Tuesday, January 17, 2012

A scallop, live and whole




A scallop in the shell looks very little like a "scallop."

The other night, the restaurant got in a bag of super-fresh, super-awesome live scallops. They ran a special on them, $4 each, for a scallop that was steamed in its own juices. They took a scallop (see top picture, that thing was easily the size of my hand) and put a ring of dough around the shell to seal it shut. They then roasted it for a few minutes, to steam the scallop, and then presented it just like that.

I ordered one, just for the sheer novelty, and dissected it. You had to crack off the dough ring, break the two halves of the shell apart, and then pick through the scallop insides (various membranes, a bag of black stuff, some muscles and connective tissue) to get through to the actual scallop. You know, the part that looks like a scallop.

Pretty tasty. A lot of work. But it was worth it, just for the experience. When was the last time you dissected a scallop still in the shell?

1 comment:

  1. We dissected molluscs today in Bio lab. I thought to myself, "Geez, who could see this stuff and still eat one? Oh wait, Jenny totally could."

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