Smoked Oysters -- yummy ways to eat?

[bite bite]

Just picked up a couple cans on a whim. Last time I ate was when my parents were driving me to college in the back of their closed-top pick-up truck. It was a six hour drive at least and my sister and I packed ourselves a picnic of smoked oysters, cream cheese, crackers and lumpfish roe and various sweets. We ate the smoked oysters on crackers with cream cheese in the baking heat, ducking low when the highway patrol drove by. Classic food memory. But thinking about expanding my repertore and wondering what other ways they might taste good. Was thinking on pumpernickle with cream cheese and dill and a squeeze of lemon. Make sense? Any other ideas?

[alkapal]

Smoked Oyster Cream Cheese Roll

16 ounces cream cheese
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 small onion, grated
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/8 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
2 cans smoked oysters, well drained and finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Cream together cream cheese, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, onion, mayonnaise. Blend in oysters. Taste for salt. Shape into a log on wax paper, tightly wrapped, and chill for an hour. Then roll in chopped parsley, rewrap in plastic and chill for a few hours (or can serve immediately.)

Festive Variation: Don't add oysters into the cheese blend. Instead, spread cheese mixture on wax paper until it is about 12 x 8 inches and less than 1/2 inch thick. Chill in refrigerator about one hour. Then sprinkle finely chopped smoked oysters over this, and roll up like a roulade. Coat with parsley, following directions above.
Serve with crackers.

[msless]

On of my best memories is of being a nine or ten year old, lying in my parents bed one weekend afternoon,watching tv and eating smoked oysters smushed on melba toast that had been slathered with sweet butter, accompanied by my two aunts who were in their early twenties at the time. It is still my favorite way to eat them.

I won't tell you what we watched. That would date me too accurately.

[cayjohan]

One of my favorite ways to eat smoked oysters when I want to be slightly more elaborate than open-can-plus-toothpick: wrapped in a cream cheese pastry. Courtesy of the very fondly remembered moh.

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/516261

Tastes like more than the sum of its parts.

[zuklaak]

Triscuit, square of cheddar, smoked oyster; wrap with bacon and broil.

[ohmyyum]

What brand do you like? I saw Crowne prince brand at Trader Joe's today, $2.69 for a 3oz can packed in olive oil.

[letsindulge]

That is where I get mine from. They are an excellent product. Uniform in size, packed neatly, and consistent in taste every time. Good price for them too.

[shaogo]

Whip a cup of heavy cream until stiff peaks form. You will *not* add sugar to this whipped cream. Fold in a little salt and pepper and 2-3 Tbs. of Dijon mustard. Put dollops of this on toasts, top with the oysters.

I've never done this, but it just now occurred to me that using them in lieu of bacon in a BLT or Club sandwich would be delectable.

[HillJ]

Drained from the can and rolled individual pieces inside a single crispy romain or curly spinach leaf and eaten as a snack.

[Lillipop]

First of all I am so happy to hear there are other people who love those things as much as I do.I thought my late father and I were the only ones who loved them I consider them an indulgence and a real treat.I have not bought any in ages but when I buy a can none of the oysters would ever make it into a recipe or are adorned or dressed with anything. I usually spear out the top row with an escargot fork popping them into my mouth in a rapidfire manner.Because they are very rich savory and filling I usually save the rest of the can and go back about 20 minutes later to polish them off.I have to admit serving them on a crisp cracker with whipped cream cheese sounds wickedly delicious.

[ohmyyum]

What do they taste like? Fishy? Salty? Smokey? Something else? I've never eaten an oyster, period. Could not get over their appearance (raw) but all these posts make them sound so appetizing.

[ursy_ten]

They're kind of all those things - fishy, salty, smoky... very savoury. Kind of like little umami bombs!

Quality differs between cans. Sometimes you can get a mushy batch - not so good. They should be just a little bit chewy.

Oh, and they are totally different to fresh oysters, practically another thing altogether! I love all of them.

[Lillipop]

Rich smokey oily (smoke infused luxurious oil) and buttery.Very luxurious food.I detest raw oysters and avoid every type of oyster but smoked.The smoked oysters have a very sharp earthy flavor.They are tiny little nuggets of pure luxury.My adult children have gagged watching me eat them in the past as well as when I eat sardines and crunch the bones:)
Have you ever had a whole cleaned prepared salmon that has been smoked in a home smoker? The oysters are luxurious and rich like that.

[hippioflov]

Every now and then I get a craving for these on saltines with a slice of cheddar cheese and a dab of yellow mustard. In fact, i may have to indulge soon.

[EWSflash]

Drain the oil, get a toothpick or skewer, squeeze some lemon or lime over, follow with salt and pepper if you wish, eat one at a lovely time. On a saltine if you must., but I don't thnk it needs one.

[iL Divo]

"yummy ways to eat?"

...........toothpick in hand, stab one or 7 out of can, devour..............

my Glorious auntie Glo introduced us little girls to this delightful food product while she lived a favored life in the glorious hillside of Santa Monica. who'd a thunk it that anyone especially a very small child would appreciate these so much.
our neighbors little girl, probably 8 at the time, came to our house across the street years ago to help us decorate Easter eggs. I had a couple of cans of smoked oysters on the counter ready to eat for our appy before dinner. one can we never got because no lie, she ate the entire can toothpicked out of can, all by herself. I told her mom to watch her through the night, thought she may try to find a man.............ahhahhahh

at Auntie Glo's service I was asked to speak as I was her God daughter, yes daughter, I'm still not a gay man :-P
I brought a can of smoked oysters as a demo during my talk. that's how special those little buggers were and such an important part of her, they were never absent at her marvelous parties. Miss you aunite Glo

[sparky403]

straight outta the can with a little bit of vinegar (Red wine vinegar). It's the way we ate them when I grew up and it's still simple but soo good..

I like many of the suggestions here and I think I'll try them.

Great thread.

[Kholvaitar]

Smoked Oyster Log

8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon onions (finely minced)
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
Dash of garlic powder
Dash of salt
Dash of Tabasco
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 can smoked oysters, lightly drained

Mix all ingredients (except oysters). Place mixture flat on waxed or parchment paper in rectangular shape (about 1/4 inch thick). Chill overnight or a couple of hours. Line oysters (smoked) in center of mixture. Roll into shape of a log. Serve immediately or chill rolled in waxed or parchment paper.

Serve on crackers.

[Will Owen]

I got this from a woman in Nashville, who always brought it to neighborhood parties. It was wildly popular and was about the first item to disappear. Moved to Pasadena, brought it to a party here, brought most of it home! SoCal folks apparently don't like smoked oysters so much. Amazing.

[Gail]

I put them in scrambled eggs, sprinkle bacon bits on top and surround with avocado slices.
My version of "Handtown Fry"...

[MRWilder]

That sounds good too Gail. I just finshed cutting and cooking from a small whole bacon. It is vey good to put in things like beans and the like instead of salt pork or ham hock, etc, but is pretty good alone too, if you like somthing closer to pork rinds. It renders down to a very nicely flavored grease that I use religously. I used it just now in a recipe for cauliflower I'm toying with. By the way....it's "HangTown Fry" named after 'Frisco back in the wild west. Among other names, 'Frisco was known too as Hang Town by some because being the largest town around, that's where a judge and the law was too. Most of the "lawful" hangings took place there hence the name. As to the dish....A guy found a good deal of gold one day and came to town and ordered the most expensive thing on the menu at a local hotel, so the chef used fresh oysters from the bay there among other ingredients.

[Gail]

Hey, I know all that Gold Rush stuff, I'm a native Cali girl. Remember Herb Caen's book, "Don't Call if Frisco".
Frankly, I try to stay away from too much bacon, but it's hard.

[MRWilder]

Here's one I came up with back in the 90's. I was in the Navy and was actually trying to come up with something gross, and though I succeeded pretty well in it looking foul, it tasted wonderful! I still make it for occasional casual gatherings. I call it "Oystaguac." (Patent pending...lol) Anyway it was origionally just a very ripe California avacado mashed up and mixed with the oysters, but I have made a few improvements I like to think. I now use 2 small California avacados (they have a stonger flavor than the large Florida species and tend to be softer and easier to work with as well.) Then I just add (to taste) red onion, garlic powder, kosher salt, fresh bround black pepper, and fresh squeezed lime or lemon juice for flavor and also to keep avacado from browning. Mix that all together well, then add as much or as little sour cream as you like, but enough to make it creamy. I also add a bottled green taco sauce that I like, but use whatever salsa you prefer. Fresh or pickled jalapeno work well for spice too. Finally and gently mix in the drained oysters to minimize breaking the oysters. It's goes great on tortilla chips and crackers. Hope you enjoy it!

[Sam Fujisaka]

I'd eat them exactly as you did on yuor way to college, but I don't have a pick-up truck, closed top or otherwise.

[bite bite]

Will be pretty hard to beat -- but looking forward to trying some of the suggestions.

[Will Owen]

My favorite at-the-drawing-board lunch back in my working days was a can of smoked oysters, a half-pint tub of cottage cheese and a box of Ritz crackers. I'd scoop up the cottage cheese on a cracker, top it with an oyster and pop it. I liked the cottage cheese with chives they used to make, which I have not seen in eons, or if I were sufficiently ambitious I'd pick up some green onions and mince one or two (with my X-Acto knife!) and stir that in ("OK, Will, that mechanical looks nice and clean, but why does it smell like onions?").

[pepper_mil]

sandwich with lettuce and mayo

[srr]

I like them on saltine crackers with hot sauce or pickled jalapenos.

[bite bite]

Mmm, jalapenos. I hadn't thought of that. The spice could be a really nice compliment.

[jencounter]

Up until now, I thought my mother and I were the only people who ate them on saltines.

I like them with a really good grainy mustard underneath, a dollop of sour cream and fresh cracked pepper on top.

[Will Owen]

It was my grandpa who introduced me to smoked oysters, not really on purpose; he'd come home mid-afternoon most days (he had a tractor dealership in a tiny town) to put his feet up and read the paper, usually with a beer, a can of oysters and a stack of saltines. I was about ten or eleven, visiting for the week, and thought those ugly greenish things smelled pretty good, so I asked about them. He put one on a cracker for me and warned me, "They're an acquired taste." I acquired it then and there, and so I got a couple every afternoon if I was around.

[bodacious]

A dinner guest brought a great appetizer the other night: button mushrooms stuffed with smoked oysters. She said the oyster sits in a sauce of mayonnaise, wasabi, worcestershire and the whole thing is broiled. I don't know the proportions, but they were gobbled up.

[bite bite]

Wow that sounds good.

[Tom Steele]

I recently tried this on for size: I reduced 1 cup of heavy cream by half over medium-high heat, stirring all the while. Then I stemmed 16 medium mushrooms, minced the stems in a mini-processor and tossed them with a few teaspoons of fresh lemon juice. I stirred that into the reduced cream wtih a few dashes of Tabasco and a half-teaspoon of curry powder. I stirred that over medium heat for 5 minutes to reduce it further. Off heat, I stirred in drained smoked oysters from a 4-ounce can. I buttered a gratin and moistened the bottom wtih a few tablespoons of dry sherry. I arranged the mushrooms in a single layer, cap sides down, then put an oyster (or two) and some cream sauce in each cap, then covered the mushrooms with grated smoked cheddar cheese. I baked the gratin at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes. REALLY delicious!

[bite bite]

Impressive. Would never have thought of reducing heavy cream -- partially for fear of it getting those little cooked milk chunks in it.

[Will Owen]

Someone showed me a somewhat simpler version of this many years ago. You just chop cleaned mushroom stems and smoked oysters together with some minced onion and a bit of Worcestershire sauce. Salt to taste, stir in some cracker crumbs (I like Ritz, but saltines are fine) and enough sour cream to bind it. Stuff the caps you got the stems from (good idea to have them all more or less the same size) and lay stuffed side up in a shallow baking dish. Drizzle a little oil or melted butter over all and bake as above until the caps are cooked - that's the only really important thing, as you pretty much can't overcook the stuffing.

[bite bite]

Thx. Any advice on best way to cook the caps (have never made before) -- temp/time approx's? Also, do you think if it would work if left the oysters whole. Wondering is texture might get odd when cooked -- but intrigued bt the whole oyster thing as suggested up in bodacious's post...

[Veggo]

Will, this flavor combination sounds good- I'm magneting the recipe to the fridge.

[chef chicklet]

ok this is a keeper, I just gotta try it.

[alex8alot]

we like them on pizza

[starlady]

Capers, Sour Cream, Lemon on toast points. YUMM

[chef chicklet]

Cream of asparagus soup, I sink 3-4 of them in there, adding cream fraiche to the top. Love those things!

[prima]

I like mine with sour cream, too.

[Veggo]

Same ingredients but a different presentation: Drain canned oysters, mince in small food processor. Mix with 8 oz. Philadelphia whipped cream cheese, two splashes Worcestershire sauce, into dip for nice crackers. Garnish dip with cornishons, capers.

[bite bite]

Mmm. That sounds pretty tasty. Thanks.

[kemi5]

Start with your favorite pasta carbonara recipe and kick it up a notch with the addition of smoked oysters, and spinach. It's a well know fact that bacon & oysters pair up terrifically plus it's easy to prepare & SO delicious.