For all you lovers out there, February 14 is just around the corner… so it’s time to eat oysters
Oysters au Naturel (Serves 2)
12 live medium oysters, on the half shell
1 lemon
Purists wouldn’t dream of eating oysters any way but raw, freshly opened on the half shell with a dash of lemon.
You can also try them with a little hot pepper sauce, or a vinegar and onion garnish.
But if you’re feeling daring, make an oyster shooter… Simply place your oyster in a shot glass, and top with tomato juice or a spicy cocktail sauce (ketchup, horseradish and Worcestershire sauce).
Add lemon juice, black pepper and vodka to taste. Stir together and shoot!
Oysters Rockefeller (Serves 2)
2 slices bacon
24 live medium oysters, unopened
170g cooked spinach
55g breadcrumbs
26g green onions, chopped
1tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1 dash hot pepper sauce
3tbsp olive oil
1tsp anise-flavoured liqueur
Preheat your oven to 220°C. Fry the bacon, drain, crumble and set aside.
Clean the oysters and place in a large stockpot. Cover with water and bring to the boil.
Remove from the heat; drain and cool the oysters, before breaking the top shell off each.
Combine the bacon, spinach, breadcrumbs, green onions and parsley in a food processor.
Add the hot sauce, olive oil and anise-flavoured liqueur and process until finely chopped but not puréed.
Arrange the oysters on a pan lined with rock salt. Spoon a little spinach mixture over each oyster.
Bake for 10 minutes, then grill until browned on top. Serve piping hot.
Oysters Mornay (Serves 2)
473ml milk
2tsp cornflour
1 cup gruyere cheese, grated
4tbsp parmesan cheese
24 oysters on the half shell
Heat the milk in a pan, when hot, mix a little water with the cornflour, add to the milk and stir until the mixture thickens.
Add the gruyere and half the parmesan; stir until the cheese has melted.
Pour rock salt into an ovenproof dish, enough to cover the bottom, and arrange the oysters on top.
Spoon the sauce over the oysters to cover, and sprinkle with the remaining parmesan.
Grill until browned and bubbling. Serve with a little spinach or samphire.
