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We don’t eat nearly as much seafood as we’d like. I try to buy only high quality, sustainably raised fish that are mostly wild caught, and those usually cost an arm and a leg. The times we do eat fish, it’s because we scored a sale or a deal at our local Whole Foods or farmers market. It’s an exciting night in our household when there’s seafood for dinner. I think that’s the beauty of eating high quality ingredients. There’s so much appreciation for the food we eat because not only are they more difficult to come by and they have a seasonal life span, they taste SO much better.
One of our favorite seafood is scallops. Although sea scallops are large and plump, and taste fantastic on the grill, bay scallops are just as delicious but smaller AND I saw them on sale this week.
They can be tricky to grill because of their smaller size, but difficult or not, I am not willing to compromise when it comes to grilling seafood. Seafood cooked on the grill tastes thousandth times better on the grill than on the pan or in the oven in my not-so-humble opinion. Enter: skewers.
Skewers are a great solution for grilling anything small and/or delicate and I use them often. Since the weather is always nice here, we fire up the grill at least twice a week and I absolutely love it.
Since scallops take a hot second to cook through I usually cook it last if I have other things to grill at the same time, like asparagus.
The scallops are still slippery and delicate while on the skewers, so I like to use a big spatula for placing them on the grill and flipping them.
Be careful not to overcook the scallops! I served them with grilled asparagus and roasted potatoes and they were fantastic.
Did you know?
Just 6 oz of scallops provide the recommended daily intake for B12 and 20 grams of protein. They also have an adequate amount of magnesium, selenium, and zinc, nutrients most people are deficient in!
GRILLED BAY SCALLOP SKEWERS
Ingredients
- 1 lb bay scallops
- Skewers
- 2 tbsp avocado oil
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper (omit for AIP)
- 1/4 tsp fresh thyme
- Juice from 1/4 lemon
Instructions
- Soak the skewers for at least 30 minutes in water to prevent them from burning on the grill.
- Place scallops on skewers so the widest surface of the scallop lie face down on a dish. 1 lb scallops should yield about 4 skewers.
- Whisk together avocado oil, salt, pepper, and thyme and pour over the scallops.
- Marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
- Preheat your grill to high.
- Grill any vegetables you'll be serving before the scallops.
- Place the scallops on the grill and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side, using a wide spatula to flip them.
- They are done when they are opaque and lightly charred on both sides.
- Take them off the grill, sprinkle with lemon juice, and serve immediately.
