The Easiest Scallop Lemon Pasta

There are some meals that look far more impressive than the effort they actually require. This scallop lemon pasta is one of them.

It is light, buttery, lemony, and comes together in the time it takes to cook your pasta. The scallops are the star here, and the key to getting that beautiful golden crust is simple: high heat, a hot pan, and don't touch them.

I like using small scallops for this because they cook quickly and are perfect tossed through the pasta. Once they're beautifully seared on both sides, you add butter and garlic and give them a little butter bath before bringing everything together with the noodles, chili flakes, and fresh lemon juice.

It feels like the kind of dinner you'd order at a little seaside restaurant, but it is incredibly easy to make at home.

Ingredients

Serves 2

20 small scallops
1 tbsp cooking oil
4 tbsp butter
3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
2 servings fettuccine pasta, cooked
1 tsp chili flakes, optional
Juice of ½ lemon
Fresh parsley, for garnish
Lemon wedges, for serving

How to Make It

Sear the Scallops

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and add the cooking oil. Let the oil get hot before adding your scallops.

Carefully add the scallops to the pan — they may splatter, so be careful. I sometimes hold a lid in front of me as a shield from the splattering, but do not cover the pan with the lid.

Let the scallops cook undisturbed for about 2 minutes, until they develop a golden, crisp crust.

Turn each scallop over and leave them alone again. Let the second side develop a crust too.

Add the Butter & Garlic

Once the scallops are beautifully seared, add the butter and garlic.

As the butter melts, use a spoon to scoop it up and pour it over the scallops. Give them a little butter bath while the garlic becomes fragrant.

Bring It All Together

Add your cooked fettuccine directly into the skillet.

Sprinkle in the chili flakes and squeeze the fresh lemon juice over everything. Toss gently until the pasta is coated in the buttery lemon sauce and the scallops are mixed throughout.

Serve immediately while hot, with fresh parsley and a wedge of lemon.

The result is buttery without feeling heavy, bright from the lemon, with just enough heat from the chili flakes. And those little golden scallops make the whole thing feel much more special than the amount of work it actually took.

Sometimes the easiest dinners are the ones that feel the most luxurious.

Enjoy!