The oysters you buy are usually four to seven years old. You can determine the age by counting the ridges on the outside of the shell, one for each year. And that brings up the first problem in their preparation: how to open them. Actually, this is a specialized skill that is considered a trade, and there are men who derive most of their living from it. An amateur will find the shells rough and heavy to handle, and the muscle that keeps them tightly closed tough and difficult to negotiate. Sec GOURMET'S November issue, page 25, for a description of how to open the recalcitrant oyster.
If you do want to open your own oysters, I think you will be interested also in the trick that Mr. Royal Toner recommends. Mr. Toner, who produces a large percentage of the oysters eaten in this country and who is an authority on them, should know. He advises that you spread the oysters on a shallow pan and put the pan in a moderately hot oven (375° F.) for five or six minutes, depending upon their size. Then drop the oysters immediately into ice water. The heat relaxes the muscle, making the oyster easy to open, yet it does not affect the oyster itself in any way, because it cannot penetrate the heavy shell. Mr. Toner tells me that he has served oysters opened by a professional oysterman side by side with those opened this way, and it was almost impossible to tell the difference.
Raw oysters are usually accompanied by something sharp and acidic. In this country it is usually a cocktail sauce with a tomato base, or lemon juice and horseradish, or even plain lemon juice. In France they prefer shallot sauce. The following is the cocktail sauce we served at the Ritz:
Mix together 1 cup tomato ketchup, 1/2 cup chili sauce, 1 tablespoon vinegar, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, juice of 1 lemon, 1/4 teaspoon celery salt, and 5 drops Tabasco sauce. Chill the mixture and serve with oysters or other shellfish.
The French shallot sauce for oysters is made as follows:
Mix 1 teaspoon finely chopped shallots with 3 tablespoons vinegar (or 1 tablespoon lemon juice) and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
Raw oysters, or those cooked very lightly, are probably one of the most easily digested of the solid foods we eat. But they have one peculiarity-they are quickly toughened by alcohol. For this reason, people who eat raw oysters should drink very little, if any, hard liquor. If you drink anything with oysters, male it a dry white wine, as delightful a combination, incidentally, as you could ask for.
There is only one rule that is important in cooking oysters-and that is not to overcook them. They require hardly any heat at all. They are never boiled, merely simmered-and then only for about two minutes. For oyster stew the instructions usually say “until the edges curl,” but even that is too long to suit some oyster lovers. At the Ritz, if oysters were very large, we often trimmed the edge because it sometimes cooks tough, even with the gentlest heat.
Huitres Marinées (Marinated Oysters for Hors-d'Oeuvre)
Combine in a saucepan 1 cup white wine, 1 1/2 tablespoons vinegar, 1 cup water, 1 teaspoon salt, 8 peppercorns, 1 tablespoon salad oil, 1 onion and 1 medium carrot, sliced, 8 sprigs of parsley, 1 stalk of celery, I clove garlic, a little thyme, and 1 bay leaf. Bring the marinade to a boil, cook it for about 1 hour, and strain it. Add 3 or 4 dozen raw oysters and their juice, bring the marinade to a boil, and remove the pan from the heat. Let the oysters cool in the marinade. To serve, put the oysters in an hors-d'oeuvre dish and pour over them enough marinade to keep them moist. Sprinkle them with chopped parschopped chives and garnish the dish with slices of lemon.
To cook oysters in their shells, as for oysters à l'américaine and the like, open the oysters and reserve and clean the deep shells. These shells are then nested firmly in salt on a baking pan or plate to keep them from tipping.
Huitres au Caviar (Oysters with Caviar)
Open and drain well 6 oysters for each serving. Reserve and clean the deep shells. Put 1 generous teaspoon caviar in the bottom of each deep shell, lay an oyster on the caviar, and cover it with a thin slice of lemon. Serve the oysters with a dish of finely chopped parsley.
Oysters Casino
Open 6 oysters for each serving and leave them in the deep shells. Cover each with a square of sliced bacon and bake in a hot oven (450° F.) or under the broiler for about 5 minutes, or until the bacon is crisp. Add to each a little freshly ground pepper and a little maitre d'hôtel butter, made by creaming 1/2 cup butter with 1/2 teaspoon chopped parsley, the juice of 1/2 lemon, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve the oysters hot, with lemon wedges.
Poached Oysters
To poach oysters for use in other recipes, remove them from their shells and put them in a saucepan with their own juices. Bring the liquid to a boil, remove the pan from the heat, and let the oysters stand for a few minutes. Drain the oysters well. The juice may be cooked until it is reduced to half its original quantity, strained through a cheesecloth, and used as part of the liquid in whatever sauce is made for the oysters.
Huitres Bourguignonne (Oysters with Garlic Batter)
Open 3 dozen oysters and reserve the deep shells. Poach the oysters and return them to the shells. Prepare bourbutter as follows: Work 1/2 pound sweet butter with 1 or 2 cloves garlic, crushed, until it is creamy. Add 1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot and 1 teaspoon finely chopped mixed tarragon, chives, chervil, and paisley. Blend the butter well and spread a little of it over the oysters. Sprinkle lightly with cracker crumbs. Hake in a very hot oven (450° F.) or under the broiler for a few minutes, until the crumbs are a light golden brown.
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