Scallops

Consommé, Smoked Celery Root Purée, XO Sauce, Lemon Gel, Citrus

Chef Jason Chavenson of Maison Bar à Vins | Washington, D.C.

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Adapted by StarChefs  |  February 2026  |  Photo: Cameron Whitman

INGREDIENTS

Smoked Celery Root Purée:
500 grams heavy cream
400 grams diced celery root
100 grams unsalted butter
50 grams lemon juice
25 grams lemon oil
20 grams kosher salt

XO Sauce:
50 grams dried scallops
50 grams dried baby shrimp
4 dried hontaka chiles
200 grams Corto 51/49 blended oil
75 grams Corto TRULY 100% extra virgin olive oil
150 grams julinned shallots
100 grams thinly sliced garlic
50 grams guanciale
25 grams dried squid
2 serrano chiles
5 dried guajillo chiles
15 grams granulated sugar
15 grams shrimp paste
15 grams white soy sauce
15 grams clarified liquid shio koji
Zest of 1 lemon

Lemon Gel:
300 grams lemon juice
3 grams agar agar
Kosher salt

Consommé:
2 kilograms pork stock
50 grams kombu
20 grams dried scallop feet
50 grams bonito flakes
675 grams diced pork shoulder
150 grams diced onions
100 grams diced celery
100 grams diced carrot
55 grams chopped parsley
10 grams picked thyme leaves
1 gram ground black pepper
6 egg whites
Kosher salt

Scallops:
Whole Scottish live scallops, cleaned, liver and stomach removed and discarded
Kosher salt
Granulated sugar
All-purpose flour
Puff pastry sheet
Egg wash

To Assemble and Serve:
Kosher salt
Orange zest
Lemon zest
Fleur de sel

METHOD

For the Smoked Celery Root Purée:
Heat a Vulcan combination oven to 100°F. Place applewood chips on a sheet tray and place on lower rack of oven. In a saucepan over medium heat, bring cream, celery root, and salt to a simmer. Cover with a cartouche and cook until celery root is fork-tender. Transfer to a Vitamix Commercial blender with remaining ingredients. Purée until smooth. Pass mixture through a chinois, then transfer to a shallow hotel pan. Roast 10 minutes on rack above wood chips. Remove from oven and stir to combine. Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate.

For the XO Sauce:
In a mixing bowl, add dried scallops, dried baby shrimp, and dried hontaka chiles. Cover with enough water to submerge. Let soak until fully rehydrated. Strain, reserving solids and soaking liquid separately. Transfer solids to a clean work surface and chop. Set aside. In a saucepan over medium flame, heat oils. Add alliums, guanciale, dried squid, and reserved chopped scallops, shrimp, and serrano chiles. Cook until well caramelized, stirring constantly. Add dried guajillo chiles and serrano chiles. Cook 3 minutes. Stir in sugar and shrimp paste. Continue to cook until crisp and aromatic. Add 80 grams reserved seafood soaking liquid and bring mixture to a simmer. Cook until au sec. Remove from heat and season with white soy sauce, shio koji, and lemon zest. Let cool. Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate.

For the Lemon Gel:
In a saucepan over medium heat, bring lemon juice and agar agar to a boil. Season with salt. Transfer to a shallow pan and let cool. Cover and refrigerate until set. Once set, transfer mixture to a Vitamix Commercial blender and purée until smooth. Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate.

For the Consommé:
In a saucepan over medium-high heat, combine pork stock, kombu, and dried scallops. Bring mixture to 140°F. Cook 1 hour. Strain and discard kombu and scallops. Return liquid to pan over medium-high heat. Bring to 185°F. Remove from heat and stir in bonito flakes. Strain into a nonreactive container and let cool. In a food processor, pulse to combine pork, onions, celery, carrots, parsley, thyme, black pepper, and eggs. Transfer mixture to a 4-quart stock pot. Add cooled pork stock and whisk to combine. Place pot over medium heat and cook 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Using a spatula, poke 5-inch hole in the middle of the raft. Using a ladle, gently pour stock over surface. Repeat additional 4 times. Continue to cook 1 hour, ladling stock over top every 5 minutes, or until raft is completely set and stock is clarified. Strain, discarding raft. Season with salt. Return mixture to a clean stock pot over low heat. Keep warm. 

For the Scallops:
Heat a Vulcan combination oven to 450°F on medium fan setting. In a mixing bowl, season scallops with salt and sugar. Let sit 1 hour at room temperature. Rinse and set aside. Place puff pastry on a lightly floured work surface. Cut into 12-inch by 1½-inch strips. Let temper at room temperature until pliable. Fill scallop shell with 40 grams Consommé. Enclose with top shell. Wrap puff pastry around shell. Crimp edges to seal. Brush with egg wash. Bake 5 minutes. Remove from oven and let rest 2 minutes. Using a paring knife, cut around shell seam to carefully remove top shell while keeping pastry intact. Set aside.

To Assemble and Serve:
In a saucepan over low heat, warm Celery Root Purée. In a separate saucepan over low heat, warm XO Sauce. Pile wet salt into the center of a serving plate. Top with 1 Scallop. Brush with Lemon Gel. Place 1 quenelle Celery Root Purée to the left of Scallop. Spoon desired amount XO Sauce over top, letting it pool across the plate and Scallop. Finish with citrus zests and fleur de sel. Serve with puff pastry top shell.

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