Scallops come in many varieties.
We’re here to help you understand the differences.
Provenance matters
How and where your scallops were harvested influences their quality, as does how they’re handled
“Scallop” is a generic term that applies to any member of the taxonomic family Pectinidae. Scallops are bivalves and hundreds of species occur in all the world’s oceans. Though they occur from cold Arctic waters to the tropics, there’s one place you’ll never find them: fresh water. This site will focus on the North Atlantic Sea Scallop, Placopecten magellanicus, which occurs from the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to Cape Hatteras and produces one of the most valuable commercial fisheries in the United States.
When discussing US sea scallops, provenance plays an important role in flavor and quality. When you’re thinking of buying scallops, the first important question to ask is whether the scallops in question were harvested by a trip boat or a dayboat.
That’s important information because trip boats are generally at sea for 6-8 days, sometimes longer. They store their catch in cloth bags buried in ice, and as the ice melts, the scallops soak it up like little sponges. If your scallop was caught at the beginning of the trip, it could have been soaking up water for a week or more before you buy it. Have you ever had trouble getting a really nice sear on your scallop? You’re probably cooking with trip boat scallops (and you may be crowding the pan - more on that in our cooking section). Roughly 93% of US sea scallops come from trip boats.
Dayboats are different: they produce roughly 7% of US sea scallops. These boats are generally at sea for 24 hours or fewer, hence the name dayboat. In the Federal fishery, dayboats are occasionally out longer than 24 hours, but in Maine’s inshore fishery, trips generally last 4-8 hours in total. That means when they trips return to the dock, their catch is ultra fresh. And because Maine boats fish in the cold months of winter and early spring, they generally don’t need to be stored in ice at all, but if they are, they’re stored in plastic buckets so ice can’t come into direct contact with the catch.
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Seasonality
When are fresh scallops available?
Sea scallops can be harvested from Federal waters any time of year, but the majority are taken between April and August. The Federal fishery produces roughly 98% of US sea scallops.
Maine’s state water scallop fishery occurs between December and March, with a few open days for divers in November and April. Maine fishermen produce between 1 and 2% of US sea scallops.
Maine sea farmers are able to harvest year round, but they tend to harvest between April and October. Maine sea farmers produce less than one one hundreth of one percent of US sea scallops.
Scallops freeze extremely well, so you don’t need to limit your consumption to these period