Scallops and Black Pudding with Pea Puree

If you're looking for a delicious and impressive starter recipe, look no further than this scallops and black pudding dish.

Simple to prepare, and the result is sure to wow your guests when serving the plates!

In this post, we'll show you how to perfectly pan-fry the scallops, black pudding and bacon and present them beautifully with bright green pea puree.

Jump to:

• 📖 Step by Step Recipe
• Ingredients
• What are Scallops?
• What is Black Pudding?
• Making Crispy Bacon
• Pea Puree
• Starter Plating Presentation
• More Starter Recipe Ideas
• Starters Appetizers
• 💬 Reviews

Here is the recipe card so you can get started immediately, but there is plenty more information about this starter recipe after the instructions, too!

📖 Step by Step Recipe

This post was originally posted on 17/03/2022. We moved the recipe card up in the post on 17/07/2024 to make it more user-friendly.

Ingredients

This shellfish starter recipe only has a few ingredients, available in supermarkets, or buy scallops from fishmongers and black pudding from the butchers.

• Scallops
• Black Pudding
• Bacon
• Lemon
• Frozen Peas
• Butter

What are Scallops?

Scallops are a type of seafood that is often considered a delicacy.

They are usually round or oval and have a white or pinkish colour. Scallops are found in both fresh and saltwater and harvested all year round.

What do scallops taste like?

There are many types of scallops, but the most common are king scallops. These large scallops have a sweet, delicate flavour similar to crab or lobster.

Choose scallops that are white with a slightly pinkish hue.

The scallop size doesn't matter; make sure they're all around the same size to cook evenly.

They should feel firm with a slight bounce to the touch. Avoid wet or slimy scallops, as this is a sign of spoilage.

Finally, sniff them; fresh scallops will have a sweet, ocean-like aroma.

How to prepare scallops

The first step is to remove it from the shell, then remove the small side muscle from the scallops if it's still attached. This is easy; no knife is required; just peel it off with your fingers.

Do I need to wash scallops?

Yes, washing scallops before cooking them is essential to remove any sand, dirt, or debris on the surface.

Rinse them under cold water and then pat dry with a paper towel.

Place on a small plate and season the scallops with salt and pepper.

How to cook scallops

When cooking scallops, the most important thing is not to overcook them.

Put olive oil in a frying pan over high heat. Sear the scallops on each side for 2-3 minutes until they're golden brown on the top. Add a squeeze of lemon juice.

Cooking scallops this way will ensure they're nice and tender, with a beautiful sear on the outside.

They'll become tough and rubbery if you cook them too long, so be careful!

What is Black Pudding?

Black pudding is a blood sausage popular in England, Scotland and Ireland.

It contains pork blood, pork fat, oatmeal, and spices, which are formed into a sausage casing and cooked before being sold.

The white chunks seen in the slices are not fat but oatmeal and barley.

You can buy whole black pudding sausage to chop yourself or buy big slices already chopped.

What does black pudding taste like?

Black pudding has a distinctive flavour, with an oaty, slightly spiced nutty taste and a smooth yet crumbly texture. It doesn't taste like blood, as many would think.

How to cook black pudding:

Black pudding comes already cooked, so all you do is warm it through; we like to fry black pudding for a crisp finish.

First, heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat, add the black pudding slices and cook for 2 -3 minutes on each side.

They're ready when nicely browned and slightly crisp around the edges. Perfect for serving with this scallop recipe.

Black Pudding Substitution

Don't like the idea of eating pork blood? There are other options available.

White Pudding

White pudding is made with pork, pork fat, oatmeal, and spices.

Vegetarian Black Pudding

There is also a vegetarian option that uses vegetable fats instead of pork fat.

Or you could serve just the scallops with pea puree and crispy bacon!

Making Crispy Bacon

Crispy bacon bits add salty flavour and crisp texture to this scallop starter recipe.

Chop the bacon into small pieces. Heat a large pan with a dash of oil over medium heat, then add the bacon.

Cook for eight to ten minutes or until crisp. Once done, remove it with a slotted spoon from the pan and place it on a paper towel-lined plate.

Alternatively, cook bacon in an air fryer and chop into small pieces.

Pea Puree

We have a separate blog post for our Pea Puree Recipe.

It is easy to make using frozen peas and butter; you can add flavouring by boiling the peas in stock instead of water.

Before blending the cooked peas, save a few whole peas to decorate the finished scallops with the pea puree recipe.

Or make it a minted pea by adding mint jelly during pureeing.

Starter Plating Presentation

Once your scallops and black pudding slices are cooked, it's time to assemble the dish. Start by pouring a generous amount of pea purée onto each plate.

Use the back of a spoon to smear it across the plate into a teardrop shape.

Place the cooked black pudding slices on the pea puree, then the scallop.

Finish decorating the plate with the peas, crispy bacon and pea shoots. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with pea shoots and a wedge of lemon.

This scallops and black pudding recipe is sure to impress your guests. Enjoy!

More Starter Recipe Ideas

We have plenty of seafood starter recipes such as gambas pil pil, tuna patties or smoked salmon cocktail.

Or if you want a meatier starter, bacon-wrapped sausages, glazed bratwurst or chicken wings.