Oysters, Two Ways

It’s early in the evening and I’m outside reflecting on our day. The hummingbirds are clearly not happy, disapproving of me in their area. They are making their clicking noises and flying close to my head. Last summer we had one little guy fly straight into our big glass window knocking him to the ground. By the time it took us to get out the door to check on him he had got up and flown away. They are fun to watch and they love the nectar from the beautiful pink fuchsias. (see below)

This morning was a busy one. We weeded and cleaned another section of the yard. It’s amazing how tangled the blackberry bushes can get. Such a resilient plant.

Next we headed out to the oyster farm located up the Siletz River on Yaquina Bay Road in Newport, Oregon. We picked up 2 dozen of the “small” oysters and headed home. Deciding which way to prepare them become our big discussion on the way back. After surfing the internet we decided to grill them two different ways. The first a classic; was to shuck them and prepare them Rockefeller style. The other was to grill them until they started to open; remove the top lid and add a slice of fresh ginger, shiitake mushroom, green onion, soy sauce and peanut oil. Both ways were delicious and I would make each recipe again in a heartbeat.

Ingredients:

Rockefeller style:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/3 cup Panko bread crumbs
2 shallots, (chopped)
1 small leek (cut into ribbons, both white and green parts)
2 cups chopped fresh spinach
1/4 cup white wine
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1 tablespoon parsley (chopped)
1 dozen oysters on the half shell
1 lemon, (cut into wedges)

To prepare:

Rockefeller style:

Shuck the oysters. (my husband did this part as well as the grilling) he began by watching a utube video which I recommend as it is not as easy as it looks.

Next in a heavy skillet melt butter. Place the bread crumbs in a small mixing bowl and add half the butter set aside. To the remaining butter in the skillet, add shallots and leeks and sauté until tender, about 5 to 7 minutes. Next add in spinach, cook for 3 to 5 minutes until the spinach wilts. Deglaze the pan with white wine. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside mixture to cool. Finish off the bread crumbs by mixing in olive oil, Parmesan and parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon spinach mixture on each oyster then follow with a spoonful of the bread crumb mixture. Place oysters on grill and cook about 5 to 7 minutes, until cheese is bubbling and beginning to brown. (time will vary depending on the size of the oysters)

This recipe has been adapted from The Foodnetwork website.

Asian style:

Ingredients:

1 dozen oysters

12 pieces thinly sliced shiitake mushrooms

1 green onion, thinly sliced

1 teaspoon peanut oil

2 ounces soy sauce

To prepare:

***have sauce pan heated on grill with the peanut oil, and soy sauce.

Place oysters on grill until the shell starts to open, about 6 minutes for these. Pull off the top shell and place a piece of fresh ginger, shiitake mushroom and green onion on each oyster. Pour heated peanut oil and soy sauce over oysters for a sizzling effect. Move to cooler spot on the grill for an additional 2 to 3 minutes. (time will vary depending on the size of the oysters) Enjoy!