Scallops Provincial

Nice little bay scallops at the fish place ($5 a lb.). I wanted to do something vaguely Provençale with tomatoes, mushrooms, etc. Problem is that all three main ingredients, scallops, tomatoes, mushrooms, give up liquid like crazy. Unless you can get so-called dry scallops (usually just the big ones), almost all scallops in the US are soaked in a potassium or sodium tripolyphosphate solution to keep them fresher while shipping. It's really not that bad (it's about the only way we'll see scallops in Cincinnati), but it does mean that most scallops are in fact a scallop and water product and need to be treated accordingly.
I started with the scallops but this is the better way (So I'm violating the Laws of the Kitchen. So sue me).

Sauté a small onion and a glove of garlic in some olive oil, add the mushrooms, cook till brown. Pour into a bowl. Add some more olive oil. Add the scallops and cook all on one side for a minute and a half. Try to turn all the scallops evenly to the other side. It can't be done, but never mind. Toss the scallops anyway and cook another minute until opaque. Fish them out to the same bowl. Add to the scallop juice (and there will be a lot) a mess of tomatoes chopped in goodly chunks (we've got some nice black plum tomatoes coming in) plus kosher salt, fresh oregano and thyme, a shot of red pepper flakes, and some saffron (we're probably the only people in North America with too much saffron, the results of gifts and friends abandoning their spices to our tender care when moving). The saffron adds an amazingly subtle flavor and color. Pour in any juice from the bowl. Cook on medium until tomatoes are thickened a bit. Now fish out the tomatoes from the soup, put them in the same damn bowl, crank up the heat, and Reduce the Juice. When it's thickened, add all the stuff: mushrooms, scallops, and tomatoes. Re-hot the savory mess and eat with big spoons.