Curried Scallops with Cilantro Yogurt Sauce

Order scallops at a restaurant and you're paying a steep markup for about five minutes of cooking. They're one of the fastest, most forgiving proteins to pan-fry, and these curried scallops turn that speed into something that tastes like a splurge: a hot, crisp, curry-spiced crust against a cool, cumin-flecked yogurt sauce, start to finish in about ten minutes.

If there's a trick to it, it's at the fish counter rather than the stove. You want puck-shaped scallops with distinct edges that are sold as "dry". Regular scallops may look plump and juicy, but these have often been soaked in a phosphate solution that swells them with water. While those bloated scallops may look bigger (and fetch a higher price), that water has to escape somewhere, and as they cook in the hot pan they end up steaming in their own runoff instead of searing. Size matters, too: bigger scallops give you more runway to brown the outside before the inside overcooks and becomes rubbery.

Once I've got some good scallops, I like to take them one step further with a quick soak in sake. The ethanol and gentle acidity firm up the proteins and coax out some of the excess water, while the sake's natural sugars and amino acids leave behind a subtle sweetness and deep umami. It even has the ability to bind and neutralize amines that can give seafood a fishy smell. The only catch is that you have to be diligent about patting them dry after their bath or you'll end up undermining your efforts.

The curry seasoning and buckwheat coating do the rest. The buckwheat is the same flour used to make soba noodles, and it crisps up nuttier and more fragrant than plain flour, with an earthiness that flatters the curry instead of disappearing under it. Cornmeal or all-purpose will stand in if it's what you have, but the buckwheat is what gives the crust its real character.

The cilantro yogurt sauce might be my favorite part of the whole thing. It's the cool foil to all that warm spice, with toasted cumin seeds that burst as you bite into them. It also makes for a flavorful dip for raw vegetables or a sandwich spread.