Scallops with 'Nduja Butter & Scamorza

Name: Scallops with ’Nduja Butter & Scamorza
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 4 min
Total time: 14 min
Yield: Serves 4 as a starter
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 100 g Vannella whey butter (or other unsalted cultured butter), at room temperature (3½ oz); 100 g ’nduja (3½ oz); Rock salt, for baking and serving; 12 large saucer scallops, on the half shell; 150 g Vannella Cheese scamorza bianca (5½ oz); About 40 g fine dried breadcrumbs (1½ oz)

Vannella Cheese creative director, Anthony Silvio, and I put our heads together to bust the myth that seafood and cheese don’t mix. We discovered delicious traditional recipes combining seafood and cheese, and created a few dishes of our own blending land and sea! This recipe for scallops with ‘nduja is from Anthony, who says: “Baked in their shells, these scallops offer an explosion of savoury, umami flavours. Fiery ‘nduja swimming in golden butter is accompanied by Vannella’s melty scamorza bianca and finished with breadcrumbs for the ultimate crunchy topping. It’s salty, spicy, and the perfect appetite opener”. ‘Nduja is a spicy spreadable salami that originated in Calabria in southern Italy. It’s super spicy, so start with the ratios here and adjust to suit your taste. In Australia Anthony recommends the ‘nduja from Pino’s Dolce Vita, and of course we use Vannella’s whey butter. Don’t limit yourself to scallops with ‘nduja – roll leftover ‘nduja butter into a log in baking paper and freeze it to toss through pasta, or melt over steak, chicken or steamed vegetables. Vannella scamorza comes in 230g balls, the rest of the ball is delicious on toasted sandwiches or in a pasta bake. I love a full-bodied rosato with these spicy scallops, especially the sangiovese rosé from Vale Creek near Bathurst in NSW.

Serves 4 as a starter

Ingredients

100g unsalted cultured butter, at room temperature (3½oz)
100g ‘nduja (3½oz)
Rock salt, for baking and serving
12 large saucer scallops, on the half shell
150g scamorza bianca (5½oz)
About 40g fine dried breadcrumbs (1½oz)

Method

Preheat the oven to 220°C (425°F) and turn the overhead grill on high.
Combine the butter and ‘nduja and set aside.
Spread a bed of rock salt onto a baking tray and arrange the scallops in their shells on it.
Dollop ‘nduja mixture evenly over scallops (depending on their size, you may not need it all).
Grate scamorza over the ‘nduja butter, letting some of it fall onto the shells.
Sprinkle generously with breadcrumbs.
Bake for 3–4 minutes, watching them closely, until bubbly and golden brown.
Set aside for a few minutes before serving as these scallops with ‘nduja hold the heat.