A classic French duxelle is a mixture of finely chopped mushrooms and fresh herbs sautéed in butter that usually accompanies savory dishes such as tarts, a lovely beef Wellington, or even an add-in for a fancy sauce. In this case, I decided to make a duxelle with not only mushrooms, but chopped roasted chestnuts as well. A lovely accompaniment to a plate of perfectly seared sea scallops set atop a bed of wilted spinach. A last minute drizzle of a slightly tart white wine-butter sauce and le dîner est servi.
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Seared Scallops with Mushroom-Chestnut Duxelle
Ingredients:
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- Crushed red pepper flakes
- 8 oz. baby spinach
- 4 oz. cremini mushrooms, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 sprigs of fresh thyme, chopped
- ½ cup roasted and shelled chestnuts, chopped
- 2 Tablespoons butter, divided
- 6 large sea scallops
- ¼ cup white wine
Directions:
- Heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a Dutch oven. Add in a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes and the baby spinach, season with a pinch of salt and pepper, and saute for 3-4 minutes, or until the spinach is wilted. Set aside.
- For the duxelle, in a medium saute pan melt 1 tablespoon of butter. Add in the chopped mushrooms, garlic and fresh thyme. Season with ¼ teaspoon salt and a grinding of black pepper; cook, stirring constantly, over medium-low heat for 5-7 minutes, or until the mushrooms have exuded most of their liquid. Add in the chestnuts and heat for an additional minute. Remove from the heat and keep warm.
- To sear the scallops, place a drizzle of oil in a non-stick skillet. Heat over high heat; season each the scallops with a pinch of salt and pepper. Sear on each side for 1 minute, flipping once. Remove the scallops from the pan, reduce the heat to medium and add in the white wine, scraping up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Cook until the wine has reduced by half; add in the last tablespoon of butter and season with salt and pepper. Once the butter is incorporated into the sauce, plate the dish.
- To plate this dish, place half of the spinach on each serving plate. Top with the duxelle, then the scallops. Drizzle with the warm sauce.
Tagged: chestnuts, mushroom duxelle, mushroom-chestnut duxelle, roasted chestnuts, scallops, seared scallop, shellfish, spinach, wilted spinach
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