Desert Jewels - Frasers Hospitality

28 | fOODiE fOCus
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Photo: Corbis
Whether eaten raw on the half shell or prepared in a dozen
different ways, oysters are a feast for the gods
Whoever first thought of eating
an oyster so many eons ago was
certainly a brave soul. At first
glance, the oyster is certainly no beauty: the
rough outer shell resists casual tampering and
the creamy insides do not immediately inspire
thoughts of enthusiastic consumption.
But for the convert, the oyster is certainly a
feast of the first water. Smooth, slippery, sweet
and salty, it makes for sensual eating. Much
time has been spent and a lot of ink spilt in
efforts to describe its unique taste. The French
poet Léon-Paul Fargue likened eating oysters
to “kissing the sea on the lips”, while essayist
Michel de Montaigne compared them to violets.
American food writer M.F.K. Fisher noted that
they are “more like the smell of rock pools at
low tide than any other food in the world.”
WORDS: Lou corpuz-Bosshart
In A Geography of Oysters, Rowan Jacobsen
explains that there are three stages in oyster flavour.
The first stage involves salt, the second stage,
texture – body and sweetness – and the third, the
finish, which is often described as floral or fruity.
One of the best ways to discern these stages
is to eat oysters raw, cold and straight off the half
shell: lift the oyster to your lips and sip the briny
liquor the oyster’s swimming in. After the first
salty hit, you then slurp the plump oyster flesh
into your mouth, chewing – yes, chewing – to
release its sweetness and allow your taste buds
to experience the full, clean mineral flavours of
the sea and perhaps some savoury notes as well.
Finally, you have the finish – the final impression
the oyster leaves behind – and this is often
described as cucumber-like (fresh, green and
slightly bitter) or melon-like.
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