Scallop - The beloved mollusk

Scallop - The beloved mollusk

 

Scallops have been a prominent part of humanity since the prehistoric ages. Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of beauty was born from the sea foams and carried by a giant scallop. The recipe of scallops is as much ancient as the Roman Apicius.

 

 

 In France, scallops are called ‘les coquilles Saint-Jacques’ which translates ‘shell of Saint-Jacques’. The Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle, which is also known as the Saint-Jacques pilgrimage is an important pilgrimage route. Saint James is known buried at Santiago de Compostela in Spain, which is a part of the pilgrimage.

 

 

Scallop shells are the symbol of St. James, who was former fisherman in Galilea before he became an apostle. In Normandy and Bretagne, France, the symbol of the scallop shell is a symbol of hospitality to pilgrims.[1] Les coquilles Saint-Jacques also became the name for the recipe of scallops with a creamy sauce served on a shell.

 

 

Scallops are a very versatile mollusk in terms of dining. Scallops could serve both as an appealing appetizer and main dish due to their sweet but savory flavors. The unique brown color that scallops present when seared along with the sweet but savory flavor is due to the high glucose/glycogen concentration.

 

 

The Maillard reaction also known as the browning effect in culinary science, is responsible for the brown color. The presence of reductional carbohydrates (sugar and glucose) or amino acids which are the components of protein is mandatory for the oxidation-reduction reaction (Maillard Reaction) which makes the appetizing brown color on food (for apples, it may be unappetizing). Reductional carbohydrates are much higher in reactivity, thus contribute more to the effect.

 

 

 By research, scientists discovered that more amino acids converted to glucose over time aver the death of a scallop which gave a considerably higher glucose concentration than other food. Considering the time, it takes for scallops before they are served to consumers, the accumulated glucose contributes to the sweet and savory flavors as well as the brown color.[2]

 

 

‘The content of glycogen in the frozen and thawed specimen (Fig. 7) was lower than that in the specimen immediately after death (Fig. 1), the accumulation of sugar phosphates was much higher in the former than in the latter. Scallop adductor muscle has a much higher con centration of glycogen than fishes,13) and even after cooking at 110•Ž for 90min more than 80% of the original amounts of glycogen remained.’ [3]

Scallops are active swimmers by rapidly closing and opening their shells which makes a jet stream in the water. Scallops could propel themselves by the jet stream made by the constant open-closing action with its shell.

 

 

The adduction muscle that allows the scallop open its shell is the main sweet and savory edible part that people enjoy. For many other types of shellfish, the adduction muscle is the most consumed and preferred part of shellfish.[4]

 

 

The ring on the shell of a scallop often represents a year of growth like tree rings. It may just represent a stressful incident for the scallop so it isn’t a definitive indicator. Scallops also have hundreds of eyes which allow them to detect light which they use to evade predators.

 

 

‘Dry’ or ‘Diver’ scallops are scallops not treated with sodium triphosphate salts. These tend to have a much shorter shelf-life and retain less moisture but this allows them to have a better sear when cooked right away. ‘Wet’ scallop refers to scallop treated with sodium triphosphate salts which serve as a preservative and better for moisture retention and longer.

 

 

Sodium triphosphate salts are considered as GRAS (Generally recognized as Safe) by the FDA and the amount is strictly limited by regulation. These are commonly used as a seafood preservative, thus there is no need to worry about safety issues upon consumption, however as sodium triphosphate salt treated seafood retain more moisture, some may use them to cheat the weight of seafood.

 

Fish farming of scallop is also a huge industry as scallop have a large adduction muscle, which is the most popular part of shellfish. It is also considered an environmentally sustainable industry because commercial(external) feed, antibiotics, fertilizers nor additives are required for cultivation of scallops.

 

 

There is research of scallops of their ability to intake micro-plastic. Research shows that scallops are able to metabolize micro-plastic but upon intake, micro-plastic do accumulate in scallops. Thus, more research should be conducted upon how scallops react to micro-plastic.[5]

 

 

Scallops have been an important part of human history and an amazing dish to humans. Scallops and related industries also have significant potential in terms of environmental sustainability. Scallops shall remain an important staple for humans.

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[1] 에디터 “5분 동안 알아보는 프랑스 가리비의 모든 것.” 5분 동안 알아보는 가리비에 대한 모든 것, France FR, 23 Jan. 2023, https://www.france.fr/ko/normandy/list/bretagne-normandie-coquille-saint-jacques.

[2] Kawashima, Kaoru, and Hideaki Yamanaka. “Relations between Glycolysis and Browning of Cooked Scallop Adductor Muscle.” Fisheries Science, vol. 62, no. 5, 1996, pp. 800–805., https://doi.org/10.2331/fishsci.62.800.

[3] Kawashima, Kaoru, and Hideaki Yamanaka. “Relations between Glycolysis and Browning of Cooked Scallop Adductor Muscle.” Fisheries Science, vol. 62, no. 5, 1996, pp. 800–805., https://doi.org/10.2331/fishsci.62.800.

[4] “Scallops: History, Health & Nutrition.” Mussel Inn, 30 July 2021, https://www.mussel-inn.com/seafood-facts/facts-about-scallops/.

[5] Parker, Laura. “Sea Scallops Suck up Billions of Plastic Particles.” Environment, National Geographic, 3 May 2021, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/sea-scallops-eat-plastic-particles-study.