Fettuccine Alfredo With Scallops
Fettuccine Alfredo With Scallops is a quick and easy recipe! With succulent, juicy scallops, al dente pasta and a creamy parmesan sauce.
Servings: 4
Calories: 621kcal
Ingredients
Scallops
- 40 grams/ 2 tablespoons butter unsalted, Note 1
- 500 grams/1 pound scallops rinsed and patted dry with paper towel, Note 2
- ¼ teaspoon salt Note 3
- ½ teaspoon black pepper also Note 3
Alfredo Sauce
- 60 grams/3 tablespoons butter Note 4
- 1 tablespoon garlic chunky chopped, 2 fresh garlic cloves diced or minced garlic, Note 5
- ¼ tsp salt for the sauce, Note 6
- 1 cup/ 250 ml heavy cream Note 7
- 1 cup parmesan cheese freshly grated using a micro plane zester, Note 8
Pasta
- 500 grams/ 1pound fettuccine Note 9
- ½ cup/125 ml reserved pasta water Note 10
Garnish:
- flat leaf parsley Note 11
- black pepper Note 12
- parmesan cheese Note 13
Instructions
- Scallops: rinse the scallops and use paper towel to pat them dry. Then place a large sauté pan on the stove top, turn the heat to high and add the butter, scallops, salt and pepper. Cook the scallops for 3-4 minutes, using a pair of tongs to flip them so that each side gets a nice sear. Once the scallops are cooked, use a slotted turner to remove them from the pan and place them into a paper towel lined bowl.
- Alfredo sauce: next without rinsing or cleaning the pan, add the 2nd lot of butter, garlic and salt. Fry these stirring as you go for 1 minute to allow the garlic to cook. When the minute is up pour in the cream, then add the parmesan cheese and turn the heat to low. Allow the cheese to melt into the cream and give it a stir or 2 as you go.
- Pasta: read and follow the packet instructions to cook the fettuccine in a medium pan of salted boiling water. Moments before it is al dente (a little bit chewy) use a heatproof jug to scoop out 1-2 cups of pasta water. Then use a colander over the sink to drain the pasta and discard the rest of the water.
- Combine: give the sauce a final stir then add the drained hot pasta to the pan. Next measure and pour in ½ cup (125 ml) of the pasta water then add the chopped parsley to the pan. Now take a pair of kitchen tongs and toss the pasta with the sauce until it is consistently mixed in.
- Scallops and pasta: once the pasta and sauce are combined add the cooked scallops back to the pan. Then gently stir to mix them in. Allow them to heat through.
- To serve: garnish the dish with a liberal sprinkling of freshly grated parmesan cheese and black pepper. Portion onto plates and provide forks and spoons.
Video
Notes
- Note 1 - Butter: the 1st lot of butter is used to cook the scallops in. As such, we don't use oil in the recipe.
- Note 2 - Scallops: plump, juicy and delicious these are an excellent protein! Purchase from the grocery store or local fish shop.
- Note 3 - Salt and pepper: we use cooking salt and a little bit of black pepper to season the scallops as we cook them.
- Note 4 - Butter: this is the 2nd lot of butter and is used as the basis for creating the creamy alfredo sauce.
- Note 5 - Garlic: you can use 2 fresh garlic cloves, chunky chopped garlic (as shown in the photo above) or minced garlic.
- Note 6 - Salt: we use salt in the sauce as a means to season it. As such the butter we use to cook the scallops and butter used to make the sauce should be unsalted.
- Note 7 - Cream: we want to use heavy cream for the recipe. It is the key ingredient for the creamy pasta sauce.
- Note 8 - Parmesan cheese: we add this to the cream. It melts and thickens the alfredo.
- Note 9 - Fettuccine: cooked till al dente (a little bit chewy). You can also use linguine, spaghetti, tagliatelle or pappardelle.
- Note 10- Reserved pasta water: not shown above as this is leftover from when we cook the pasta. It helps to create the creamy thick alfredo sauce. We do scoop out more than we need ie 1-2 cups as it simply is easier than trying to measure whilst leaning over the hot saucepan bubbling away with boiling water.
- Note 11 - Parsley: we want to chop this using kitchen scissors and toss it through the pasta. This way it is consistently combined, not simply 'on top' of the pasta.
- Note 12 - Pepper: we want to sprinkle some freshly cracked black pepper over the dish for serving.
- Note 13 - Parmesan cheese: a little more cheese grated over the top of the dish is the perfect way to finish it off!
Nutrition
Calories: 621kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 50g | Saturated Fat: 31g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 13g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 180mg | Sodium: 1366mg | Potassium: 384mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1720IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 359mg | Iron: 1mg