This Pan Seared Sea Scallops recipe is a restaurant-worthy dish you can pull off on a weeknight. The scallops get a beautiful golden crust, and that white wine bacon cream sauce is the kind of thing people remember. Toss it with pasta, top it with a handful of shaved Parm, and it’s the kind of meal that makes anyone at your table feel special. It’s not hard either. Just a few steps, simple ingredients, and a bit of timing. If you love a rich, savory sauce with crisp edges and soft pasta, you’ll be all in on this one.

Pan Seared Sea Scallops With White Wine Bacon Cream Sauce

Scallops can be intimidating, but they don’t have to be. The trick is getting that sear right without overcooking them. Once you’ve got your pan hot and the scallops are dry, the rest falls into place. Just a few minutes on each side and they’re done.

The sauce is rich without being heavy. Cottage bacon adds smoky depth, white wine brightens it up, and cream brings it all together. Spinach gives it a touch of green that plays well with the rest of the flavors.

This is a dish that’ll work for date night or dinner guests, but it’s fast enough to make just because you’re hungry for something really good. The pasta makes it filling, the scallops keep it fancy, and the sauce is straight comfort food.

If you love seafood as much as I do, you'll have to try my seafood bisque, shrimp scampi pasta, crispy battered halibut, garlic steamed clams, Dungeness crab stuffed shells, blackened shrimp pasta, and my homemade crab cakes. Of all the seafood I love, and the list is LONG – a really big, well-cooked sea scallop is totally near the top.

Why You’ll Love This Dish#

• Crowd-Friendly – Works for small dinner parties or just a cozy night in.
• Perfectly Seared Scallops – Golden-brown crust with tender centers every time.
• Rich, Creamy Sauce – Bacon, wine, butter, and cream come together for major flavor.
• Ready In Under An Hour – Looks fancy, but it’s totally doable on a weeknight.
• Versatile – Use any pasta, swap the greens, or go gluten-free.

Have some Lemon Pepper Lingcod!

Recipe Shopping List

Wondering if you have to hit the store? Here's the list of items you'll need to make this recipe. For specific amounts, please refer to the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.

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• Cottage Bacon – Smoky, meaty flavor that builds the foundation of the sauce. Regular bacon works as well.
• Large Sea Scallops – Sweet, delicate seafood that sears beautifully when patted dry.
• Avocado Oil – High smoke point oil for searing, used if bacon doesn’t yield enough fat.
• Baby Spinach – Adds freshness and color, wilts quickly into the sauce.
• Garlic – Essential aromatics that infuse the sauce with depth.
• Dry White Wine – De-glazes the pan and adds acidity. Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio work great.
• Unsalted Butter – Enriches the sauce and helps balance the acidity from the wine.
• Heavy Cream – Gives the sauce body and luxurious texture.
• Pasta – Holds the sauce well. Fettuccine or linguine are great options.
• Parmigiano-Reggiano – Salty, nutty topping that finishes the dish.

Try it with my Perfect Grilled Asparagus!

How To Make This Recipe

This is just the overview so you can see what you're actually getting into here. When you are cooking, you'll want to use the full recipe at the bottom of the page.

1. Cook the bacon – Cook the bacon first, and then used the leftover grease to sear your scallops. The cottage bacon was so lean that I needed to add a little extra oil, but not much.

While the bacon cooks, put on a pot of well-salted water over high heat and bring to a boil. During the rest of the cook, cook your pasta to al dente and reserve a bit of the pasta water during draining.

2. Sear the scallops – Leave the bacon grease in the pan and add the scallops. Cook your scallops over medium heat to make sure the brown bits don't burn because those are ALL flavor.

3. Add the spinach and wine – Leaving all of the brown bits in the pan, add your spinach to the pan right after you remove the scallops, and then toss in your wine.

4. Add butter – Add a few tablespoons of butter next.

5. Add the cream – Once it melts, stir to incorporate and then pour in your cream.

6. Let simmer – Add in the bacon, and then let that mixture simmer, stirring frequently, until it reduced and tightens up a bit. Then toss in your cooked pasta.

7. Reduce heat – Stir the pasta around to toss with the sauce, and reduce the heat to low. Mix in a bit of the reserved pasta water. Taste, and if necessary – add a little salt. Use a light hand though! Depending on how salty your bacon is, this might not need any! I highly suggest unsalted butter as well to account for this.

8. Enjoy – Serve the pasta with the scallops, and you have a rich, flavorful meal that is nice enough to serve your guests, but easy enough to feel confident preparing.

Try our Cajun Crab Legs!

Tips For Success

Scallops are super easy to cook! If you’ve never tried making seared scallops, don’t worry! There’s nothing to it. Here are a few things to keep in mind while you’re working:

• Scallops cook quickly, only 1 ½-2 minutes per side.
• Start with DRY scallops. Pat them dry with paper towels, and get the surfaces as dry as you can.
• Use a well-seasoned pan, and DON'T TOUCH THEM until they are ready to flip. That's going to form that awesome crust that is so characteristic of a great scallop.
• Scallops are done when they’re opaque and slightly browned.
• Don't forget the salt. It really brings out the flavor of the scallop and makes it shine!
• They can be overdone, so watch them closely.
• Remove scallops from heat just before they’re fully done to avoid overcooking.
• Uncooked scallops can be kept in the fridge for up to two days.

Try our Cioppino, too!

Recipe FAQ

Reader Reviews

From Pinterest, shared with permission.

Serve This With

• Traeger Garlic Bread
• Caesar Salad
• Blackstone Asparagus

More Scallop Recipes

Now that you’ve tried pan-fried garlic scallops in cast iron, try these recipes next!

• Easy Seared Scallops
• Traeger Grilled Scallops
• Traeger Seafood Alfredo

Continue to Content

Yield: 6 people

Pan Seared Sea Scallops with White Wine Bacon Cream Sauce

Print

Delicious seared sea scallops with a rich bacon cream sauce is a delicious meal to serve any day of the week.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Ingredients

• 4 slices cottage bacon
• 12 large sea scallops, patted dry
• 2 teaspoons avocado oil, or canola/vegetable oil - only use if the bacon doesn't produce much grease
• 1 large handful baby spinach
• 2 teaspoons garlic
• 1 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 2 tablespoons butter, unsalted
• 3/4 cup cream
• 8-10 ounces pasta, cooked and drained
• Parmigiano-Reggiano for garnish

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta in well-salted water while you're making the rest of the recipe. When you drain it, reserve about 1/4-1/3 cup of the pasta water.
2. Cook bacon until crisp in a well-seasoned cast iron or non-stick pan.
3. Remove bacon from the pan, give it a rough chop, and set aside.
4. If there is excess grease in the pan from the bacon, remove it and leave only about 2 tablespoons, or enough to coat the bottom of your pan liberally. If there isn't much grease left from the bacon, add in enough oil to liberally coat the pan.
5. Place the dry scallops in the pan, and cook over medium heat for 2-3 minutes per side. DON'T MOVE THE SCALLOPS AROUND TOO MUCH! You want them to develop a bit of a crust, and that doesn't happen if you mess with them.
6. Flip once, brown the other side, and the remove from the pan.
7. Toss the baby spinach and garlic in the pan, give it a couple stirs, and then add in the white wine and butter.
8. After the butter melts, stir in the cream and bacon and let the sauce simmer over low(ish) heat until it is slightly thickened and has tightened up a bit.
9. Mix in the cooked pasta, and toss to coat. Add a bit of the reserved pasta water. Taste, and add salt if needed.
10. Serve with the scallops, and top with freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.

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• 
  Cast Iron Skillet

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 912Total Fat: 27gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 68mgSodium: 434mgCarbohydrates: 121gFiber: 7gSugar: 4gProtein: 33g

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