Anyone here eat oysters?

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Posted:
in AppleOutsider edited January 2014
I decided to try out some live oysters in the fresh food deli today.



The shopkeeper sold me 4 lumpy craggy objects and said that the oysters are eaten live.



But how do I get them out? The shells are rock hard and theren't nothing to lever the lips of the shells apart.



Any cooks out there know how to prise open an oyster?



Thanks.
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  • Reply 1 of 37
    snoopysnoopy Posts: 1,901member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Justin View Post


    I decided to try out some live oysters in the fresh food deli today.



    The shopkeeper sold me 4 lumpy craggy objects and said that the oysters are eaten live.



    But how do I get them out? The shells are rock hard and theren't nothing to lever the lips of the shells apart.



    Any cooks out there know how to prise open an oyster?



    Thanks.



    I've eaten live oysters. They gave me something that looked like a big nut cracker to bust it open. You might try a hammer, seriously, if you don't want to buy the right tool. I might be wrong about how to do it, because I only ate them once. That was enough. Yesterday I had pan fried oysters. I may have the tool mixed up with a lobster tool.



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  • Reply 2 of 37
    justinjustin Posts: 403member
    Hey Snoopy - the hammer approach just left shards embedded in the oyster ;(



    After exploring the kitchen utensils (hope I don't upset anyone!) I found a cheese knife. Along the edge of the oysters lips, there is a point near the hinge of the shell where the shell is less sealed. I tapped the cheese knife into this and then prised the oyster shell apart.



    Hey presto! In case anyone wants to try this at home.



    Not feeling too well at the moment. The shopkeeper said they were supposed to be eaten raw. Tummy is queasy at the moment but that might just be me, not used to live food...
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  • Reply 3 of 37
    shawnjshawnj Posts: 6,656member
    Alton Brown fried oysters last night on Good Eats. I forgot how he opened them.
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  • Reply 4 of 37
    justinjustin Posts: 403member
    Is he the equivalent of Jamie Oliver in England?



    I get upset at how these guys make everything look so easy until I step into my own kitchen...
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  • Reply 5 of 37
    You need a proper oyster shucker.



    It looks like a letter opener on steroids...
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  • Reply 6 of 37
    justinjustin Posts: 403member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by hardeeharhar View Post


    You need a proper oyster shucker.



    It looks like a letter opener on steroids...



    Wow - thanks for the word. It's not in my dictionary. Now I know what I need:



    http://www.netcheck.com/oyster.shtml



    Although after eating oysters, I'm not so sure I need it now \
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  • Reply 7 of 37
    shetlineshetline Posts: 4,695member




    Crassus: Do you eat oysters?



    Antoninus: Yes.



    Crassus: Snails?



    Antoninus: No.



    Crassus: Do you consider the eating of oysters to be moral and the eating of snails to be immoral?



    Antoninus: No, master.



    Crassus: Of course not. It?s all a matter of taste, isn?t it?



    Antoninus: Yes, master.



    Crassus: And taste is not the same as appetite and therefore not a question of morals, is it?



    Antoninus: It could be argured so, master.



    Crassius: Um, that?ll do. My robe, Antoninus. Ah, my taste ? includes both oysters and snails.
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  • Reply 8 of 37
    shawnjshawnj Posts: 6,656member
    That's homoerotic isn't it?
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  • Reply 9 of 37
    justinjustin Posts: 403member
    GRIEF!!



    This thread is purely about oysters!
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  • Reply 10 of 37
    Amazingly, Justin, you seem to have figured out the "proper" way to open an oyster all on your own!



    Your cheese knife would probably get bent/broken if you used it for that on a regular basis... the proper tool is the same thing, just heavier duty.
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  • Reply 11 of 37
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by KingOfSomewhereHot View Post


    Amazingly, Justin, you seem to have figured out the "proper" way to open an oyster all on your own!



    Your cheese knife would probably get bent/broken if you used it for that on a regular basis... the proper tool is the same thing, just heavier duty.



    For the record, a flat-head screw driver seems to work pretty well.
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  • Reply 12 of 37
    justinjustin Posts: 403member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by KingOfSomewhereHot View Post


    Amazingly, Justin, you seem to have figured out the "proper" way to open an oyster all on your own!



    Your cheese knife would probably get bent/broken if you used it for that on a regular basis... the proper tool is the same thing, just heavier duty.





    I know...I'm too ingenious for my own good. It's okay - the cheese knives never get used (Christmas gift some years ago from a well-meaning friend). However after dithering for several hours working out how to open the oysters, I'm sure the room temperature did something to them. Haven't fell so ill - sudden sweat and vomiting and feeling sick as a baby. I'm still off work and I haven't been able to eat or keep anything down.



    I'm giving up with raw oysters! They're just too dangerous.
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  • Reply 13 of 37
    nofeernofeer Posts: 2,427member
    this works great, i've got one, and at the oyster bar they have a bunch



    http://www.nextag.com/oyster-shucker/search-html



    http://www.chefscatalog.com/catalog/...code=7w3pfd307
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  • Reply 14 of 37
    justinjustin Posts: 403member
    Arrrgh!



    Why doesn't anyone listen.



    I'm fed up with oysters! I wished I'd never opened those slimy things in the first place.



    Maybe when I'm feeling better I'll change my mind..
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  • Reply 15 of 37
    sdw2001sdw2001 Posts: 18,067member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Justin View Post


    Arrrgh!



    Why doesn't anyone listen.



    I'm fed up with oysters! I wished I'd never opened those slimy things in the first place.



    Maybe when I'm feeling better I'll change my mind..



    I had some last night. I had after dinner plans with your wife. Or girlfriend. Or whatever.
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  • Reply 16 of 37
    justinjustin Posts: 403member
    Gee thanks.



    That sure makes me feel better. It's 3am here.



    You can have the spare lock-up monkey - girlfriend is already committed ....
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  • Reply 17 of 37
    Last time I had raw oysters, it involved a 105 degree fever, massive amounts of throwing up, and missing 4 days of school.



    Never fucking again. That was awful. I wish I could've warned you before you put that poison in your stomach.
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  • Reply 18 of 37
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by theapplegenius View Post


    Last time I had raw oysters, it involved a 105 degree fever, massive amounts of throwing up, and missing 4 days of school.



    Never fucking again. That was awful. I wish I could've warned you before you put that poison in your stomach.



    Raw oysters really need to be fresh-water-filtered, from a reliable source, and shipped quickly. Even then, you have the same risk as eating sushi, which is a greater one than you might think. However, food poisoning with raw seafood most often comes from spoiling taking place during the phase between harvesting and the dinner plate.



    With that said, I prefer cooked oysters anyway.
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  • Reply 19 of 37
    snoopysnoopy Posts: 1,901member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Splinemodel View Post




    . . . food poisoning with raw seafood most often comes from spoiling taking place during the phase between harvesting and the dinner plate.






    I frequently eat raw salmon, which is caught and then frozen while still on the ship. (According to the store literature.) I thaw the salmon in a bowl of water, to which I add ten drops of GSE, grapefruit seed extract. GSE kills any bacteria. Never have been sick from it. Raw foods contain important enzymes that are lost in cooking.



    I wouldn't recommend eating anything raw but ocean fish. There is a difference between the bacteria in saltwater and freshwater creatures.



    Also, if you don't know about GSE, it is one of the most useful things to keep around the house, or to take with you camping or traveling in uncivilized areas. Ten drops to a gallon will kill bacteria from mountain stream water, for example. If you get amoebic dysentery or food poising, drink a glasses of water with 15 drops of GSE added, several times a day, or until symptoms disappear. It is very bitter, but you can add a sweetener like stevia.





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  • Reply 20 of 37
    Uh, huh... Important enzymes, eh? Ones that miraculously survive digestion? I think you might mean cofactors, but you used the term enzymes, which makes me further believe you don't actually know what you are talking about... There is no nutrient so essential that cooking meat will cause you to lose all sources of it.
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