"Bob (this one)" > wrote in message
...
> Peter Aitken wrote:
>> "Bob (this one)" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>
>>>Dee Randall wrote:
>>>
>>>>"jmcquown" > wrote in message
. net...
>>>>
>>>>
wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>>I know what opaque means. I do not know how to to when they are.
>>>>>>I mean they're white and without cutting them open how do I tell?
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>No need to cut them open. You can tell by looking and even
>>>>>touching in the center. Any pink in the center? Are they firm?
>>>>>Any pink when you turn them over? Opaque. About 6 minutes total;
>>>>>no longer than 10. Otherwise you get rubber scallops.
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>Jill, I've not seen any pink scallops. Should I eyeball them closer
>>>>to observe a pinkish tint? They look more on the greyish side than
>>>>pink to me.
>>>
>>>Different varieties will be differently colored. Few will be pink. Some
>>>will have a pink "fringe" which is perfectly edible.
>>>
>>>Pastorio
>>
>> And scallops that are all pure white when raw should be avoided. They
>> have been soaked in a phosphate solution to improve shelf life and it
>> makes them watery and almost impossible to sear properly.
>
> Not necessarily, in my experience. The ones that have been soaked are
> called "washed" and are obvious from the milky liquid that gathers around
> them as they leak or "purge" the solution. Scallops will be a warm, creamy
> white color - sometimes almost beige - or lightly tinged with orange, or a
> pale pink, washed or not.
>
> Pastorio

I think you need to do a little research. First of all it is "wet" scallops,
not washed, versus dry (unsoaked). Every authority I have seen says the wet
ones are "stark white" and sometimes unusually plump looking. The slight
color variations that you describe are the diagnosis of dry scallops. Dry
scallops can still leak liquid, but it's their natural juices and not a
tripolyphiosphate solution.


--
Peter Aitken