Alex Loves Oysters!
My wife Alex loves oysters – so it was up to me to make her beloved bi-valves THREE WAYS!
“The Big Oyster!”
I was excited to make some fun, delicious and easy oyster dishes, as I am a huge fan of Mark Kurlanksy’s history of the oyster in the US…the book includes fascinating insight into the role that oysters played in our nation’s history – and the book has lots of recipes for this delicious bi-valve, so let’s make some three different and unique ways!
Oysters! Bacon! White Wine! Let’s Cook!
All three of these recipes are easy to make, and use very few ingredients – note that th wine is actually for drinking as I cook – so let’s get started by shucking some oysters!
The Kusshi oysters were purchased at the terrific Santa Monica Seafood shop here in West Los Angeles…I only got a half dozen, because shucking is not easy!
The key to shucking an oyster is to wedge your shucking knife into the narrow slit at the back of the shell…I wiggled the knife until I felt it break through…
My wife Alex shot the entire shucking process, and I explain what I am wearing and why:
It’s interesting to me just how many tens of thousands of clicks this got on YouTube – and a few people chastising me for doing it all wrong! All I can say is this: I got them out of the shell and that’s all that matters!
And also, it would be a dull world if we all cooked the same way, right?
These will be the first course: freshly shucked raw oysters with a squeeze of lemon!
Next up, another fairly easy dish that uses the grease from one of our other ingredients!
Making Pan-Fried Oysters!
This is also easy to do: I bought a half pound of whole shucked oysters, and I dipped them in some Italian bread crumbs…no flour, no egg, just the bread crumbs, and then I pan fried them for 3-4 minutes each side – in bacon fat!
It not only sounds delicious, it smells great too!
If you are wondering where the bacon fat came from, well, that’s the last recipe!
Making “Angels On Horseback!”
The most intricate recipe goes last…remember that bacon sitting on my counter? It was time to fry it up!
Here are your ingredients for this deliciously easy oyster dish:
1/2 pound bacon
6 fresh oysters
Lemon
Toothpicks
White wine – for drinking!
As much fun as these are to make, “Angels On Horseback” is simply a bacon-wrapped oyster!
As one food website describes the dish: The name itself, “angels on horseback,” is believed to be derived from its classic appearance when the bacon edges curl up after broiling, remotely resembling the upturned wings of angels!
The key is to pre-cook the bacon so it is partially done – that’s because the oysters will cook faster on a grill than the bacon!
I cooked 4 slices of bacon for about 5 minutes on each side on a lower-medium heat…then let them cool.
I set the bacon fat aside and cooked the pan-fried oysters that you saw in it!
Here is how I prepared the “Angels On Horseback”, and it will take us back to my shucking efforts with some commentary from Alex!
Yes, I called them “Angels On Halfback” by mistake but Alex helped me out – and yes, I only shucked 4 of the oysters – and did 4 only because she told me one wasn’t enough!
The raw oysters are easy to wrap with the bacon, and a toothpick holds them in place…
Of course, I broke the “space time continuum” here in the pictures as the pan-fried oysters weren’t pan-fried yet, but it’s all about the storytelling, so go with me…
I put the “angels” on the grill – using some aluminum foil so they wouldn’t stick, and cooked them on each side for 5 minutes….and that’s it, my “oysters three ways” were done!
The “Angels On Horseback” were delicious, as the smoky, salty bacon is a perfect counterpoint to the smooth richness of the poached oyster, which doesn’t grill because the bacon protects it a bit!
The fired oysters were delectable: after all they were cooked in bacon grease, and the oyster has plenty of meaty goodness since it’s only covered by a thin later of bread crumbs…
The freshly shucked oysters were a pop of briny salt water – I ordered these Kusshi specifically because these British Columbia oysters are smaller and cleaner in flavor…a light pop to end the meal!
This was an entire meal for us – we added a fresh salad and called it a night!
I love oysters and hope all of you do as well!
I love all types of seafood, that’s why I shared our visit to the legendary Swan Oyster Depot in San Francisco – click here to see the magical dishes they create!
San Francisco is such an incredible city – and all of this incredible seafood made me want to make some!
How about a fried fish taco with homemade salsa and cabbage slaw!
I made this dish as part of my “52 In 22” cooking challenge – one new recipe from one of my cookbooks every week for an entire year!
See how this turned out by clicking here:
And of course, another favorite of mine, clams, were the star of my “4th of July” foodie celebration:
I cooked food from George Washington and Thomas Jefferson – here are the recipes from these “founding foodies!”
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Categories: 52 In 22!, Bacon, Bite Eat Swallow, Bite! Eat! Repeat!, Chef memoirs, Cookbooks, Eat This!, Food, Food Pictures, Recipes, Wacky Food, World's Wildest Food
Bite! Eat! Repeat! 
wow, all three look fabulous. I just was reading how some oysters contain the flesh-eating bacteria. I really wish I hadn’t.
HMMMMMMMMMMM….I didn’t see that but there have been a few outbreaks based on fresh oysters recently – making people sick…they are something you have to consider closely before eating raw…at least two of these are cooked! Thanks for that “heads up!”
Love this. I also like Devils on Horseback and Oysters Rockefeller!! Good one. Well done.
Thanks for the comment! I love oysters and I also enjoy making things “three ways” as it makes for a nice culinary adventure – and all smaller bites!
Oyster Rockefeller just aren’t served at enough places anymore! Thanks for the comment, I love them as well!
Hi John, you are a star cook 🍻🌈
Way to go John you really are an adventerous cook they look delicious 😀
I originally shared this two years ago and decided it was worth re-doing – we love love love oysters!
I prefer them raw to cooked myself 🙂
I’ve never prepared my own oysters, or heard of this combo, but I’m guessing they would be really good
One of my favorite foods! I open my oysters the same way, and I have the same glove, but I don’t have that handy yellow contraption. Does it also catch any liquor that spills out?
It does if you use it right…someone pointed out that it’s not really for that, but I use it the way it works best for me! Thanks for commenting always great to hear from you!
I do like fresh oysters with lemon, ‘The taste of the sea’. Also baked oysters, which I ate in France many years ago. But like many fresh food products over here, they are becoming far too expensive to eat regularly.
Best wishes, Pete.
People really need lives. Some people, it seems, thrive on making negative comments. And you’re right! You got the oysters out of their shells and didn’t have to go to the ER!!
Thanks…social media does devolve into the wild, west west a lot!