Easy Grilled Scallops Recipe with Pinot Grigio Sauce on Crispy Pea Cakes

This post is sponsored by Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Wines, and I was compensated monetarily for my work. You can always count on me to only work with companies and products I love! Please enjoy wine responsibly.

Julia Child once famously said, ""I enjoy cooking with wine, sometimes I even put it in the food."

As a Russian woman in my early 30s, I was taught to appreciate a good beverage from a young age and cooking was always made better with a libation.

I remember Thursday evenings in the kitchen with my mother, preparing the week's Shabbat dinner, the radio blaring the week's Israeli Top 20 hits and tall frosty cocktail glasses were firmly nestled in our hands.

As the night progressed, my dad's pours got more and more liberal, the laughter much louder, and our posture (and knifework) a lot less steady.

By the time 9PM rolled around, the kitchen counters were covered in equal parts sauce and cocktail splashes, and my whole family was in good spirits.

But as my recent experience cooking with Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Wines has taught me, the resulting dish would have been made immensely better if some of that good stuff made its way into the dish.

For it's one thing to cook with wine in hand, taking slow, lingering sips in between stirs of the pot, or a tasting of the thickening sauce. Cooking with a glass of wine makes you feel free, young and daring. The hours seem to fly by, spurred on by good mood, superb food and great music - and yet every moment also seems to last forever, like summers did when we were young.

But when the wine you carefully chose that afternoon in the liquor store makes its way into the food, it's another story altogether. Every taste feels electric, alive with the aroma and complex flavours hidden in the bottle. 

Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi wines are marked by bright fruit flavours and smooth finishes made to complement food, a natural complement to bold spices and ingredients at the peak of their season.

The wine changes the colour and composition of your sauce, making it glossier, shinier, like a river flecked with gold. And when you finally have that first bite of the dish you created alongside a deep, generous sip on that wine - well, that feels like a whole orchestra is firing in your mouth at full volume.

So when I started dreaming of celebrating the first warm weekend of this spring with a tall, cold glass of Pinot Grigio, I just knew I had to put a splash in the light, springtime-inspired lunch that would accompany it.

That's how my perfectly grilled scallops with lemon-mint Pinot Grigio sauce were born: from a few minutes spent strolling in my local market's aisles, looking at the beautiful seafood displayed in the icebox, and dreaming of the crisp, refreshing taste of the Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Pinot Grigio.

From the natural marriage of crispy fried pea cakes with mint, lemon and that refreshing, citrusy white. From the knowledge that spring is so short, so special, that any day of it deserves to be celebrated with a special meal, a glass of wine - and a splash of that good stuff tucked into the food.

As I learned from that night, Pinot Grigio goes well with all kinds of seafood recipes.

If you live in Canada or the U.S., you can easily find Pinot Grigio and other Woodbridge Wines by Robert Mondavi in the California section of your local liquor store. Check out their website for more recipes, serving tips and a brilliant wine pairing app that provides recommendations of what wine to serve with your food.

Coat the Cakes

Set up a coating station with the egg wash in one shallow bowl and the corn flake crumbs in another. Remove the chilled cakes from the fridge and dip each one into the egg wash, letting any excess drip off. Roll the cakes in the corn flake crumbs, ensuring they are evenly coated on all sides. Return the coated cakes to the plate or baking sheet and place them back in the fridge while the oil heats.

Fry the Cakes

In a heavy-bottom pan, pour about 1 inch of oil and heat it over medium heat. Once the oil is sufficiently hot, fry the cakes for approximately 3 minutes per side, or until they are golden brown and cooked through. Transfer the fried cakes to a paper towel plate to drain any excess oil. Set them aside while preparing the scallops.

Grill the Scallops

Preheat a cast-iron pan over medium-high heat. Pat the scallops dry to help them sear properly, then season generously with salt and pepper. Lightly brush each scallop with olive oil. Cook scallops for 2 to 3 minutes per side until a golden-brown crust forms. Remove the scallops from the pan and set them aside.

Make the Lemon-Mint Pinot Grigio Sauce

In a small saucepan set over low heat, combine the juice and zest of one lemon, chopped mint, sugar, and salt. Stir until the sugar dissolves completely. Pour in the Pinot Grigio and heat gently. Add the arrowroot starch or gluten-free flour and whisk immediately to prevent lumps. Continue heating for 1 minute, then remove the sauce from the heat.

Storage Instructions

Store leftover pea cakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in a pan over medium heat to restore crispiness. Scallops are best enjoyed fresh but can be stored for up to 2 days in a sealed container in the fridge. The sauce can be refrigerated for 3 days and gently reheated before serving.