesame oil
1 TB olive oil
1 TB butter
sesame seeds to garnish
cilantro, roughly chopped
jarred bamboo shoots in chili oil
rice, to serve
Instructions
In a small food processor, blend together the garlic, chilies, lemon juice, olive oil, cayenne pepper, paprika, sugar, and a pinch of salt and pepper.
Cook the chorizo in a frying pan, breaking up into crumbles as it cooks. Set aside and drain on paper towels. Wipe the pan clean and then add the sesame oil and olive oil, heating over medium heat. When hot, add the baby bok choy, sautéing until it starts to wilt and is tender ~ about 8 minutes. Pour the soy sauce and sriracha over and toss to fully coat. Remove and place in a bowl. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and cover in aluminum foil to keep warm.
Meanwhile, melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a medium frying pan. When hot, add the scallops. Cook about 2 minutes per side, or until lightly golden and cooked through. While cooking, brush with the sauce.
While the scallops cooks, return the chorizo to the pan the bok choy was cooked in. Reheat over medium low and pour the remaining sauce over the sausage.
When the scallops are finished cooking, dish the food. In a bowl, scoop in the rice, top with the chorizo and desired sauce. Place the scallops on top and garnish with cilantro. Dish the baby bok choy and any desired bamboo. Serve immediately.
Enjoy!
Keywords: scallops, Thai scallops, spicy Thai red peppers, spicy Thai scallops, bok choy, scallops and chorizo, seafood Saturday
