# Has Anyone Ever Marketing a Good Artificial Scallop? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 16, 2013, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-ever-marketing-a-good-artificial-scallop/666441 "2013-08-16T19:02:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-ever-marketing-a-good-artificial-scallop/666441/1 "2013-08-16T19:02:07Z")
I have had some pretty good fake crab (surimi); and some brands of fake lobster are quite passable. But has anyone tried making scallops? Seems like there would be a good market for them. If you know of a brand, please let me know! ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-ever-marketing-a-good-artificial-scallop/666441/2 "2013-08-16T20:43:20Z")
Fake scallops have been around forever. They are generally cut with a cookie cutter-type punch from flounder or some other thin fish. Not very good. Newer techniques may make a more palatable product. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-ever-marketing-a-good-artificial-scallop/666441/3 "2013-08-16T22:35:26Z")
It’s easy to counterfeit sea scallops, but you can’t counterfeit bay scallops. The taste would give them away. ---
**Author:** ![Saltire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saltire/32/553_2.png) [@Saltire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saltire)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-ever-marketing-a-good-artificial-scallop/666441/4 "2013-08-16T23:19:27Z")
The thing is that fake scallops are sold as real scallops, for full price, to unwary customers. I don’t think I’ve ever seen them sold honestly as a cheap alternative to the real thing. ---
**Author:** ![tellyworth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@tellyworth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tellyworth)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2013, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-ever-marketing-a-good-artificial-scallop/666441/5 "2013-08-17T00:59:08Z")
There was a thread about this [a while back](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=610125). It seems there’s some doubt about whether this is really as widespread as is commonly believed. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2013, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anyone-ever-marketing-a-good-artificial-scallop/666441/6 "2013-08-17T10:44:06Z")
Skate wings are filled with strands of cartilage - to eat them. you have to comb the cooked flesh off the cartilage (or, I suppose, chew it all up together, if you like eating rubber bands). I can’t see how the stories about ersatz scallops punched from skate wings could possibly be true (unless the intent is to pass them off as such at point of sale only). However, I’m pretty sure I have eaten fake scallops that were some kind of surimi - and they were OK. Not as nice as the real thing, of course, but nice enough.