Coquilles Saint-Jacques

Ingredients

• 220g / 7 1/2 oz medium raw scallops ((Note 1))
• 1/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
• 30g / 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 eschalot ((US: shallot), finely diced (Note 2))
• 200g / 7 oz white mushrooms (, diced 8mm / 1/4")
• 2 tbsp plain flour (all-purpose)
• 1/2 cup hot milk (, preferably full fat but works with lite milk too)
• 1/2 cup hot thickened cream (heavy cream) (, or any other full fat cream)
• 1/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
• 1/8 tsp black pepper
• 1 pinch ground nutmeg
• 3/4 cup panko breadcrumbs ((Note 3))
• 50 g / 3 tbsp unsalted butter (, melted)
• 50g / 1/2 cup Gruyère cheese (, shredded using a standard box grater (tightly packed if using cups) (Note 4))
• 1/8 tsp cooking salt

Steps

1. 1

   Pat scallops dry, remove the chewy side muscle, slice in half. Cook mushrooms and eschalot in butter, make a creamy béchamel. Mix the crust. Season and cover scallops in gratin dishes, top with crust, bake 20 minutes at 200°C / 400°F (180°C / 350°F fan).

2. 2

   Preheat oven to 200°C / 400°F (180°C fan-forced).

3. 3

   Prepare the scallops - Pat them dry with paper towel. Remove the little side muscle (the “foot”) if you see it, it's edible but get chewy when cooked. (Note 1) Set aside until needed.

4. 4

   Mix  the crust ingredients and set aside until needed.

5. 5

   Melt butter in a medium pot over medium heat. Add the eschalot and mushrooms. Stir regularly and cook for 4–5 minutes until the mushrooms are soft.

6. 6

   Add flour. Stir and cook for 30 seconds. It will look a bit pasty, that’s normal.

7. 7

   Pour in the hot milk and cream. Then stir until incorporated and lump free. (Note 5)

8. 8

   Thicken - Add the salt, pepper and nutmeg, then stir well. When you see the first small bubbles appearing, let it cook for 30 seconds, then take it off the stove. It should be more pourable than a regular Béchamel, so it spreads easily around the scallops. (Note 6)

9. 9

   Season the scallops with salt and divide them between 4 shallow ramekins. (We use flat round ramekins: 11cm / 4.3" diameter, 2.5cm / 1" deep.) (Note 7)

10. 10

    Sauce - Cover scallops with ALL the mushroom béchamel. Make sure to fill up all the gaps. Flatten the surface with a small spatula or the back of a spoon.

11. 11

    Cheesy crust - Scatter the cheesy crust evenly over each ramekin, right to the edges. We want a golden top with no empty spots.

12. 12

    Bake - Place ramekins on a tray and bake 20 minutes until golden.

13. 13

    Serve - Rest 2 minutes, then serve. (Note 8) And bon appétit, of course!