Serve these scallop skewers with rice to soak up the juice from the deliciously refreshing tomato-orange salad. You can marinate the scallops up to 2 hours ahead, then quickly grill them off when dinnertime comes. Chunks of chicken breast or firm-fleshed fish, such as haddock or grouper, make excellent substitutions for the scallops.
Ingredients
6 large oranges, navel
1 pound uncooked scallops
3 tbsp peppermint leaves, chopped
4 medium fresh tomatoes, very ripe, chopped
⅛ tsp table salt, or to taste
⅛ tsp black pepper, or to taste
Instructions
Using a grater (or zester), grate enough peel from 2 oranges to yield 2 tablespoons of zest; put 1 tablespoon in each of 2 medium bowls.
Peel the remaining 4 oranges, remove pits, and cut segments into 1/2-inch chunks. Add chunks to one bowl of zest, cover, and refrigerate until needed.
Squeeze juice from zested oranges and add it to the remaining bowl of zest. Stir in scallops and 1 1/2 tablespoons of mint; cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.
Prepare coals for the grill.
Add tomatoes and remaining mint to the orange chunks; season to taste with salt and pepper.
Thread scallops evenly onto 4 wooden skewers and grill until done, about 5 minutes. Spoon 1/4 of the tomato salad onto each of the 4 plates and top with a skewer of scallops. (Note: Soak skewers in water for 30 minutes before using to prevent burning.)
