Buttery Baked Scallops

These baked scallops are cooked in a rich sauce of butter, lemon, and parmesan. They're ready in 30 minutes!

Course Appetizer

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 25

Total Time 35

Servings servings

Calories 296kcal

2 pounds sea scallops large, 15 per pound
6 tablespoons butter unsalted, melted
2 tablespoons dry white wine
1 tablespoon lemon juice freshly squeezed
¾ cup parmesan cheese grated, divided
1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt or ½ teaspoon of any other salt, including Morton kosher salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried parsley
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon sweet paprika
2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Rinse the scallops and pat them dry. Place them in a lightly greased oven-and-broiler-safe casserole dish.
In a small bowl, use a fork to mix the butter, wine, lemon juice, ½ cup of Parmesan, salt, pepper, garlic powder, dried parsley, and cayenne. Set aside for a couple of minutes until the mixture thickens.
Spoon a little of the mixture on top of each scallop, dividing the mixture evenly between the scallops.
Cover the pan with foil and bake until the scallops are cooked through and opaque and their internal temperature is 130°F. This should take about 25 minutes if your scallops are extra-large and less if they’re smaller. Start checking after 20 minutes.
Remove the baking dish from the oven. Switch the oven to broil and set a rack 6 inches beneath the heating element (not directly below).
Uncover the scallops, sprinkle them with the remaining Parmesan and paprika, and broil until their tops are browned and crispy, 2-3 minutes. Check on them constantly to ensure they don't burn.
Sprinkle the scallops with chopped parsley and serve.

It's important to use large sea scallops in this recipe. Small scallops, and especially tiny bay scallops, will become overcooked.
You can make this recipe with 3 pounds of jumbo scallops (12 per pound for a total of 36 scallops) and use a 9 X 13–inch pan, as I do in the video above. The remaining ingredients can stay the same.
You can keep the leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat them gently, covered, in the microwave at 50% power. I don't recommend freezing the leftovers.
According to America's Test Kitchen, scallops should be cooked to an internal temperature of 115°F. According to the USDA, they should be cooked to 145°F. I usually opt for something in the middle, so I aim for 130°F.