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“A She-Stew is the traditional one: Eight oysters per person boiled slightly in their own liquor, then in milk thickened with flour, flavored with celery, salt and pepper. A great opening course, but not a meal for a working man.
A He-Stew is quite different, as Big Jimbo prepared his version.
First he took a mess a bacon and fried it crisp. As it sizzled he chopped eight large onions and two hefty stalks of celery.
Deftly he whisked the bacon out, tossing the vegetables into the hot oil to saute.
Soon he withdrew them, placing them with the bacon. Then he tossed the forty eight oysters into the pan,
browning them just enough to implant the flavor, then he quickly poured in the liquor from the oysters
and allowed them to cook until their gills wrinkled. Next Big Jimbo did two things that made his stew unforgettable.
Taking a small pinch of tapioca powder, he tossed it into the oysters and liquor and in a few minutes the finely ground tapioca powder had expanded it into a large translucent, gelatinous mass. When he was satisfied he poured the oysters into the milk, which he had already brought to a simmer, tossed in the vegetables, then crumbled the bacon between his fingers, throwing it on top.
The sturdy dish was almost ready. Finally, Big Jimbo dusted the top of the stew with Saffron, giving it a golden richness, which he augmented with a half-pound of butter at the last moment. When the crew dug in, they found one of the richest, tastiest "Arster" stews a marine cook had ever devised.”
From James A. Michener's "Chesapeake" (An excerpted conversation between the cook, Big Jimbo and the crew
aboard the Skipjack, Jessie T. as she prepared for her maiden trip to dredge for "arsters" in Maryland's Choptank River).
When I was about 16 I got to try some abalone steaks. OMG! I have never been able to have them since, but to this day (I am 63) I have not forgotten the way they tasted.
I also like clams, oysters and mussels, but my all time favorite is scallops. Growing up on the west coast in the 60s, fresh seafood was everywhere. I still miss fried prawns and scallops. Not so easy to find here in Kansas.
I love cold, raw oysters! When I eat them, they smell like the ocean to me. I like to eat them with a little bit of lemon juice, and a little bit of horseradish.
When I was about 16 I got to try some abalone steaks. OMG! I have never been able to have them since, but to this day (I am 63) I have not forgotten the way they tasted.
I also like clams, oysters and mussels, but my all time favorite is scallops. Growing up on the west coast in the 60s, fresh seafood was everywhere. I still miss fried prawns and scallops. Not so easy to find here in Kansas.
I received a fresh abalone from one neighbor once, he used to go scuba diving near the coast in SoCal,that’s how he got them. I don’t remember what it taste like now, it’s been so long ago.
Yes, I have -- at Johnny's Po-Boys in NOLA. Excellent sandwich, but don't look too closely at the dumpy digs, and the 5 second rule defiitely doesn't apply here, if it ever does anywhere.
Not in my zip code. I’m in the land of the quahog where hardshell clams are inexpensive. The sizes from small to large are count neck, littleneck, cherry stone, and quahog. There are also sea clams that are huge that are minced for chowder and stuffed quahogs. Count necks are $3.79/pound where I buy them. Littlenecks are $1.29.
Oysters are a lot more expensive. $1.00 each is typical for a Cuttyhunk oyster. My sailboat mooring is a couple hundred yards from an oyster farm.
I don’t eat raw shellfish. Too much parasite and hepatitis risk. I toss oysters on the Weber. Same with littlenecks though I usually have those with a bit of cocktail sauce. I have the family heirloom lobster and soft shell clam steamer that is a huge size no longer manufactured.
I don’t buy mussels very often. Growing up, they were gritty seagull food that grows on rocks. The aquaculture ones are fine but I prefer soft shell steamed clams.
I had barnicles in Galicia Spain a couple of years ago. Not a favorite. Conch, in my opinion, should go straight into the trash.
Not in my zip code. I’m in the land of the quahog where hardshell clams are inexpensive. The sizes from small to large are count neck, littleneck, cherry stone, and quahog. There are also sea clams that are huge that are minced for chowder and stuffed quahogs. Count necks are $3.79/pound where I buy them. Littlenecks are $1.29.
Oysters are a lot more expensive. $1.00 each is typical for a Cuttyhunk oyster. My sailboat mooring is a couple hundred yards from an oyster farm.
I don’t eat raw shellfish. Too much parasite and hepatitis risk. I toss oysters on the Weber. Same with littlenecks though I usually have those with a bit of cocktail sauce. I have the family heirloom lobster and soft shell clam steamer that is a huge size no longer manufactured.
I don’t buy mussels very often. Growing up, they were gritty seagull food that grows on rocks. The aquaculture ones are fine but I prefer soft shell steamed clams.
I had barnicles in Galicia Spain a couple of years ago. Not a favorite. Conch, in my opinion, should go straight into the trash.
I remember eating quahog when I was living in Boston. But I like the littleneck, will get to experience it again this summer. I will be in Maine. I agree about the conch, I had it once in the Caribbean, too chewy, what’s in it.
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