ShareThisSomething I've never been able to accomplish is shucking an oyster. The process just scares me.Ed Jayousi, owner of Fins Seafood Market & Grill in Sacramento, Calif., decided it was time I conquered my fear, so he stopped by with a big sack of Chesapeake oysters and gave me a lesson.Before you do anything, you need to give the oysters a good scrubbing under cold, running water, Jayousi says. "That keeps any sand from the shell from falling into the oyster once you get it open."Next he folded a dishtowel into a long, narrow pad."Oysters have a flat side and a rounded side. Place it, round side down, on one end of the towel with the hinge pointed toward your right hand (if you are right-handed)," he says. "Fold the other end of the towel over your left hand. Now press the heel of your left hand on top of the oyster and press hard. That forces the hinge to relax a bit and will make it easier to open."Next, take the oyster knife and push the tip down and into the hinge of the oyster. Rock the knife until it pierces the hinge. You will probably hear a pop. Once the hinge opens, drag the knife around the edge of the shell, tip pointing up, to loosen the rest of the shell."Pull the shell open and scrape the muscle away from the round side of the shell in order to sever it from the shell. Make sure you don't spill the juice (liquor). Toss out the flat side of the shell and place the rounded side with the loosened muscle inside on a bed of ice and serve it with lemon, cocktail sauce and horseradish."A couple of things to note: It takes a lot of practice, but once you get the knack, it gets a lot easier. It does take some strength.Also, shuck and eat only oysters that are tightly closed. Store live oysters in the refrigerator or on a bed of ice until eaten.(Contact Gwen Schoen at gschoen(at)sacbee.com.)(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.shns.com.)
In the kitchen: shucking oysters
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