It was our wedding anniversary last month. To celebrate, we broke some seriously good bread at Burrowing Owl Winery in Oliver, BC. My favourite item from our dinner? The amuse bouche …. tomato water. Yes, my heart sang as I sipped straight up juices from tomatoes. Let’s get the facts straight – it was free of pulp and almost clear except for the faintest hint of green. Sweet, refreshing. It sparked my interest in tomato water.

When my favourite cooking magazine did a recipe featuring Scallops in Tomato Water, how could I pass up the opportunity to share it with you all? Obviously, I couldn’t.

Recipe from: Bon Appetit

Serves 4

Ingredients: 

1 lbs tomatoes, preferably Sun Gold, chopped
3/4 tsp kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
1 tbsp vegetable oil
12 sea scallops, approx. 1 lbs, patted dry
Lime wedges for serving
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

Directions:

Place tomatoes in a fine-mesh sieve over a medium bowl and season with 3/4 tsp salt. Let sit, stirring occasionally, until about 3/4 cup of tomato water has collected in the bottom of the bowl, about 30-40 minutes.

Heat oil in a large heavy bottom skillet over medium-high heat. Season scallops with salt and sear until brown, about 2 minutes on each side.

Divide scallops among large shallow bowls and spoon tomato water around. Squeeze lime over scallops and top with mint.

Enjoy!