What Are Scallops?

close up view of Scallops with Pesto Cream Sauce garnished with fresh herbs on a white plate — Photo: Allrecipes Magazine

If scallops are something you love at restaurants or have gazed upon with curiosity at your favorite specialty grocer (but have shied away from taking them home), have no fear.

Scallops are quick to cook, versatile in dishes, and pretty widely available, not to mention absolutely delicious. What's not to love? In short, you absolutely should cook them at home. And we've got everything you need to know to properly appreciate and use scallops.

What Are Scallops?

Scallops are seafood, but in particular a type of bivalve mollusk. That's a variety categorized by an interior muscle surrounded by two shells. Other bivalves you may be familiar with include oysters, mussels, and clams.

The part of the scallop we consume is the adductor muscle inside the shell. It is a white or ivory, nearly transparent and tender thing, becoming a bit more opaque when cooked. When the scallop is alive, this muscle opens and closes the shell. In fact, it can do this so quickly, that the motion allows it to do something quite shocking and unique to the bivalve – swim!

The bright orange section of the muscle is called the coral and though it is edible, it isn't usually consumed and is instead trimmed away to reveal a round final product.

mid angle looking into a bowl of creamy bay scallop spaghetti

Get the recipe: Creamy Bay Scallop Spaghetti

What Do Scallops Taste Like?

Culinarily speaking, scallops are the most meaty and substantial bivalve mollusk. Their flesh is delicately sweet, salty, and tender all at once. But unlike their other bivalve buddies, scallops aren't ever aggressive in their brininess or overly fishy.

Where Do Scallops Come From?

Sea scallops come from deep, cold ocean waters worldwide. How deep? Up to 200 meters. For the US, the waters of the Northwest Atlantic produce scallops, the fertile strip running from Newfoundland to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.

Bay scallops come from bays, but also estuaries and other shallow waters on the East Coast. Scallop populations have dwindled over the last few decades here in the US, so much of what is eaten here comes from China and Mexico.

Types of Scallops

The three types of scallops you'll encounter are calico, bay, and sea.

Calico scallops are cousins of bay scallops. They're the tiniest of the three, with brightly colored and speckled shells. Hailing from the warmer waters of the Gulf of Mexico, the meat inside is darker, extremely tender, and boldy nutty. Calicos are best steamed or tossed in a ceviche.

Bay scallops are larger than calico, but smaller than sea, usually about the size of a dime in diameter. They're sourced from shallow waters surrounding the Atlantic coast and are sweeter and more delicate. Bay scallops are best for "raw" preparations like a crudo or ceviche, or added to a chowder.

Sea scallops are the largest, roughly 3 times the size of bay scallops, found up to 2 inches in diameter in the cold, deep Atlantic Ocean. These scallops are what's used for an entrée, being substantial enough to carry a dish. They are the meatiest and saltiest, holding up well to grilling, pan-searing, broiling, or baking.

Harvesting Scallops

How the scallop is harvested has an impact on its texture, flavor, and even its cooking process. There are two ways to do this: wet and dry.

If it is wet harvested, the scallop, once removed from its shell and trimmed, is placed in a cold seawater bath mixed with sodium triphosphate. This makes the scallop plump up and appear larger than its harvest weight.

Dry harvested scallops are simply plucked from the water, shucked, cleaned, and flash-frozen — all within 4 hours of being fished. These gems have no artificial preservatives and that inevitably means their shelf life is shorter, but their shape and texture remain intact from their raw state, which is ideal. If you plan on pan-searing, dry scallops are the only way to go.

What Are Diver Scallops?

The term "diver" in front of the word scallops doesn't mean that the scallops go diving on the weekend, but that the scallops were wild caught by divers who grabbed them by hand. This hand-picking comes with a heftier price tag, but this method is definitely more sustainable.

Dayboat is another term you may encounter. These are scallops harvested dry from smaller fishing boats, during a season spanning only December through February, and sold within 24 hours of being in the ocean. As you can imagine, they are quite prized.

close up view of Spicy Bacon-Wrapped Scallops secured with toothpicks, garnished with lemon wedges, on a plate — Allrecipes Magazine

Get the recipe: Spicy Bacon-Wrapped Scallops

When Is Scallop Season?

Scallop season in Northwest Florida spans July to early October, but in general tends to peak around late fall and winter. Regardless, scallops are available year-round, but like with any food, buying them in peak season guarantees the freshest product.

How to Cook Scallops

Cooking scallops may seem like a daunting task, but they're scallops are a delicious option for any day of the week, and are quite easy to use and quick to cook.

If you're using frozen scallops, be sure to thaw them completely before cooking. Check to see if the catch, a flap of skin that attaches the scallop to the shell, has been fully removed and if not, pull or cut it off. Next, pat the scallops dry. This is especially important if you're pan-searing them because moisture prevents a proper sear.

Scallop Dishes for Two

Pan-searing is the best way to cook a scallop, with the goal a crispy exterior and a creamy, just-cooked interior. Grilling is also great, but a skewer will be necessary to ensure you don't lose any precious bits to the coals. Other options for preparing scallops include baking, broiling, poaching, or using them in a ceviche or a crudo.

Finally, keep two critical things in mind when cooking scallops. First, they are easily overcooked. No one likes chewing on a rubber band so don't make them. Scallops should be cooked until they are just medium, meaning a barely opaque inside that still glistens.

Where to Buy Scallops

As far as seafood goes, scallops are fairly sustainable. It's important to only purchase from reputable suppliers and to check whatever you buy. Scallops should never smell fishy or have an odor reminiscent of sulfur.

Scallops are sold by the pound at upscale grocery markets, but the best place to purchase them is at a fish market. You'll see them marked with a U followed by a number. The U stands for "under" and the number indicates the amount of scallops per pound. For example, purchasing U-10 scallops means you'll get under 10 scallops per pound.

How to Store Scallops

These beauties are quick to spoil. Keep them sealed up tightly in a bag, stored over ice cubes in the fridge. Try and eat them the day you get them, but at the very least within three days.

Cooked scallops can be refrigerated for up to 4 days, as long as they're cooled within 2 hours of being cooked and placed in a zip-top bag. You can freeze cooked scallops for up to three months, but avoid placing them in the freezer door or refreezing.

Only thaw frozen scallops overnight in the fridge. Add them to a glass bowl, seal it in plastic wrap, and wait.