The Beautiful Scallop, to paraphrase Provincetown’s iconic Chef Howard Mitchum, is one of the tastier morsels to come from the sea.
It is readily available, in abundance to those who hold a fishing quota to catch them. A scallop that has been sitting at sea for long lengths of time loses its flavor and texture.
That is why day boat scallops, scallops that are caught, shucked and landed within a 24-36 hour-time span, are the tastiest. Boats that fish out of Chatham do just that every day.
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| F/V Getaway |
Many fishing boat have 2 or 3 crewmen including the captain so the catch is deck-loaded and shucking goes throughout the trip.
The tasty scallops are then bagged to sell at the auction house or to you at the dock.
Here is a recipe from Howard Mitchum’s Provincetown Seafood Cookbook originally written in 1975.It’s an amazing book so if you can find a copy, grab it. The recipes are great, the stories and information on Cape Cod seafood are priceless.
SCALLOPS AU GRATIN
1 lb. or pint of Sea Scallop meats
2 Scallions and 2 inches of their green leaves
½ cup of Sauterne
¼ cup of Sherry
1 cup of cheese sauce (see below)
Toasted bread
2 T Parmesan cheese
Butter as needed
Combine the first five ingredients, put on slices of toast in a casserole. Sprinkle with parmesan cheeses, dot with butter, bake in a moderate 350-degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until brown. (To make the heavy cheese sauce, melt butter in a skillet, remove from the heat, add a little flour, then some milk little by little, stirring constantly. Return to fire and add some American cheese cubes (yes you read it right) , cook it and stir until thick.
Enjoy a classic 1970s dish when local caught seafood was an everyday thing.
Thanks for supporting fishing families by buying from your local seafood harvesters.Beautiful Scallop
