Chef/Owner Tom Pisha-Duffly and Executive Chef DaMenga Weaverhuff of Portland’s Gado Gado and Oma’s Hideaway brought their bold, ingredient-driven approach to a recent STEELPORT Knife Skills Demo, where they prepared this elegant Kombu Cured Scallop Crudo. Known for blending Southeast Asian flavors with Pacific Northwest sensibilities, Tom and DaMenga rely on their STEELPORT 8” Chef Knife and 4” Paring Knife for both precision and versatility in the kitchen.
This dish is a great opportunity to refine delicate knife techniques, including slicing raw scallops, carefully supreming citrus, and finely chopping aromatics. Light, bright, and full of umami, this crudo highlights the importance of thoughtful prep work and knife control—resulting in a dish that’s both refined and deeply flavorful.
Kombu Cured Scallop Crudo
Ingredients
- 1 Orange
- 1 Lemon
- 1 Grapefruit
- 1 Lime
- Mint (Rough chop)
- Basil
- Cilantro
- Chives
- Lime Leaf
- 3 ea Thai Bird Chili (thin slices)
- Aleppo
- Shrimp Chips
- Furikake
Kombu Cured Scallop
- 1# Sushi Grade Scallop
- 2 each Kombu
- 2 T tamari
- 2T Mirin
Ingredients
- 500 Grams Coconut Cream
- 10g Lemongrass (Thin Rounds)
- 5g Thai Chili (Thin Rounds)
- 3g Lime Leaf
- 15g Pandan (Rough Chop)
- 2 ea Green Cardamom (smashed)
- ½ Nutmeg (grated)
- 55g Palm Sugar
- 40g Fish Sauce
Directions
- Rehydrate your Kombu with hot water for 10 minutes until pliable. Remove from water and pat dry. Mix in equal parts Tamari + Mirin. Brush onto Kombu, add your scallops and wrap into an envelope, making sure kombu is making contact with the scallops. Let cure in the fridge for 2 hours. Remove from kombu after 2 hours and cut into smaller pieces.
- Add all the ingredients for the Aromatic Coconut Cream in a small sauce pot and bring up to a simmer. Kill the heat and cover with a lid and steep for 1 hour. Strain and cool down for later use. Can be made in advance, will last 5 days. Stir before using.
- Supreme all your citrus and then cut each supreme into 3 smaller segments. Squeeze the remaining flesh and reserve the citrus juice for later use.
- Rough chop all your herbs, thin slice T. Birds and put to side.
- Blend furikake into a powder. You will use this to toss on shrimp chips. You can buy already puffed shrimp chips at the store and toss in a bowl with furikake powder.
Building Crudo
Add cured scallops into a bowl and season with salt first. Add in a big pinch of all the herbs, Aleppo, Thai chilis, and enough aromatic coconut cream to coat the scallops. Give it a good toss to incorporate ingredients. Add your citrus segments and juice and give it another taste. Taste for acid, add more citrus juice if it needs it, if it’s too acidic add more coconut cream.
Plate in a bowl, garnish with more chives and Aleppo. Serve with shrimp chips.