Pistachio Crusted Sea Scallops with Champagne Risotto and Roasted Asparagus
Pistachio Crusted Sea Scallops with Champagne Risotto and Roasted Asparagus is a beautiful, restaurant-quality meal that’s easy to prepare at home. Perfect for any private celebration for two!
Have you made your dinner reservations for Valentine’s Day yet? You probably need to get rolling on that if you haven’t.
Or, don’t worry about it at all. You won’t miss going out with this restaurant-quality meal of Pistachio Crusted Sea Scallops with Champagne Risotto and Roasted Asparagus. It’s easily prepared for a romantic Valentine’s Day dinner at home. Just think… No crowds and no limited, astronomically priced menus!
Sweet sea scallops encrusted with a pistachio, lemon zest and black pepper combination are served atop a simple baked champagne risotto accompanied by roasted asparagus.
Play some soft music, light some candles, pour some champagne or a beautiful wine and you’re all set!
How to make Champagne Risotto:
First, you’ll need to get the risotto going. Here’s a great almost hands-off method you’re going to love that doesn’t need to be painstakingly stirred!
- Start the risotto on the stovetop which is what most risotto recipes require.
- When it’s time to add the heated broth, add all but a small amount.
- Get the risotto boiling then take off the heat, cover and place in a preheated oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes.
- Check it once or twice just to be sure it doesn’t get dry while baking.
- Remove from the oven, stir in the remaining broth, cream and cheese and voila, you’ve got risotto!
- Risotto is done when it’s tender but still has that appealing al dente bite.
Tips for buying sea scallops:
- When buying sea scallops, look for dry-packed scallops that have not been treated with a chemical solution.
- Most sea scallops are mechanically harvested. Unless you purchase diver-caught scallops that are hand-harvested, they may contain a small amount of grit.
- Rinse them well under cold running water and pat dry. I’ve got a full scallop buying, handling and searing tutorial in this post.
I like to hand chop the pistachios for this dish because a mini food processor tends to pulverize them too much. Another option is to use a manual nut chopper.
Roasting, a method that I think brings out the best flavor is our favorite way of enjoying most vegetables—especially asparagus. A simple treatment of olive oil, salt and pepper is all it needs to complement the rest of the dish.
If your sweetie has a nut allergy, try the blackening combination in my Blackened Halibut recipe. The spiciness is wonderful against the rich, creamy risotto.
To finish out this romantic dinner of pistachio encrusted sea scallops, start with a mixed baby green salad with balsamic vinaigrette and purchase some tiramisu for dessert!
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Be sure to try these other sea scallop recipes!
- Pan-Seared Sea Scallops with Watermelon-Tomato Salsa
- Seared Sea Scallops with Spicy Bacon Sun-Dried Tomato and Tagliatelle
- Seared Sea Scallops with Tomato Red Onion and Balsamic Salsa
- Seared Sea Scallops with Jalapeno Brown Butter and Mango Buttermilk Risotto
- Pan-Seared Sea Scallops with Watermelon Tomato Salsa
- Sweet Corn Risotto with Seared Sea Scallops and Basil Salsa Verde
Pistachio Crusted Sea Scallops with Champagne Risotto and Roasted Asparagus
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Ingredients
Risotto
- 2 ¼ cups chicken broth - divided
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- ½ medium onion - finely chopped (about 1 cup)
- 2 cloves garlic - minced
- ¾ cup Arborio rice
- ½ cup dry champagne
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper - to taste
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley - plus more for garnish
Scallops
- ¼ cup shelled roasted and salted pistachios - finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- Freshly ground black pepper - to taste
- 1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter - divided
- 8-10 large sea scallops - washed and patted dry
- Salt - to taste
Asparagus
- 1 bunch bunch asparagus - tough ends trimmed
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper - to taste
Instructions
Risotto
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place chicken broth in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and keep warm.
- Heat olive oil and butter over medium-high heat in an oven-safe saucepan. Add the onion, reduce heat to medium and cook for 4-5 minutes or until softened, being careful not to brown it. Add garlic and rice and cook for 1-2 minutes or until slightly translucent, being careful not to brown it. Add the champagne and cook, stirring until almost evaporated.
- Stir in 2 cups chicken broth and bring to a boil. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. Remove from heat, cover and transfer to the oven. Bake 20-25 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed. (Do not let rice get dry.)
- Remove from the oven. Stir in the remaining ¼ cup chicken broth, cream, Parmesan cheese and parsley.
Scallops
- Combine chopped pistachios, lemon zest and black pepper in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Heat in a nonstick skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat. Season scallops with salt and black pepper. Cook approximately 1-2 minutes on the first side or until browned. Turn scallops and cook 1 more minute, basting scallops with butter in the pan. The scallops are properly cooked when slightly firm to the touch.
- Using tongs, remove the scallops from the pan and lightly dredge in the pistachio mixture, pressing gently to secure.
Asparagus
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss asparagus with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast 6-8 minutes to desired tenderness.
- To serve, place risotto on a plate, top with scallops and asparagus. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley.
Nutrition
These are estimated values generated from a nutritional database using unbranded products. Please do your own research with the products you're using if you have a serious health issue or are following a specific diet.
Fabulous meal. Terrific, elegant dinner. I will definitely make this again. I did make a few minor change. I chose to cook the risotto on my cooktop instead of baking. I made more of the pistachio mixture than the recipe called for and sprinkled the remainder over the entire dish once plated to add more crunch to the dish. I also squeezed a little lemon juice over the scallops.
Hi, Lynne, Thank so very much and so happy you enjoyed!! Love your little tweaks, too! Thanks again!
Absolutely phenomenal!!!!
Hi, Laura, Thanks so much and so happy you enjoyed and love this recipe!
Hi there. Looking forward to making this meal for company tonight. I’ve read the recipe several times. At what point do I add the cream to the risotto?
Sorry. I found it. Last step.
Great! Hope you all enjoy!
I’m so happy to have discovered the wonderful meal that you created, it sounds delicious.
Thank you, Karen!
Well I must admit I’m not the biggest asparagus fan, this dish looks amazing! I love scallops and these are clearly perfectly cooked. Going on my “must make” list for sure!!
What a beautiful plate of food. This would be a perfect romantic dinner for Valentine’s day.
Omg, you had me at champagne risotto!!! This is beautiful and a great source of protein with the scallops. YUM.
Thank you, Dominique!
This is INCREDIBLE. Sea scallops are one of my favorites- I love them more than lobster and just as much as a really really good piece of ahi tuna. Crusting them with pistachios is so decadent– I love it!
Thank you, Sarah! Scallops are a favorite of mine too. They’re so easy to prepare once you get the hang of searing them and make such a beautiful, elegant meal.