All Oysters Are (Not) Created Equal!
Learn What Accounts for Variety in Oyster Taste Across the Country
Like picking out choice wine, knowing how to order oyster displays fine taste and culinary knowledge. If you know your oysters, you can easily impress someone on your first date! The key to ordering the best oyster is understanding the regional differences in appearance and flavor.
Oysters in the U.S. come from both the East coast and West coast (particularly California and Washington). They all go through the same growing and cleaning methods, but there are always subtle differences in both taste and texture.
For instance, East coast oysters are saltier and thus perfect for recipes that require a significant salt content. As far as the appearance is concerned, these oysters have a flatter shell. The colors of these oysters usually range between white, green, and brown in various shades. East coast oysters can be as long as 6-inches in diameter.
West coast oysters, on the other hand, are not always salty and they do not have the same level of brininess as East coast oysters. And as compared to East coast oysters, these oysters have less mineral notes and more notes of seaweed, watermelon, and cucumber. This makes them apt for sweeter recipes. West coast oysters are also preferred in recipes that are based on Asian cuisine. The shells of these oysters are rougher than their East coast counterparts. The coloration involves shades of black, pink, white, and green.
The regional taste differences between oysters also depend on how they are grown. For instance, some varieties of West coast oyster have smoother shells and deeper cups because they go through a process which stimulates the wave action of an oyster ‘rolling’.
Anyway, these were some major distinctions between oysters across the U.S. Note that ordering the right oyster is a skill that you can hone with experience. So feel free to use this information to impress others at seafood joints.
Fatima M.
Freelance Blogger
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