Coquilles St. Jacques translates to Shells of St. James and is the quintessential baked scallop dish made famous, at least in the States, by Julia Child in the early 1960’s.
Cooked in ovenproof shells or ramekins, scallops are nestled within a rich sauce of wine, herbs and cream then topped with toasty, cheesy breadcrumbs. It is an elegant, visually appealing appetizer, luncheon option or at my house, a main for dinner, if portioned properly.
This gratineed preparation for scallops fell out of fashion over the years, though, usually in favor of the current methode du jour: a simple searing.
Regardless of current trends, I will always have a fondness for Coquilles St. Jacques. It is a timeless, cozy classic, and one of the first scallop dishes I ever tasted — my mom’s version of it anyway. The luxurious white sauce that defines the recipe complements the sweetness of the scallops to perfection, but, honestly, I think it would make a piece of cardboard delicious. Sea or bay scallops work for this recipe, but choose wild-caught, hand-harvested, or “diver” scallops. If using frozen, in addition to being wild-caught etcetera, make sure they are “dry.”
If you have access to fresh bay scallops, which are sweeter, more tender and smaller than their deep-sea brethren (averaging about half an inch in size), give them a try in this recipe, though, you can never go wrong with wild-caught, diver (sea) scallops. The only type I avoid are “wet” scallops, which means they were frozen in a liquid solution with a preservative after harvest. Not only would I not want to ingest a preservative soaked scallop, but this process gives them an odd taste and texture. “Dry," on the other hand, means they were flash frozen within a few hours and never stored or frozen in water.
Lastly, make sure the tiny muscle on the side has been removed because it becomes hard and rubbery when cooked. Always rinse scallops thoroughly to remove any sandy grit and pat them totally dry with paper towels before proceeding with any recipe. After a thorough rinsing and before toweling them dry, I give my scallops a milk bath, letting them soak for as long as it takes to prep my ingredients. This will remove any fishy smell or taste.
All the scallops I had in my youth were bay scallops. I would like to finish that sentence with that I harvested myself, but that would not be the truth. I was more the play-along-the-shoreline kind of kid who would rather build sand castles and look for seashells than join my sister and mom snorkeling among the seagrass beds for what was to be dinner.
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They scalloped when we visited my mother’s parents in Mexico Beach, FL. On nice weather days, the three of us would make the half hour drive over to Cape San Blas, a seventeen mile barrier island located south of Port St. Joe, where Highway 30A dead ends into 30E. It is at the southernmost tip along the soft, V-shaped protuberance of coastline that runs between Panama City and Carabelle and was once a hidden slice of secluded paradise with the Gulf on one side and St. Joseph Bay on the other.
Thankfully, even today much of it still remains unspoiled. With crystal clear water and an open scallop season between mid-August and late September, we made a point to schedule a trip to Frannie and Daddy Jim’s house during those weeks.
It was with scallops right out of St. Joe Bay that we made our version of Coquilles St. Jacques, as well as few more of my mother’s favorite recipes featuring those succulent bivalve mollusks that she and my sister pulled from the water. Every delicious first forkful makes me remember the countless iterations I have both been served, as well as made for myself, over the last forty-plus years of my life.
There is no better time to make Coquilles St. Jacques than right now. Cooler weather has either arrived where you are or is on the horizon and this is comfort food at its finest — a creamy, dreamy, luscious and easy-to-make French classic.
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Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds scallops
2 shallots, finely minced (or a combination of shallots and green onions, about 3 to 4 tablespoons)
1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced thin
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 cup dry white wine or vermouth
1 lemon
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup fresh parley, chopped
2 to 3 sprigs fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
4 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup flour
1 cup broth
1/2 cup cream
1 egg yolk
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
Dash of white pepper
2/3 cup Parmesan cheese, divided
1 cup bread crumbs
Directions
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Heat oven to 350F and butter a 9X9 (2 quart) casserole dish or individual ramekins or scallop shells (available in kitchen shops) that hold 1/3 - 1/2 cup measures.
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Clean scallops very well and pat dry with paper towels. (Optional: after rinsing in plain water, place in a milk bath while you prepare vegetables and herbs to remove any fishy odor or taste, then remove, rinse and pat dry)
- Make broth: In a small saucepan, combine shallots, mushrooms, garlic, wine, juice from 1/2 lemon, bay leaf, parsley, thyme, salt and pepper.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Add scallops and simmer an additional 2-5 minutes or until scallops are opaque. Drain and reserve broth. Set scallops and vegetable mixture aside. Pick out bay leaf and sprigs of thyme.
- Melt butter in saucepan. When hot and bubbly, add flour. Stir until well combined and golden. Slowly add broth and stir until smooth. Reduce heat.
- Whisk egg yolk into cream, then slowly add into saucepan, along with 1/3 cup Parmesan and a light sprinkle of nutmeg. Do not boil.
- Add scallop and vegetable mixture to white sauce and stir to combine and thicken.
- Taste and adjust salt and pepper. Add additional lemon juice from remaining half of lemon if desired.
- Pour into prepared casserole dish, ramekins, or shells and top with bread crumbs and remaining 1/3 cup Parmesan.
- Bake until bubbly — about 12 minutes if in a casserole dish, less if in ramekins or shells.
- Optional: Finish with a quick broil to brown the top.
Cook's Notes
Herbs: Do not substitute dried herbs in this recipe. It would be better to omit if you do not have fresh.
Preparing the broth: The amounts of mushrooms, shallots, garlic and herbs are not set in stone. Feel free to use more or less than what is given in the recipe. You can substitute fresh tarragon for the thyme and any onion variety for the shallots as long as they are tiny minced.
Preparing the sauce: Rather than tempering the egg yolk with warm broth, I whisk it into the cream. I have never had an issue with the yolk “cooking” using this method as the heat is very low at this point.
Cheese: Substitute Gruyere or Swiss for the Parmesan or Pecorino Romano if desired.
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