Deep fried oysters, dipped in nothing but cornmeal and quick fried in a deep fryer - simple and perfect.
Deep Fried Oysters
I can still see my Daddy sitting in the garage at the home where I grew up, planted on a chair, sack of oysters between his knees, and that blunt shucking knife in his hand. I'd go out to watch him, more out of curiosity really than anything, because I certainly had no interest in those things at all.
He'd work the knife around the edges of the shell, pop it open, tossing the shells into a bucket and adding one oyster after the other to a tall jar, along with the juices from the bottom shell. He got into an uninterrupted rhythm, and every once in awhile, he'd plop one of them right in his mouth, raw.
I did not at all understand the appeal, back then. Daddy would pass one of those oysters right up under my nose trying to convince me to try one and I would scowl as most teenagers at the thought.
He finally aggravated me enough that I gave in and it was a love affair that slowly grew on me.
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I can't even imagine how many oysters I've consumed over my lifetime, watching them be shucked fresh onto an ice filled tray by the dozen, served with crackers, hot sauce and cocktail sauce, with a side of horseradish to stir in.
Salty and sweet and fresh right out of our Gulf, I still prefer them on the smaller side myself, but I'll eat them however I get them so long as they are fresh and out of our Gulf.
When I shopped the other day I picked up some of those packaged fresh Gulf oysters - which I had purchased with no specific plan for them other than knowing I'd soon be in the mood for something different.
If I would have had some fresh French bread, I would have made that into an oyster po'boy for sure!
But, no worries, plain ole sandwich bread will do the trick, or even leftover buns, so I buttered 'em up, toasted them in a pan and piled on the fried oysters.
One pint of oysters is only good for about 2 people who love oysters. Any more folks than two and ya better pick up another pint or two.
I use plain corn meal, no flour, least not for this way of eating them. I generally just season the cornmeal with a little Old Bay, some lemon pepper, maybe a little Creole or Cajun seasoning, because I find our Gulf oysters to be plenty salty all on their own.
Our Gulf oysters are fine all on their own, but bowing to pressure from other folks who, I guess, don't get the benefit of fresh from the Gulf oysters, I've added some seasonings suggestions.
Here's how to make my Simple, Perfect, Deep Fried Oysters!
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Drain oysters. There's that Easy Greasy strainer (#ad) again y'all! I love this kitchen tool.
Season the cornmeal. I'm using Old Bay, lemon pepper and some Creole seasoning here.
I like to set up a little station while the oil is heating and before I start frying. Oysters, seasoned cornmeal and a paper towel lined plate.
Dip the oysters into the seasoned cornmeal in batches.
Toss until they are nicely coated. Deep dish pie plates are excellent for dredging y'all!
Place another plate on top of the paper towels to transfer the coated oysters to in a single layer. Once I've dredged all of the oysters I usually pass them back through the cornmeal one more time.
Carefully, one at a time, dip the oysters gently into the hot oil. Don't splash - be careful!
I'm using my Presto GranPappy Electric Deep Fryer (#ad), since I lost the cord on my bigger fryer (that's still sitting out on my back porch), but this one is really just the right size for us and all it takes is a 15-minute preheat to get it to a standard frying temperature. The only downside, if there is one, is that there is not an adjustable temperature gauge but it's not been a problem for us at all.
Once you've got a good batch going, give it a gentle stir with a slotted spoon and fry until they turn light golden brown and float up to the top of the hot oil. Meanwhile, top your paper towel covered plate with a rack while they are frying.
Use a slotted spoon to begin scooping them up, letting the excess oil drain off.
Transfer to the rack and sprinkle immediately with a little bit of salt and black pepper, if desired.
Pass the cocktail sauce and the hot sauce at the table.
Yum y'all!
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