Japanese Scallops with Soy Butter and Black Sesame (Recipe)

When I was ill, the doctors ran all sorts of tests on me and discovered I had a slight calcium deficiency. 

My diet doesn't contain an awful lot of dairy, so I did some research and found out that sesame seeds contain a surprising amount of calcium.

So here is a recipe for Japanese style scallops using said seeds and a bit of butter - delicious and you can also feel like you're doing your bones some good.

Osteoporosis be damned.

Japanese Scallops with Soy Butter and Black Sesame Seeds

Serves 2

• 6 fat scallops, coral attached
• Fat knob of butter
• Dash of soy sauce
• Handful of sesame seeds, black if possible
• Shichimi togarashi (a Japanese pepper mixture)

Toast the sesame seeds in a dry frying pan till fragrant, and then set to one side in a saucer.

Heat the butter in the same pan till it sizzles but before it burns, and then sear the scallops in the butter for two minutes each side. Chuck in the soy sauce and toss the scallops in the soy butter.

Plate up immediately and sprinkle the sesame seeds and the shichimi pepper on top. Eat with a green salad.

TIP 1: Scallops often stick and leave a "skin" on the pan - you can prevent this by making sure they're not wet when they go in the pan.

TIP 2: This is also really good with gomashio though slightly less pretty - leave out the soy sauce, pound the toasted sesame seeds till they become a fine powder and mix with salt before sprinkling on the scallops.