Feel free to use thawed frozen peas for this recipe. You can buy saffron at upscale grocery stores and specialty food shops. It’s quite expensive but a tiny bit goes a long way. You can always substitute 1/2 tsp turmeric instead. Yield is 4 servings.
ingredients
Pasta
Scallops and Sauce
Assembly
directions
Bring a large pot salted water to a boil over high heat.
Add the angel hair pasta and cook for about 5 minutes or until al dente.
Drain pasta, reserving 1/4 cup of the pasta cooking water.
Heat 1 tbsp. butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat until it just starts to turn brown and nutty.
Season the sea scallops and add them to the pan.
Sear the scallops for 1 to 2 minutes per side or until crispy on the outside and just cooked through.
Remove the scallops from the pan and set aside.
Heat the remaining butter in the same skillet over medium-low heat until melted.
Add the garlic and cook for 1 to 2 minutes or until the garlic is soft.
Put the lemon juice and saffron in a small bowl and stir to combine.
Add the saffron mixture and the peas to the pan, stir and heat for 1 to 2 minutes.
Add the lemon zest and cracked pink peppercorns.
Season the sauce with salt and stir to combine.
Reduce the heat to low and keep warm.
Add the pasta and reserved cooking water to the sauce and toss to coat.
Heat gently on low heat until hot.
Add the seared scallops, chopped fresh chives and parsley to the pan and toss to combine.
Serve the pasta garnished with the garlic chives.