Squid and scallops with dill, mustard and honey dressing
INGREDIENTS
(serves one)
3 queen scallops
1 medium squid tube with tentacles, about 300g uncleaned
Salt
Mixed salad leaves
Clarified butter
Cornflowers or marigold petals for garnish
Lemon wedges
For the dressing
1kg Dijon mustard
600ml honey
2 litres vegetable oil
600ml white wine vinegar or lime juice (or a mixture)
Freshly ground black pepper
1tsp minced fresh garlic
4tsp garlic salt
METHOD
Shuck the scallops, removing the skirt and coral. Rinse and put in the fridge on a clean tea towel. Skin the squid and cut into rings - the thicker the body of the squid, the thinner the rings should be. Rinse the tentacles well to remove grit. Leave the length whole, but divide the batch of tentacles into two or three pieces depending on thickness - leave small tentacles together and separate larger ones to allow even cooking. Put the squid on a tea towel to remove excess water.
Combine the dressing ingredients and season to taste. If the texture is too thick to drizzle, add a few drops of boiling water.
When ready to assemble, have the salad garnish and two frying pans ready - a heavy skillet for the scallops and a lighter pan for the squid. Sprinkle a little salt on the scallops about six to 10 minutes before cooking. Cook the scallops first, searing on both sides, and remove the pan from the heat to finish cooking.
Heat some clarified butter in the squid pan until almost smoking. Swirl butter around pan to coat and put excess butter back in the butter pot. Throw in the squid and leave for 30 seconds to let the heat in the pan recover - you can season lightly at this stage - then toss until evenly seared and remove from the heat when still opaque.
To plate up, arrange a nest of salad leaves on the plate. Put the squid on first and the scallops on top. Drizzle with a little dill, mustard and honey dressing and garnish with cornflowers and/or marigold petals and a wedge of lemon. Serve the dish while still warm and opaque.
