Brown Butter Scallops with Butternut Squash Risotto
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Nov 02, 2022, Updated Sep 02, 2024
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This recipe for Brown Butter Scallops with Butternut Squash Risotto is a dream come true. The brown butter complements the briny and fresh scallops. The risotto is creamy and rich. I love to pair this with my Fall Harvest Salad, Cranberry Margaritas and my Apple Cobbler. Fall excellence!

It’s fall and now I want acorn squash soup, a fancy grilled cheese, and all things pasta like my pumpkin pasta alla vodka.
If you know me, you know I LOOOVE scallops. And this isn’t my first rodeo. I always tend to cook them like this: hard sear in a pan and then finish them with brown butter. It’s the most delicious way. These scallops on a bed of butternut squash risotto is fall at its best! Let’s do it!
Ingredients for Brown Butter Scallops with Butternut Squash Risotto
- Chicken stock – I love my homemade chicken stock recipe but feel free to use store-bought too.
- Butternut Squash – You can absolutely roast your own and puree it but I used a can of butternut squash puree for an easy shortcut.
- Arborio Rice – I love using this type of rice for arborio. You could also serve it on top of pastina too!
- White wine – I like using white wine because it adds a nice flavor of brightness to an otherwise rich dish.
- Scallops – I used pretty big scallops that were previously never freezer; you’ll get the best sear on them.
For the rest of the ingredients, please refer to the recipe index card below!
How to Make Brown Butter Scallops with Butternut Squash Risotto
- First you want to work with warm chicken stock in your 4-quart saucepan. You could also use veggie broth, if you want to keep this dish pescatarian.
- Next, add the butter and olive oil in a small saucepan. When itโs warm, add in the onion and cook until theyโre softened, about 5 minutes.
- Then you want to add the garlic, thyme and arborio rice and mix. You want to toast the rice until you see the little kernels have what appears to be a white dot in the center of them. This is them par-cooking a bit BEFORE we cook it slowly in the broth.
- Pour in the white wine and let it evaporate a bit and cook with the rice. The rice will absorb the wine.
- Ladle in a big ladle full of broth, stirring and then letting it cook until itโs been absorbed by the rice. This usually takes about 5 minutes. Then you want to repeat this process about 5 times until the rice has cooked to al dente and has absorbed most of the broth. This process usually takes about 30 minutes.
- Mix in the butternut squash puree, nutmeg, salt, pepper and cream cheese. Give it a good stir; itโll turn super creamy and delicious. And cook for about 2 more minutes.
- Turn off the heat and then fold in the butter, parmesan and gruyere. If itโs super runny or thin, not to worry, itโll thicken a bit as it sits while we sear up the scallops.
- To cook the scallops, I like to take a 10-inch skillet and place it over medium heat. Add in the neutral oil and cook the scallops on each side for about 1 to 2 minutes. Repeat until youโve worked through all of the scallops.
- Clean out the pan and then add the reserved 2 tablespoons of butter. Cook until itโs toasty and browned.
- Divide the risotto amongst 6 bowls. Top it with a three to 4 scallops. And drizzle with the browned butter and garnish with a sprig of thyme.
Tips and Tricks
Use my homemade chicken stock for the most amazing flavor.
Veggie broth or chicken stock. Substitute veggie broth if you want to make this dish pescatarian-friendly.
Butternut Squash Puree: You can substitute pumpkin puree in place of butternut squash puree if you have trouble finding it.
Skip the wine: If you want to skip the addition of wine, no biggie, you can just skip to the step with the broth. You may need a bit more broth in the end.
More Cozy Recipes To Make
Brown Butter Scallops with Butternut Squash Risotto
Video
Ingredients
Risotto:
- 6 cups chicken stock, (or veggie stock)
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves stripped from stems
- 2 cups Arborio rice
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 (15-ounce) can butternut squash purรฉe
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
- 2 cups parmesan cheese, finely grated
Scallops:
- 1 pound large scallops, cleaned
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
- ยพ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
- 2 teaspoons neutral, high-heat oil
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
Instructions
To Make the Risotto:
- To a 2-quart saucepan, add the chicken stock and heat on medium until it comes to simmer, then quickly reduce to low to keep it warm.
- To a skillet, set over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons olive oil and heat until shiny and shimmering. Add the onions and cook for about 5 minutes or until softened. Add the minced garlic, thyme, and arborio rice and cook, stirring often, for another 5 or so minutes until the grains are translucent on the edges with the centers remaining white (itโll look like each grain has a white dot in the center).
- Add the white wine to the skillet, stirring often, until fully absorbed by the grains.
- Ladle in about 1/2 a cup of warm stock into the skillet and stir often until the liquid has absorbed into the rice and the bottom of the pan looks dry. Continue this process until all the stock has been incorporated. It should take about 30 minutes or so in total. The rice should be shiny and al dente. If at any point before the 30 minutes is up or before youโve incorporated all of the stock the risotto is both al dente and shiny, you can stop adding the stock. Risotto is a touch and feel dish. Reduce the heat to low and stir in the butternut squash, nutmeg, 2 teaspoons of salt, 1 teaspoon of pepper, and the cream cheese and stir for 2 minutes, it should be well combined. Turn off the heat and fold in the reserved 1 tablespoon of butter, parmesan, and gruyere. Taste it and add more seasoning, to taste. If it looks really saucy, donโt panic. The sauce will continue to absorb into the rice as you sear the scallops.
To Make the Scallops:
- โโStart by patting the scallops dry with a paper towel (this helps with them getting nice and browned). Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. In a small skillet, set over medium-high heat, add the oil.
- When hot, add the scallops, cooking on each side for about 1 to 2 minutes, until nice and golden brown. Repeat until youโve worked your way through all of the scallops. Set them aside on a paper towel. Clean out the pan, if needed and then add the butter to the pan and cook for about 1 to 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until itโs turned from melted, to foamy to nutty and browned. Remove immediately.
- Divide the risotto into six equal portions, preferably served in shallow bowls, and top with the scallops and drizzle the browned butter over each. Serve immediately–you can garnish with a sprig of thyme and more parmesan cheese if desired.
Notes
- Substitute veggie broth if you want to make this dish pescatarian-friendly.
- Warm broth helps the risotto cook faster. If you pour in cold broth, you have to wait until it heats up until it can begin cooking the arborio rice, hence the reason why this recipe calls for the first step to heat up the broth.
- You can substitute pumpkin puree in place of butternut squash puree.
- If you want to skip the addition of wine, no biggie, you can just skip to the step with the broth. You may need a bit more broth in the end.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Does anyone know how to electric pressure cook this Risotto?
Looking to make this and I noticed Gruyรจre is mentioned but is not in the ingredient list. How much is added? Canโt wait to try!
I don’t see cream cheese or pecorino cheese listed in the ingredients. How much is called for?
In the ingredient list you don’t list gruyere and cream cheese but you list it in the recipe? I’m mid cooking and very confused? ๐
ahh sorry about that! the first iteration of this recipe had both of those things added but i re-tested it and felt they were unnecessary. so i’m going to edit and remove it from there! sorry about that.
Gotcha! I was coming here to say the same thing about the cream cheese and Gruyรจre since theyโre still in the instructions but not the ingredients.
I loveee this risotto and just remembered it’s back in season! I made it last fall and thought it was so so delicious — now as the weather gets chilly, I’ll be making it again ๐
ahh amazing – i hope you love it, again!
I made this tonight for dinner as we’re in prime squash season and it was delicious! I had to make my own puree as I couldn’t find it in the store and it was 100% worth it! The risotto is nice and cheesy with some slight nuttiness from the squash and the browned butter that goes on top. The scallops are simple but perfect to pair with this. I’ll definitely be making this again!