Truffle butter is what turns a plate of seared scallops into something you would expect from a restaurant kitchen. This is Maison Bordier's version: sweet scallops browned hard and fast, a cauliflower and potato mousseline underneath, and a sauce built from the scallop beards most cooks throw away. The Perigord black truffle butter does double duty, finishing the sauce and glazing the scallops as they sear. Set aside about an hour of prep and 25 minutes at the stove.
At a glance
- Difficulty: Difficult
- Serves: 4
- Active time: 60 minutes
- Cook: 25 minutes
- Key ingredient: 65 g (2.3 oz) Perigord Black Truffle Bordier Butter
Why this works
Bordier's black truffle butter carries 3.4% Tuber melanosporum, the Perigord winter truffle, worked into butter that is churned by hand in Brittany on a traditional wooden malaxeur. That matters for a sauce like this one. Truffle aroma is volatile and fat soluble, so it needs fat to carry it and gentle heat to keep it. Whisking cold cubes of the butter into a warm sauce off the boil does both jobs at once: the butterfat emulsifies into the cream, and the truffle stays aromatic instead of cooking away.
The rest of the dish is classic French thrift. Scallop beards, the frilly mantle around the muscle, are full of flavour and almost always discarded. Sweated with onion and carrot, deglazed with white wine and simmered in cream, they give you a sauce with real depth for no extra cost. The cauliflower and potato puree is there for texture and to catch the sauce. Cauliflower alone would be too loose, and the Ratte potato, waxy and fine grained, binds it without turning gluey.
Ingredients
Serves four. The truffle butter appears twice, in the sauce and in the searing pan, so keep it cold until you need it.
| Ingredient | Metric | US |
|---|---|---|
| Large scallops | 12 | 12 |
| Black Truffle Bordier Butter | 65 g | 2.3 oz |
| Cauliflower | 1 head | 1 head |
| Ratte du Touquet potatoes | 4 | 4 |
| Heavy cream | 150 ml | about 2/3 cup |
| Churned butter | 30 g | 1 oz, about 2 tbsp |
| Scallop beards | from the 12 scallops | from the 12 scallops |
| Onion | 1/2 | 1/2 |
| Carrot | 1 | 1 |
| White wine | 30 ml | 2 tbsp |
| Salt and freshly ground pepper | to taste | to taste |
Method
Step 1: Shuck and prep
Open and shell the scallops, setting the meat aside. Keep the beards, then rinse them several times in clear water until no sand is left. Trim the cauliflower and separate it into florets. Peel and wash the potatoes.
Step 2: Make the mousseline
Cook the cauliflower and the potatoes separately in salted water until just tender. Drain both, holding back some of the potato cooking water. Blend the cauliflower with 50 ml (about 3 1/2 tablespoons) of the cream and 20 g (about 1 1/2 tablespoons) of the churned butter. Pass the potatoes through a food mill and mix them into the cauliflower puree. Loosen with a little of the reserved cooking water if the texture is stiff, then season to taste.
Step 3: Build the beard cream
Peel and finely chop the onion, and peel and dice the carrot. Melt 10 g (about 2 teaspoons) of the churned butter over medium heat. Once it is hot, add the onion and carrot, then the scallop beards. Sweat gently until everything takes on a little colour. Deglaze with the white wine, then pour in 100 ml (about 7 tablespoons) of the cream. Cover and simmer over very low heat for 15 minutes. Blend the mixture, and strain it through a fine sieve if you want it perfectly smooth.
Step 4: Mount the sauce and sear
Return the sauce to the heat and whisk in small cubes of very cold truffle butter, a few at a time. Sear the scallops quickly in a hot pan with truffle butter, about one minute per side. Plate and serve.
Tips from our kitchen
- Dry the scallops properly. Pat each one on both flat faces with paper towel and leave them uncovered on a rack in the fridge for 20 minutes if you have time. Surface moisture is the difference between a golden crust and a scallop that steams pale and grey in the pan.
- Keep the truffle butter cold until the moment it goes in. Cube it straight from the fridge and add it a few pieces at a time, whisking constantly. Cold butter emulsifies into a warm sauce. Soft or melted butter separates instead, and you get an oily film on top.
- Rinse the beards more than feels necessary. Sand hides in the folds and one gritty bite ruins the sauce. Three or four changes of clear water is not excessive, and the last rinse should come away completely clean.
- Do not boil the finished sauce. Once the butter is in, keep the pan below a simmer. If the sauce splits and goes greasy, pull it off the heat, add a spoonful of cold cream, and whisk hard to bring it back.
- Ratte potatoes are the ideal, but not the only option. Any small waxy potato with fine, dense flesh works here, so look for fingerlings or a Yukon Gold. Avoid a floury baking potato, which will make the mousseline pasty.
- Sear last, and do not crowd the pan. Scallops go from just cooked to rubbery in about 30 seconds. Have the mousseline warm and the sauce ready before the pan gets hot, then cook in two batches so the pan temperature holds.
How to serve it
Spoon the mousseline into the centre of a warm plate, set three scallops on top, and pour the sauce around rather than over so the crust stays crisp. A chilled white with some acidity, Muscadet or Chablis, cuts the cream. If you are building a larger French menu around it, our guide to Bordier butter covers which of the flavoured butters suit fish, meat and pastry, so you can carry the theme through the meal without repeating yourself.
Where to buy Black Truffle Bordier Butter in the US
The French Pantry ships Bordier butter across the United States in insulated overnight packaging, straight from the workshop in Brittany.
- Churned Perigord Black Truffle Butter by Bordier (4.4 oz): hand churned butter carrying 3.4% Tuber melanosporum, the winter black truffle of the Perigord.
If you want to try the range, browse the Maison Bordier collection for the full set of flavoured and natural butters.
Frequently asked questions
How much truffle butter do I need for this recipe?
The recipe calls for 65 g, which is 2.3 oz. Bordier blocks are 4.4 oz (125 g), so a single block covers this dish with roughly half left over for toast the next morning.
Can I use plain butter and truffle oil instead?
You can make the sauce with plain butter, but it will be a different dish. Truffle oil is usually flavoured synthetically and reads as one loud note. Bordier's version uses real Tuber melanosporum worked into the butter, which is why the aroma holds up under cream.
What if my scallops come without the beards?
Most US scallops are sold shucked and trimmed. Ask your fishmonger for scallops in the shell, or order them a day ahead. Without beards you cannot make this particular sauce, so it is worth the phone call.
Can I use frozen scallops?
Thaw them slowly overnight in the fridge, then dry them thoroughly. Frozen scallops release more water in the pan, so sear in smaller batches and expect a slightly lighter crust.
How should I store Bordier butter?
Keep it wrapped in the coldest part of your refrigerator and use it within the date on the pack. It also freezes well for a few months if you wrap it tightly, which is useful with a flavoured butter you will use in small amounts.
Does the butter need refrigeration?
Yes. Bordier butter is a fresh, hand churned product and ships cold. Unpack it and refrigerate it as soon as it arrives.
Related reading
- Bordier Butter: What It Is, Why Chefs Love It, and How to Use It
- Plantin Truffles
- How to Choose Your French Butter: A Buyer's Guide
Recipe and photograph adapted from Maison Bordier, with thanks. The French Pantry is an authorized US retailer of Bordier butter.