Quick doesn’t have to be boring – especially when it comes to food. Top quality ingredients will give you amazing tasting food, and you don’t always have to spend hours preparing it with a long list of ingredients. That’s not to say I don’t enjoy making complex meals too, but here’s a fast food experience that will be ready in less time than it takes to wait for a food delivery.
Ingredients per person
- 4-6 fresh scallops
- 2 cups of washed spinach (roughly chopped)
- About 6 mushrooms, sliced not too thinly
- 1 large clove of garlic, crushed
- A little oil for frying
- 1 tablespoon of black bean sauce
- Soy sauce
- Lemon or lime juice
Start by gently frying the mushrooms in a little oil and when they start to soften, add the garlic and spinach and cook until the spinach wilts.
On a hot griddle or under a hot grill, quickly cook the scallops on both sides (this can take less than a minute per side).
Stir the black bean sauce and about a teaspoon of soy sauce into the spinach and mushrooms. Serve the scallops on top of the vegetables with a little squeeze of lemon or lime juice.
Chica Andaluza 
Delicious and very true. Some things, such as scallops, are better cooked quickly too 😉
Oh indeed – nothing worse than tough, overcooked scallops – well, there are worse things…but you know what I mean!
Overcooked would be quite bad – there’s nothing more disappointing than food that’s gone wrong.
Yes, tough overcooked anything is not good 😦
This looks delicious! Hopefully I will be able to bring some scallops up when I dive this year.
Oh my word – I can only imagine how fresh and sweet they would be!
Scrummy. But I prefer to play with them and make them swim – they look like clockwork false teeth! (Think Bedknobs and Broomsticks)
Ha ha – I can imagine it exactly!
sounds just fab, c
🙂
You have outdone yourself, that looks so delicious!
Why thank you 🙂
You’re welcome!
You are so right, scallops are so quickly prepared and your Asian flavored dish sounds delicious.
It added just a nice little hint of extra flavour!
My kind of food, Tanya. Quick and easy 🙂 Thank you!
I’m all about the quick and easy!
Fresh. Fast. Fabulous. Love it!
Thank you!
I’ll certainly try this variation ~ have cooked mostly Asian for some three decades or more but never used black bean sauce with spinach! What a lovely ‘soft’ tasting flavouring to use!!!
It was quite delicate as I didn’t want to lose that gorgeous scallop flavour!
LOVE this kind of Fast Food Tanya! Those scallops look absolutely delicious!
They’re a big favourite here and not too expensive right now for us as they are local and in season!
Sounds like the perfect fast food to me 🙂
Fast food of the best kind!
It sounds more than delicious!
THANK YOU!
Prego!
That looks beautiful – I’d love to dig in to a plate like that.
Would be most happy to share!
If only!
I’m not a huge scallops fan, but I have to admit this looks mighty tasty.
Some people just don’t like the texture – but these local ones are almost impossible to resist!
Oooh, love the black bean sauce in this! Winter’s a great time for scallops around here, as long as the fleet can get out!
It must be a little wilder at sea where you are than in the English Channel I think!
This is such a delicious dish. I can’t think why I haven’t cooked it for so long. Maybe it’s because it makes me think of chinese restaurants which are now a thing of the past to me:)
For me too – even though we’re currently in England, I can’t remember the last time I went to a Chinese Restaurant!
Just the mushroom and spinach look good enough to eat, add scallops to it and there’s pure magic in the meal:)
I think the spinach and mushrooms would be great with rice as a meal!
(Forgive me warming up for this…”mee-mee-mee-meeeeeeee…aHEM…”) “Happy birthday to youuuuuu…Happy Birthday to Youuuuu…Happy Birthday Ms. Chica Andalusia….Happy Birthday Toooooo YOOOOOUUUUU!” Here’s to a magnificent day spent in the company of gorgeous people, quaffing and eating whatever you fancy and enjoying yourself to the max, becuase you are one amazing Chica ma’am 🙂 Love, hugs kisses and slobbers from everyone on Serendipity Farm who are all (including the dogs) going to raise a glass to you later on today 🙂 (before anyone reports me to the R.S.P.C.A. “Water folks…the dogs will have water!” 😉 )
Ah, this was wonderful! I can hear your dulcet tones ringing in my ears (in a good way!). How lovely of you to remember….am having a lazy morning with coffee and my favourite sourdough bread and tomato, then a couple of hours work (glossing skirting boards today), then best pal arrives and drink with pals, then off for a curry (yum!) so a good day planned. Love to you all too – you’ve made my day 🙂
A curry you say Ms Chica? I haven’t had a curry in AGES and if there is one thing that Ms narf does pretty well, it is a nice curry. Only found my curry leaves in the back of the cupboard the other day. I think its a sign! 😉 So glad you had an amazing day. I probably (not the word “probably” now I am 50 I won’t ever take my brain activity as a given any more!) will remember your birthday from now on as it is the same day as Madeline’s 🙂
Ooh it was GOOD! And now I won’t forget Madeline’s birthday either (or her name – the same as my beautiful god daughter)!
It is a very small world :). Is it spelled the same way? Most of the time it is spelled “Madeleine” (like that series of vintage books). Madeline was named after that amazing American comedienne Madeline Khan 🙂
Mine’s different again – she’s Madelaine!
LOL! They keep coming up with all of these variations and every time you think you spell them right, you get the evil eye 😉
We adore scallops and this recipe looks delicious. My only trouble is that I blink and I’ve overdone them…
It’s easily done. I’ve found that if I leave them out of the fridge for an hour or so before cooking to really get them to room temperature then put them on the hottest griddle possible, they cook perfectly!
Great tip – thanks! 🙂
You are most welcome – hope it works for you!
Looks amazing – if only scallops could grow in allotments!
Wouldn’t that be a great gardening triumph!
As soon as I read “scallops” and quick doesn’t have to be boring.. I’ve pinned this one to try:) I love scallops (as do the rest of my family) and am so wanting new weeknight fast recipes that don’t require a ton of measuring and fussing about! And it’s healthy as well!!
The healthy bit was an added bonus – do hope you’ll enjoy it if you make it!
I totally agree with you on this meal. The best ingredients will speak for themselves and these scallops seem to have done just that. Muy bien hecho!
Muchisimas gracias Amanda!
You do such wonderful things with seafood!
We’re very lucky in both Spain and England to have really great fish and seafood so easily available! Thanks for the kind words 🙂
I have an odd relationship with scallops. I’m still undecided as to whether I like them or not. I think if they’re good ones – the really big, fat ones then they can be fantastic when cooked well. Seafood in black bean sauce though is amazing isn’t it?! Looks great Chica 🙂
I can understand your feelings – some people just don’t like the texture. The ones here in season over the winter are big fat juicy Rye Bay Scallops – we love them!