The oyster (l'huître in French) is a wintertime food. The supply here is not lacking; nor is the demand. Walt and I have now stopped eating them fresh and raw on the half shell. For the first 10 years we lived here, we ate a lot of them that way, both at home and in restaurants. When we lived in San Francisco, we had the opportunity several times to go spend a few days in Seattle, an oyster town, wandering the streets on foot, going from one oyster bar to the next to try as many types of oysters (and white wines) as we could. It was always an adventure and a feast.
In Saint-Aignan, there are several seafood vendors who specialize in oysters from the Atlantic coast of France, from Brittany down to Bordeaux, at the open-air market on Saturday mornings. I've eaten oysters in Normandy at Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue; on the Île d'Oléron off the Atlantic coast; in Paris; in San Francisco; and of course in North Carolina, where we mainly ate them lightly steamed. In 1992, my mother flew to California and brought a surprise gift: a sealed plastic bin holding several dozen oysters, taken that day, fresh, out of N.C. waters, and still alive.
The oysters in today's photos are some that we bought at the market in Saint-Aignan in January 2014. We cooked them briefly in a hot oven to make them easy to open, and we ate them at home.
Oh, I love oysters. Are you no longer eating them raw for health reasons?
ReplyDeleteBettyAnn
Unfortunately, I have been ill after eating raw oysters three or four times over the past 25 years. It's a miserable illness, and is caused by tasteless, colorless, invisible bacteria that live in oysters. These micro-organisms like the human digestive track and for 48 to 72 hours keep proliferating after being ingested, causing various symptoms. The last time I ate raw oysters was on Dec. 31, 2021, and I regretted eating them. When I told the neighbor who served them, she shrugged and said, Il en suffit d'une ! (It only takes one) and I seem to get that one too often. Then the other day she told me they had had oysters again on New Year's Eve, but that she had decided not to eat raw oysters any more. She cooked some in the oven for herself and anyone else who preferred them. People in France do cook oysters, even though purists are scandalized by the whole idea. Heating the oysters up slightly kills the bacteria and prevents the illness.
DeleteBetter safe than sorry. I'm glad you live in a place where oysters are so plentiful.
ReplyDeleteThe first time I got sick from eating oysters was in 1996, after a dinner in a posh restaurant outside Dublin in Ireland. I was there on a business trip for Apple. Before that, I had eaten many oysters and never had a bad reaction.
DeleteStaying with English friends outside Cholet, I had a bad oyster and was miserably sick for three days, as you know. That was and will always be my last raw oyster. On the way back toward Paris, I finally had an appetite, and we stopped in Vouvray. A small bakery had the local macaroons, but I chose the Opera cake, and it was one of the best Opera cakes ever. I felt I had earned it!
ReplyDeleteYou had!
DeleteThey look tasty - lightly steamed sounds good, I was never a big fan of raw. Also good is Rockefeller style - on the half-shell and topped with butter, parsley, and bread crumbs, then baked or broiled.
ReplyDeleteWalt and I have made oysters Rockefeller and enjoyed them that way. These days, we are more tempted by cooked cockles and clams with pasta, garlic, white wine, and fresh herbs.
ReplyDeleteThose options all sound good too! Especially with pasta.
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