Spicy Scallops

Last night my husband bought some scallops but we didn’t get around to cooking them for dinner, so tonight it’s scallops. I browsed online for an inspiring scallop recipe, but couldn’t find any that caught my eye. Remembering the Firecracker Shrimp that Pioneer Woman made for the 4th of July, I became inspired to adapt that recipe to the scallops.

Ingredients:
1.3 lbs fresh water sea scallops
2 tbs El Pato sauce (selected for it low sodium level)
3 tbs olive oil
1 tea sugar
5 cloves pressed garlic
Black pepper

Directions:
1. In a bowl (with a cover) combine the sauce, olive oil, sugar, garlic, and pepper to taste.
2. Add the scallops and stir to coat. They will not be dripping with the mixture, it will be just enough to add flavor.
3. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator until ready to use (at least 20 min)
4. When ready to cook, heat some olive oil in a sauté pan
5. Place scallops in a single layer and cook for 5-10 minutes until opaque
6. Serve immediately


The scallops had a nice flavor, not too spicy, but with enough heat to notice. We served them over a salad with our homemade tomato salsa. Not wanting to waste the flavorful liquid in the sauté pan, we cooked some pasta and mixed it in. This gave the pasta hint of spice and went well with the scallops and salsa.