Serves 4

The chef at La Riviera in Inverness was highly accomplished, but his dishes were way too complicated: one dish had 12 different competing flavours. When I took his French menu out on to the street, people couldn’t even understand it – no way were they going to spend £50 on two courses. The lesson was to simplify everything. I made this scallop dish to show how to use just a few flavours to complement each other. I learnt to make the caper and sultana dressing in New York. It is so versatile and works well with other pan-fried fish, too. If you want to make this more glamorous, place each scallop on a small bed of cauliflower purée, with a cauliflower floret on top.

100g sultanas
100g drained capers
1 tsp mild curry powder
12 large scallops
1 tbsp olive oil
200g mixed salad leaves
2 tbsp classic vinaigrette
Freshly ground black pepper and salt

1 Blend the sultanas, capers and 120ml
of water in a food processor until smooth. Pass the mixture through a sieve, rubbing with the back of a spoon. The dressing should have a pouring consistency, so if required, add a little more water.

2 Lightly sprinkle the scallops with curry powder. Heat the oil in a large nonstick pan. Add the scallops and cook for a minute on each side until nicely brown and still bouncy when touched. Remove from the pan and allow to cool for a minute, and then slice in half horizontally. Season well.

3 Toss the salad leaves in the dressing and divide between 4 plates. Place the scallops around the edge of the plate and spoon a little dressing around them or in between in little mounds. Serve immediately.

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