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Pan-Seared Scallops with Creamy Lemon-Caper Sauce is a 30-minute ONE-PAN Pescatarian dinner. The scallops are seared on the stove top in a skillet to a nice golden crust and then smothered in a creamy sauce made with butter, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, capers, and heavy cream. This recipe is keto, low-carb, gluten-free.
This recipe is all about how to make the best seared scallops and not worry about them being rubbery or dry! This is achieved by 1) cooking the scallops on stove top using the proper technique, and 2) coating them in a creamy sauce to keep them moist and to add more flavor!
When cooking scallops, it's important to cook them really fast on a really hot skillet and then immediately remove them from the skillet (not just remove the skillet from heat). This ensures that the scallops retain their nice golden crust and are not overcooked (rubbery).
Sear Scallops are really good in a creamy sauce, and I made a simple cream sauce using butter, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, capers, some salt to taste, and, of course, heavy cream. Make sure to prepare this sauce first, and cook scallops second, in a separate large skillet.
I used my favorite stainless steel skillet to cook scallops. When heated up to the right (high) temperature and used properly, stainless steel skillets produce beautiful searing results.
Seared Scallops with Creamy Lemon-Caper Sauce (30 Minutes, ONE-PAN)
Ingredients
Scallops:
- 1 pound scallops , medium size, about 12-14 scallops, thawed completely if frozen
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
Creamy Lemon-Caper Sauce:
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- ⅔ cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons capers drained
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice freshly squeezed, more if desired
- salt to taste
Instructions
How to cook the best pan-seared scallops:
- If using frozen scallops, make sure the scallops are thawed completely.
- Blot each scallop with paper towels to remove extra water.
- Season with salt by sprinkling each scallop with a dash of salt.
- Use a large, non-stick skillet (I used stainless steel skillet which works well for me as non-stick). Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in this non-stick skillet on high heat until hot but not smoking. Oil should not be smoking, just rolling easily around the skillet.
- Add scallops without overcrowding the pan.
- Sear on one side for about 3-4 minutes until the bottom is nice golden color. Don't move the scallops around the pan in the beginning.
- Turn the scallops to the other side and cook for 2 more minutes.
- Remove from heat and transfer the scallops to the plate immediately. Don't let the scallops sit in the hot skillet, off heat, because they will start to steam, lose their crust and harden up.
How to make creamy lemon-caper sauce:
- Heat butter, olive oil, and minced garlic on medium heat in the same empty skillet. Cook for about a minute until the garlic softens. Add heavy cream, bring to a boil, and cook for a couple of minutes until the sauce thickens a bit. Remove from heat. Stir in drained capers and freshly squeezed lemon juice. Taste, add more lemon juice and salt, if needed.
- Add cooked scallops to the cream sauce and reheat gently. Serve.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
This is my new go to for scallops. very easy and an awesome taste.
These were very good. I used half and half because it's all I had on hand and served it with asparagus. Thank you!
Never tried scallops before, but this was very easy and turned out absolutely delicious! Worthy of a 5 star restaurant***** Thank you!
I am a struggling cook. I made this tonight and it was so delicious and I didn’t overcook the scallops. Served with pasta and a salad. A fabulous meal and easy enough for me!
So happy you tried this recipe and enjoyed it! Yes, the scallops are great when served with pasta and a salad.
How early can I make the creamy lemon caper sauce I have a huge party to do on Saturday just wondering if it could be made ahead of time and then reheated
I don't like to make creamy sauces in advance because they lose their texture when reheated. This sauce is really so easy - you don't have to make it ahead.
Oh my god, this was amazing!!!! I love capers and always make a chicken piccata, but was in the mood for scallops and saw this recipe, made it last night for myself with six scallops, made the sauce, added a little parm cheese to thicken it up as well, seared the scallops to perfection & also made a little pasta, was so delish! Still thinking about it the next morning! My six year old daughter saw me eating this & goes, "mom, are you in heaven?" So good!
Thank you, Robyn! Your comment made my day! Thank you for stopping by and taking the time to share such a positive review! 🙂
Fabulous - the grown kids fought over the last one! WE had leftover sauce so I'll use it late this week with mild fish. Just delicious. Did mine on the gas grill in my stainless heavy skillet. Thanks for a great recipe!
You are very welcome! So glad you enjoyed this recipe! 🙂
Oh dang!!! Just made this for my wife and we both said “never ordering scallops in a restaurant again”....so flipping good.
I am so happy to hear that! Thank you for stopping by and leaving such a wonderful comment!
This was amazing. Best scallop recipe ever and very easy!
So happy to hear that, Kate! Thank you!
Great recipe. Served over angel hair pasta and roasted broccoli and red peppers. Gave the plate some color.
So glad you liked the recipe! What a great idea to serve scallops with angel hair pasta and some roasted broccoli!
Fantastic
Thank you!
I am going to try it with chicken scalopini or shrimp as we are not scallop lovers. Probably with pasta in the sauce. Looks great
Thank you! This will go great with pasta!
Sounds great, going to try it tomorrow. One small thing, in step 12 it says add cooked capers to the cream sauce, probably should say cooked scallops. Thanks for the recipe!
Just made this for dinner.....awesome! Will put it on a favorites list!
Thank you, Linda! So glad you tried the recipe and liked it! 🙂
Damn, this looks so delicious!! I can't wait to try it myself. Thanks for the recipe!
Enjoy!
such a beautiful dish! And so well presented. Cheers
Thank you! 🙂