Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Fried oyster redux カキのフライ再登場
This is a repeat of my post from about one year ago. The reason I am posting this again is that this was one of the best fried oysters I have ever made and probably I have ever tasted (kindly allow me to boast). Although the oysters came in a glass jar pre-shucked, they were quite large and equal in size without any broken pieces. I proposed several options including an oyster nabe to my wife. After my report of the quality of the oysters, she said fried oysters, and I gladly obliged.
The recipe is the same as before. This time, though, because of the good quality of the oysters and the fact that I fried them perfectly (just luck). They were light and crunchy outside and juicy, soft and flavorful inside. We just enjoyed them with a squeeze of lemon and cold sake. We both thought the quantity of oysters was a bit too much for us to finish, but both of us ate everything. The side was the usual, my variation of coleslaw with honey mustard dressing.
I'm typically wary of getting those pre-shucked oysters for home use, but also wouldn't shuck my own - so never eat oysters at home. Perhaps not a valid bias.
ReplyDeleteDo you measure the temperature for frying? What temperature do you use? And do you re-use the oil?
Like your post from last year, I have mostly given up beer in favor of sake, even for the first drink at an izakaya.
Quality of pre-shucked oysters vary a lot. Ones I get from a near-by gourmet market is better than ones from a regular super market most of the time. We occasionally get whole oysters but our favorite way to eat those is to grill it on charcoal fire (no need to shuck). Hope we can post it sometime in the future.
ReplyDeleteI do not precisely measure the oil temperature (I drop batter or bread crumbs in the oil to assess the oil temp) but around 370F would be the appropriate oil temp. I use fresh oil for tempura (peanut oil) but for others, I reuse the oil several times.
I used to brew beer at home (mostly ale) but we drink sake and wine (mostly red) now. Only time we drink beer is when we go to Japan. Our hosts usually insist to have toast with a glass of beer to begin the feast.