Oysterville!

Our little section of Maine has become a hot bed for oyster beds. I’m sure there is a scientific reason for that, but that’s above my pay grade. All I know is that everywhere you look, there’s another oyster farm and retail outlet. As such, oyster prices are very reasonable. That seems to be the case most places, because the oyster industry’s main outlet for sales, restaurants, has, understandably, seriously shrunk.

While I feel bad for the oysterers, we, the consumers, benefit from lower prices. Sam Sifton in The New York Times wrote about that phenomenon this week in his article, Know Your Food. Among other things, Sam encourages you to change “…how you think of oysters, to have them be, suddenly, inexpensive in comparison to what they cost in a restaurant, and to eat a couple dozen a week with your family…”

We discovered this change shortly after our arrival in Maine, at the first Saturday Farmers’ Market we attended in Bath, the nearest “big city” to our cottage. It’s a sweet market. Not too large or overwhelming, with lots of great offerings, among which are fresh poultry (including duck breast that is wonderful for grilling), fresh eggs, breads, cheeses, mushrooms, seafood and…oysters. I have mentioned Emily’s Oysters in a recent post. Emily is a one-person operation. She’s the farmer, the harvester, head of sales and marketing and sits at each farmers’ market selling her products. Which means she’s up early each morning tending to her “crops”, and changes hats and is the front person for sales. Lots of hard work.

I’m not an oyster expert. I don’t understand the nuances that differentiate various breeds. I just know that some are big, some are small, some have hard shells, some have brittle ones. Some taste briny, some taste sweet. I have preferences, and as an up and coming shucker, I lean toward larger, harder shelled oysters. I have had more success shucking them. I make a total mess out of oysters with brittle shells, and I struggle with smaller ones. So far, I have all 10 of my fingers intact. Let’s hope that continues!

Other local oyster farmers include the Maine Oyster Co., out of Portland, but with a base camp in West Point, a nearby (to us) fishing village that is definitely worth a visit. It’s classic Maine.

Maine Oyster offers “experiences“, ranging from shucking classes, boat trips to their oyster beds, grilling sessions and cocktail gathering on their deck overlooking the bay in West Point.

A third local oyster source is Clam Hunter Seafood, again, not far from Sebasco. The Atwaters run their retail operation out of their yard. They are friendly, informative and somehow sell, in addition to great oysters, the cleanest clams in town! I don’t know how they do it!

In addition to shucking, there are lots of other, less labor intensive ways to partake, including placing them cupped side down (oysters have a cupped side and a flat side; you want the cupped side down to hold the “liquor” so that the oysters steam in their own juices). You only leave them on the grill for 3-5 minutes. Just enough to steam them, and loosen their shells. It’s an easy way to get at ’em. And if you are so inclined, add a small piece of prosciutto to them. Not too much, as you don’t want to overwhelm the oyster flavor.

Sam Sifton, in his article, also referred to Tejal Rao, the chef, and her recipe for Grilled Oysters with Hot-Sauce Butter. Yum. Except for the shucking, an easy, but tasty treat.

If I have piqued your interest in oysters, or if you were already an oyster fan, I commend you to another blog, The Briny Babe, and her Instagram account, @thebrinybabe. She writes and photographs of all things oyster in Maine.

My mission with this post is to get you all to look at oysters in a different light. They aren’t a delicacy to enjoy sparingly. At today’s prices, bring ’em home and eat them often!