Aw Shucks

Oh <groan>. Tell me you didn't see this coming.

There's a back story here I'll explain later.

Between shucking contests and gory stories of knives being pushed through the palms of careless hands, oyster shucking is something I've never done at home. Never even thought of it. Like carpaccio and tartare I've always left oysters to experts.

Oysters. 3 August
I love seafood. I eat seafood 2 or 3 times a week. Sometimes more. I especially love oysters! I should be able to do this. So with a bold shrug I decided...what the hell. I'd try shucking oysters at home. Maybe I'd waste a few oysters. Which would be a crime but just maybe I'll add a whole new dimension to dining at home.

Julia Child shucks oysters with a church key can opener. It's really rather easy and safer than using an oyster knife. There's a video here from Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home where she uses a can opener to open an oyster. It's about 4 minutes into the video.

I scrubbed the sand and stuff off the outside of my oysters. Don't *ever* rinse the inside! I wrapped the oyster in a towel to more easily hold it, bowl side down (they have a small flat top shell and a bowl shaped bottom shell) with the more pointier end exposed. I gently worked the pointy end of the can opener into the little space in the "hinge" and, working in as far as I could, gently pried it. And...crack, the shell separated just a little. That's as far as you'll get. The muscle still holds the shell on. Here's where you'd use an oyster knife but I used a butter knife. Just slide the butter knife in the seam between the shells and scrape it back and forth along the top shell to cut the muscle loose. With the top shell removed run the knife under the oyster to free it from the bottom shell. Be very careful not to lose any of that liquid. There! Have a look at that! I was so very proud of myself. I could have done a happy dance on the spot.

Add some cocktail sauce and Sauvignon Blanc. Or Champagne. Or beer. Or some sparkling water.

I was a little unprepared for success so my presentation is somewhat lacking. Next time I think I'll have a Mignonette Sauce with them.