How to Shuck Oysters
The oceans, seas, rivers and lakes provide us with these little gems. Besides a wide selection of fish, there’s crustaceans (crabs, prawns, shrimp, lobster, crayfish, etc.) mollusks (snails, scallops, oysters, clams, mussels, etc.) and aqua plants (water chestnuts, lotus, watercress, taro, seaweeds, etc.).
In the mollusk family, I love them all but if I go only with my first top 3, I’d say scallops is first followed by oysters and then mussels. As much as scallops are primo, I really enjoy oysters either raw or cooked. Besides making the famous Oysters Rockefeller, there are other incredible recipes such as Oysters Kilpatrick, Oysters Bienville, Oysters Motoyaki, Fried Oysters, Oysters Casino (clam is another option for this recipe), Oysters and Cornbread Stuffing with Sausage, Oysters Suzette, and Oyster Shooters.
Today, I’m not sharing any recipes but instead, I’d like us to focus on How to Shuck Oysters! As intimidating as their shells can be, it’s not that hard to open them up. You just need to know a couple things and have the right tools for it which are a good quality oyster knife and a thick kitchen towel to protect your hand.
There are two methods on How to Shuck Oysters; the side entry or the hinge technique. David uses the hinge while I use both techniques… well wherever I can find a little gap. Apparently, the hinge technique is easier. Here’s a little hint someone who was working at Rodney’s Oyster House gave me back when I was living in Toronto. If you have the hinge pointing towards you, the adductor muscle is always on the right side of the mollusk.
When the top and bottom shells are separated, discard the top one and slide the knife under the meat to cut the adductor muscle to release. The curved bottom ones can be kept as a food vessel depending on your recipe. Simply rinse them thoroughly under cold water to remove any sand or soil and invert them on a cutting board lined with paper towels to dry them off.
How to Shuck Oysters is not difficult. You might come across some tough ones here and there but guess who will win? You! I’m pretty sure we’re more stubborn than them!
Bon Appétit!
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