scallop salad with ginger and lime

serves 4

What You Need

For the Salad

18 king scallops
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1-1/2" finger of fresh ginger, finely shredded
1 green chili, seeded and chopped
The juice of 2 fresh limes
The zest of 1 lime, shredded fine
150g of curly endive
150g of lamb’s lettuce
1 bulb of fennel, cut into spikes or shredded with the large knife of a mandolin

For the Dressing

6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
A small bunch of fresh coriander, chopped fine – all in all about 4 or 5 tablespoons (this is even better with chopped lovage if you have it in your garden, but it is generally hard to come by)
Maldon sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Here’s How

Zest your lime. Remove the corals from the scallops and cut any large parts of the white in two. Heat your oil in a pan or tepenyaki grill. Add the shredded ginger or the chili and cook for a few seconds. Now throw in the whites and corals and cook for 2 minutes. Turn over and cook for another 2 minutes. Pouring the lime juice on the top, remove immediately from the heat and let cool. Wash and dry your lamb’s lettuce and curly endive and tear it into appropriate size pieces. Place them in a large, flat bowl.

Now make your dressing by adding all the ingredients to a food processor or blender and pulsing, being careful not to chop the coriander or lovage too fine. Taste your dressing and season. Pour half of the dressing over the salad and toss. Add the corals and whites of the scallops and spoon on the rest of the dressing. Garnish with lime zest and serve immediately.

The spicy sweet ginger root, whose use dates back more than 5,000 years ago is one of the greatest of all the natural health enhancers of the vegetable kingdom. It is not only well known for its ability to calm an upset stomach and banish travel sickness – better in fact that the well known over-the-counter medicine Dramamine. Ginger is also brilliant at alleviating the symptoms of colds and flue, it increases circulation and calms fevers. It even helps PMS and headaches and has heart-protecting properties thanks to its ability to discourage the clumping of blood cells. Grating a little fresh ginger into soups and sauces, salads and sweets adds zing to anything you are cooking. Combine ginger with lime and add it to a scallop salad and you have a real winner.