Foo - Raw oyster help

My neighbor just gave me a 50 pound box of raw oysters.
How does one tell the live from the dead?

I have also come to the realization that a bench vice and an old chisel are not the best cutlery. How do you get into these damn things when you don't have a medieval chain glove? I'm going to stab myself aren't I?

1) Live ones are hard to open. Dead ones aren't as difficult.
2) Get a shucking knife
3) learn how to use it
4) have a first aid kit and telephone nearby
5) don't forget to look for pearls
6) have saltines and tobasco sauce on hand....and good beer too
7) don't start till I get there.

My neighbor just gave me a 50 pound box of raw oysters.
How does one tell the live from the dead?

I have also come to the realization that a bench vice and an old chisel are not the best cutlery. How do you get into these damn things when you don't have a medieval chain glove? I'm going to stab myself aren't I?

That is so frikken awsome. Yep, live are more difficult to open. Get a shucking knife, just use a leather garden glove, no cuts. Enjoy!

That is so frikken awsome. Yep, live are more difficult to open. Get a shucking knife, just use a leather garden glove, no cuts. Enjoy!It is worth repeating......use heavy leather gloves when shucking. Enjoy, have a party with that many O's

I have never had an oyster that I know of.

Can't say I've ever had a raw one. Not sure if I want to change that. Probably would if I felt they were clean enough. I mean I do enjoy some good sushi.

I have never had an oyster that I know of.

texicans :rolleyes:

I have never had an oyster that I know of.I bet you've enjoyed the Rocky Mountain variety :lol:

It helps to have them very cold.

I had a manufacturer of industrial air handling equipment and they gave me a pair of kevlar gloves that I now use for shucking oysters. They clean up a lot easier than the leather gloves. You can get them at an industrial supply and safety store.

Coat em' in cornmeal and deep fry them suckers! That many oysters and slices of limes and cold beers= A party!

steam them!!

Ponzu, Shirachi, a quail egg, and finely diced onions on raw (SoCal) or open half-shell on the BBQ smothered in BBQ sauce (NoCal) or breaded and deep fried (Southern).....

If you've got big fat oysters a great way to serve them is to shuck them so you've got a dozen or more for everybody, melt some butter and add garlic to it. Get a nice hot fire on the grill and place the half shells directly on the grill. Give them a minute or so to start heating through the shell and start pouring that garlic butter on them. The over splash should light up and burn (nice drama for the audience) for a few seconds. Watch the edges of the oysters carefully. You want to pull them off the grill as soon as the edges start to curl. Add a bit more butter and maybe some lemon juice and pepper sauce.

Killer.

texicans :rolleyes:

This cow poke has seen and kicked more road oysters than all of us.

I bet you've enjoyed the Rocky Mountain variety :lol:

incorrect.

Ruben is in Georgia this week.
Have him and the kin-folk come over and shoot them open.

Oyster Shooters

Shuck the O's and place one each in shot glass.
Add a tablespoon or two of lime juice (yeah, the real stuff)
Two drops of Tabasco and a couple drops of Ponzu.

Lots of a good ale or bottles of Pinot Gris or Oaky Chardonay (from Oregon is best )

Coat em' in cornmeal and deep fry them suckers! That many oysters and slices of limes and cold beers= A party!

Everthing down "thar" is deep fried but this^ is the best idea.
Don't forget plenty of Warsteiner Octoberfest for us to wash those devils down.

I'd return them to your neighbor and let him sort them out.

Or just send them to Modo. He seems sufficiently interested.

If they're slightly open they're dead. If you don't have shucking knife you can roast them over an open fire until they open a bit. When they open they're done cooking. At this point you can open them with a butter knife.

I'll be there in two hours.

I'll be there in two hours.

^dessert:thumb:

My neighbor just gave me a 50 pound box of raw oysters.
How does one tell the live from the dead?

The dead ones are easy to open


I have also come to the realization that a bench vice and an old chisel are not the best cutlery. How do you get into these damn things when you don't have a medieval chain glove? I'm going to stab myself aren't I?

Oysters and bagels are like the #1 source of ER visits.

I just wear a leather glove on my oyster-holding hand. One of those $3 cowhide workgloves. A shucking knife is a $3 appliance, it's thinner than a chisel and wider than a screwdriver. Anything else you have that is like that, wide enough to lift the whole shell, not just chip it apart and thin enough to get a ways in.

Also, hold the cupped shell and lift the flat one; save the liquid in the cupped shell if you can. That's an important part; worth working over a bucket if you can't keep it in the shell. I usually start opposite the hinge.

50# is a lot to shuck and it seems like too many to eat raw unless you're having a party (in which case you should also have more volunteer shuckers); since you're going to need to process them, you could also just bake or grill them all in the shell until they open.

How much is 50#? I have had the occasional 5 gal pail. That's a lot of work.

This thread has the word "knife" in it. :)

I usually start opposite the hinge.

I've never had luck that way. I always just find the right spot on the hinge, slip that sharp stiff oyster knife in there with a little wiggle til you feel it give, then twist.

There's a little curly point on the back side of the shell. Insert the tip of the knife on the inside of the curl, press in and twist.

Get a real shucking knife.

MmmMmmMm raw oysters!! I'll bring my own knife!

Your neighbor hates you and wants you to make a trip to the emergency room. Give his kid something loud that eats batteries like they're going out of style.

Merry Christmas!

I've never gotten full on oysters before.
No cuts.
My leather glove now smells to high heaven--and is now in the back yard and the dogs think it is the best thing ever.
And there will be oyster dressing at the table on Sunday. I had five people over last night and still have more oysters than I know what to do with.

Shuck clean, bag freeze. Smoke them. Bread anf fry them.

Everthing down "thar" is deep fried but this^ is the best idea.
Don't forget plenty of Warsteiner Octoberfest for us to wash those devils down.

incorrect

Oysters and bagels are like the #1 source of ER visits.

I can understand stabbing your hand when opening an oyster, but how does one lose a fight with a bagel?

I can understand stabbing your hand when opening an oyster, but how does one lose a fight with a bagel?

Easy. Stabbing and sawing through the outer skin of the bagel and the resultant slippage.

this thread has the word "knife" in it. :)

lol!!

Siu's instructions for opening an oyster:

1. Get oyster
2. Get knife
3. Cut yourself

siu's instructions for opening an oyster:

1. Get oyster
2. Get knife
3. Cut yourself
4. Bandage
5. Get hammer
6. Hammer those dam oysters
7. Sift oysters and juice from shells

enjoy

fify

hehe - I've done that (in my early days of cooking) when I came across some HUGE clams that would not open - since I only wanted them for clam chowder - the hammer came out and it all resulted in good chowder. :D

I've never gotten full on oysters before.

Came close once: Went oyster bar hopping in New Orleans, LA with the missus one February night (about a year before Katrina) and managed to hit five or six spots, got a dozen raw on the halfshell (plus a beer for me, Bloody Mary for her) at each place. Actually, if it weren't for the beers I probably could have eaten more oysters.

Delicious! We're planning to return to NOLA just to go oyster bar hopping again.

Best part was those five dozen oysters cost less than one dozen would here in NYC.

A bottle opener works great for opening oysters if you don't have a shucking knife.

50 lbs is a shtiload of oysters and a party is in order. Just toss them directly on a grill. After a few minutes, they'll start to open. Don't eat the ones that don't open. Dip the ones that do in butter. Tastes great and you won't have to worry about which ones are bad.

I cooked professionally for 12 years and I can categorically state that only imbeciles cut themselves with their own knives. You got to be some special kind of stupid to slash or stab yourself.

I cooked professionally for 12 years and I can categorically state that only imbeciles cut themselves with their own knives. You got to be some special kind of stupid to slash or stab yourself.

From what I hear from ER staff it's not too special at all

I cooked professionally for 12 years and I can categorically state that only imbeciles cut themselves with their own knives. You got to be some special kind of stupid to slash or stab yourself.

Once Siu heals up from slashing herself, she is going to come looking for you.

Lots of people must use borrowed knives from what I can tell.

Also, I am an imbecile many times over.

Did Captain Blight get banned for insulting Siu??

+1 to the real shucking knife.

I've never work gloves shucking shellfish, though. Never been cut at it, either. Spent many nights on estuaries in Rocky Point with oysters pulled straight from the ocean... My favorite part was making ceviché with them.

The only times I've cut myself have been in front of an audience. Usually, it starts with the words,"Hey, come see my cool new knife" or "Look how sharp I made this edge with a diamond hone".

The best one yet didn't involve a knife, but occurred when I was six feet off the ground, trying to straighten some torn sheetmetal on a machine and sliced my palm. I have high blood pressure and was also on blood thinners at the time, so the overall effect was akin to spin-art.