Scallop Gratin

This scallop dish is pure heaven. I followed Chef John's recipe exactly. You must use fresh tarragon. The sauce was so good I actually licked my plate. The second time I made this, I added a few drops of Bristol Cream sherry to the sauce mix. It gave an unbelievable depth of flavor. We served this with Steamy Microwave Zucchini. That recipe is on this site. The third time I made it, I put a slice of whole grain Oatnut bread on the bottom of the serving plates, topped it with the zucchini, and poured the baked scallop gratin over the top of each serving. The sauce from the gratin flavors the zucchini and soaks into the bread. This is a wonderful low calorie one-dish meal that is quick to make and everyone loves it.

I do enjoy scallops, but Corey absolutely loves them. When he dug into these scallops, he was definitely happy. I asked him if there was anything about them he didn't like, the answer was NO. When I asked him if it was a 5-star recipe, he said YES. I had to agree with him. I couldn't get fresh tarragon at the grocery store, but since I don't care for tarragon, I wasn't too disappointed and picked up some fresh marjoram instead. I have to say that homemade creme fraiche makes my heart sing, so I loved that part of the recipe. I forgot to pick up a lemon at the grocery store, and today being Good Friday, everything was closed. I went to our local fish and chip store out of desperation and asked if they would sell me a lemon, and they gave me one, no charge! I knew the recipe would have missed the lemon zest. The scallops were delicious, but I thoroughly enjoyed dipping the French bread in the sauce. It was pricey, but it was worth it. What a treat!

no i didn't make any changes and it came very good will make again, and share it some friends.

Delicious, quick and simple! This was my first time making scallops and this recipe was perfect for a first-timer! I watched Chef John’s video where he shared substitutions. I didn’t have the creme frais so he suggested heavy cream. I also didn’t have tarragon and his suggestion of dill worked well. I would like to try again with the original recipe. I served it over angel hair pasta and my picky four year old ate it!!

This is such a great recipe for scallops and can be tweaked in so many ways. I followed the basic recipe, and served over cooked fettucini, along with steamed broccoli drizzled with a garlic butter sauce, then sprinkled finely grated fresh parmigiano reggiano and finely chopped fresh basil over the entire dish. This is a real treat. And, my wife said I HAVE TO make this again.

This is GREAT I made for a special dinner, and all I got was high fives!! The only change I made was sour cream instead of creme fraiche. Do make sure you have LOTS of crispy bread. You will love this EZ recipe!!

I could not find crème fraiche the first time I made it, so I substituted mayonnaise. It was still very good. I have since made it with crème fraiche and I'm not sure which is better. It is very important that the scallops are nice and dry, and I am reducing the amount of wine (I use dry vermouth) a bit so the marinade is thicker. I like another poster's idea of placing a slice of baguette in the bottom of the gratin dish to soak up the sauce. I will do that next time.

Wow, this is an amazing way to serve scallops! My husband is normally the seafood chef in our home, but when he tasted these, he said he bowed to me as the scallop chef! I used vermouth instead of white wine as I usually substitute and we loved the delicate way the scallops cooked, and the divine sauce laced with the flavors of lemon, wine, and tarragon. This is good enough for a formal dinner party!

This was awesome. I took recommendation to serve with a zesty micrwave squash and layered it all over oat bread to soak up the juice. Wife said it was better than going out. Thanks to all for the recepie and the suggestion.

Taste was delicious but the consistency was too watery. Next time we'd make a reduction with the white wine and tarragon.

I sent my first review off accidentally before I was done. This is my new favorite way to make scallops. I did not have creme fraiche so I used mayonnaise as another reviewer suggested and it was fantastic. Served with steamed asparagus and chunks of rustic Italian bread we bought that morning at the bakery. I can’t wait to make some creme fraiche and try it again.

My husband loved this! My kids not so much. This my first time making scallops (SO expensive!) and I'm glad it turned out well.

Will definitely make again! Thank you, Chef John!

this recipe was really good! I even substituted some . of the ingredients because I didn't have the exact items in my pantry. next time I will make sure I have the parmesan and tarragon (used Monterrey Jack and parsley) think I will try a less sweet white wine also I used a Reisling because f2f hats what I had

My girlfriend and I I really enjoyed this. I felt like [maybe] the sauce came out a little too thin and the cheese on top mostly dissolved into it instead of melting on top. If I were to make it again I would try to have the sauce thicker or add [most of] the cheese at the end.

I just made this recipe by Chef John. I really love Sea Scallops. I am always looking for something different with Sea Scallops. The recipe is really easy to make. Fun. I gave 4 stars because the sauce was okay, I am looking for a sauce with a deeper flavor. Now, my husband and I enjoyed the recipe. But, I think next time I am going to try maybe 1 tablespoons in each dish of sherry instead. I will omit the white wine. That’s all. Oh and maybe sprinkle a little panco. I love Chef John’s videos and recipes. We even had the bread, bagettes is what I had. Dipped the bread in sauce. I wish the sauce was thicker. It was too watery for me. But again, this recipe is suppose to be on light side. I totally understand. Anyways, thanks again Chef John. I love your videos, it sure helps. And I love the way you explain about what we could use if we don’t have crème fraîche. I love the way your layer back and making us feel, it’s okay, type thing. Good Job Chef John! Merry Christmas!

There is no option for asking a question, so I am going give it a 5* rating based on its ingredients. Before I make it, would Chef John suggest an herb to replace the tarragon?

This recipe is amazing. I made this for Valentines Day dinner. This is a keeper. The sauce is great for dipping bread.

Loved it! I used heavy cream because I didn’t have crème fraîche. Served over French bread

Added a tablespoon of fresh garlic (minced) & used both tarragon and chives. GOOD beyond words

Scrumptious! I used dried tarragon (shame on me!) but it was still yummy!

Wonderfull!! I doubled the sauce to have extra for other meals (like shrimp). This was so easy and quick to prepare.

I thought this was absolutely delicious. I did substitute with sour cream and parsley because that is what I had on hand. Next time I will use a little less lemon zest only for personal preference. Thank you again Chef John for another keeper!!!

I made this tonight. After reading the other comments I decided to use half wine and half sherry. Due to the consistency it was more like a scampi. I served it over spaghetti and it was great! Definitely will be making again.

was good, as is!

Another winner from Chef John. My wife loved it! My only tweak was to use Aleppo Pepper instead of Cayenne Pepper. It was fast and easy to make. Chef john was right - make sure to have crusty bread ready for the sauce. It’s really tasty!

Easily one of the tastiest things I’ve ever cooked. Super easy to make. Not an every day meal, but the tastiest of treats!

Amazing. This is the 1st time I have managed to get Scallops right, and as Chef John says, so easy. My boyfriend (who is a great cook) said he thought this dish was as good as any dish he could imagine being served in any fine dining restaurant. I did add 1-2 cloves of minced garlic.

I lightened it up using half n half and just 1T butter. Dill instead of tarragon(dont like it). Wonderful delicate flavor

Ok, nothing special. If I’m gong to eat Scallops I will go all the way and use more butter, garlic and cheese. This is not the time to go light.

Loved it! I did not have creme fraiche (never heard of it) but I did have Mascarpone. I thought it might be similar. It turned out great! Will definitely make again.

Made this with sour cream rather than creme fraich (just a matter of what was available) and it was terrific! Will definitely make this again! Make sure you have some delicious bread to enjoy the sauce because it's amazing!

This is easy and delicious! It is very rich and we made it as a main course. We served it with French Bread for dipping and asparagus. This is now on our favorite list!

Wow! This was an excellent dish. Simple to make, simple ingredients and a flavor out of this world. I did substitute half and half for the the crème fraiche, but it was still excellent! Great recipe!

I made this tonight. No white wine, I used vermouth. It was delicious. We both liked it!

Turned out great. I used Daisy’s sour cream because I couldn’t find cream fraische. Very tasty anyway.

I love scallops and although I did not have creme fraiche, I used mascarpone! It turned out to be a great substitute in this recipe. A definite make again! I enjoyed the texture of the scallops after brining them in the cream liquid. It’s an important step not to skip. I topped with a little Parmesan on last stage of broil and melt in your mouth delicious was the result!

Delicious. Simple. Easy. Substitute all you want . Simply make it!

We enjoyed every bite! The lemon added a great contrast to the cream.

The family enjoyed this. I made two substitutes: I used sour cream for the Cream Fraiche and I used a small amount of dill instead of tarragon.

Meh. I wouldn't make it again. To be fair I didn't use dry pack scallops. I bought seafood counter sea scallops. I did dry them very well so they were not wet. I made everything else exactly as written. I used my fancy gratin dishes. I lovingly tossed the scallops into the mixture. It looked good. It sounded good. I poured the remainder of the mixture on top of the scallops. I dressed them with some finely (microplane) grated parmesan and poured the rest of the butter on top. I baked them at 450 degrees. I broiled them for 4 minutes as well. I scooped them onto our plates beside the prime rib for the ultimate surf & turf. The sauce was runny at best. The flavor was, well, meh. I don't know where I may have gone wrong other than the aforementioned scallops.

used sour cream

I've made this now 4 times, for myself, my partner and friends. Everyone agrees it's sensational. I don't own gratin dishes so I baked the scallops in layer cake pans instead.

My family and I enjoyed this recipe. I will likely make it again when I have access to fresh scallops. Our scallops were of supermarket variety which I believe was the limiting factor for this recipe.

I made this with Bay Scallops and it was a Delish Dish. thanks Chef John for making your videos. i find them extremely helpful.

OMG!! This is wonderful!

This recipe is excellent just the way it is! The flavors are perfectly balanced and really make the scallops sing. We ate it with crusty bread and spiralized zucchini. So delicious!

I couldn't find Creme Fraiche, so I added some sour cream to the regular cream....gave the sauce a tangy flavor which I liked.

Was quick & easy. Good taste, I will make the sauce a little thicker next time, and use more cheese and less tarragon.

very yummy, I only had 6 scallops so I decided to add 2 extra large shrimp, I used the shells in the sauce, and then removed them, along with adding garlic, heating through and cooling before putting in a 8"cake pan to bake and broil. Yes I will make this again.

Amazing recipe as is! Love the fresh tarragon flavor. This is my go to scallop recipe to impress.

A winner and so easy!!!!!

It was a lovely recipe and very easy to make. I didn’t have the creme fraiche so I had to improvise with sour cream. I’m sure the slightly sweeter flavor of the creme fraiche would have been great but the flavor was great either way.

If I make it again I'll be modifying the spice amounts. Also I think the recipe is written for a gas oven. Having an electric one the broil function doesn't quite work the same. I had to add another 2 minutes. Everything came out well cooked but I thought it lacked in flavor. Recipe only called for a pinch of salt. Better add a bit more than that!

Couldn’t find crime fraiche used whipped crepe cheese and yogurt, no whit wine used crepe sherry. Cooking time WAY off. I had large scallops like pictured and with sauce on them it too 10 minutes @450 and 5 more on broil to get them opaque. No tarragon, used fresh basil. Yummy!

This recipe is perfect as is! Use fresh tarragon, the flavor is amazing. You'll need fat crusty bread to soak up the sauce!

We absolutely loved this recipe. Had our scallops with steak and I put the sauce on my steak as well. Really can't believe how good it is.

I used dill weed, parsley, and lemon pepper instead of tarragon, lemon zest, and cayenne pepper. The dish was delicious. We had it with rice and broccoli.

Absolutely delicious!

This scallop dish was exceptional. Delicious. I substituted cream cheese for Cremer fraish. Added lemon juice with zest and a tsp of sugar. Drizzled butter on top. Then baked for 8 minutes (because I added about 15 scallops instead of 8). Also added cooked spinach with water squeezed out after baking scallops just before stirring into al dente fettuccine. Plated on top of a piece of brown bread.

Substitute alert! I didn’t have any creme frache so I swapped for fat free half and half mixed with a little sour cream to make it creamier/heavier. I also doubled the recipe because I had more scallops. For the “dry” white wine I used what I had - Sauvignon blanc. I subbed dill for tarragon. I used a heavy hand with the Parmesan and I’m glad I did. The sauce is delicious! I served it over brown rice mixed with quinoa. It would be delicious over rice and linguine or angel hair. It would be awesome served with grilled buttered French bread - yummm. My advice-Make enough sauce!

I added some garlic and it was great!