The Hirshon Tomales Bay Barbecued Oysters

BBQ Oysters Image Used Under Creative Commons License From hogislandoysters.com

Citizens, TFD’s secret Summer lair is located in the gorgeous city of San Francisco, the one place in the world where the sunny months are very cool (TFD despises the heat!) and the food is spectacular! Some of the finest oysters in the world are actually from Tomales Bay, not more than 90 minutes drive from the City.

Tomales Bay is also the home of a most unusual preparation of the prince of bivalves – the barbecued oyster! Yes, oyster purists insist on raw. Lightly grilled over live fire is an epiphany, at least in my book – especially when doused with garlic butter and a flavorful BBQ sauce!

The first oysters prepared in this manner were probably made at Tony’s restaurant in Marshall, CA more than 50 years ago. BBQ oyster nirvana remains centered in that small town, where Tony’s and Hog Island Oyster Company vie for the title of grillmasters supreme!

Citizens, this recipe is a well-harmonized umami and spice duet, including a touch of liquid smoke, horseradish, fish sauce, and Chinese chili sauce as well as including Chinese black vinegar and even a bit of bourbon! Try this recipe, and know My true glory!

Battle on – The Generalissimo

The Hirshon Tomales Bay Barbecued Oysters

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Prep Time: 0 hours
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Ingredients

Scale

1 teaspoon California olive oil
¼ pound canned San Marzano tomatoes, drained
3 tablespoons minced shallot
5 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
½ tablespoon sweetened Chinese Black Vinegar (or use cider vinegar if unavailable)
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
½ tablespoon Bourbon, preferably Woodford Reserve
¼ teaspoon Asian fish sauce, preferably Red Boat brand
1 teaspoon Chinese Chili sauce with black beans
1 shake of Tabasco (or to taste)
2 tablespoons freshly ground horseradish
¼ pound (1 stick) organic unsalted butter
1 tablespoon finely minced parsley
1/8 teaspoon hickory liquid smoke
2 dozen fresh oysters – Miyagi oysters, but any medium-size oyster with a deep “bowl” bottom shell will work. You want to prevent the garlic butter and tomato sauce from sloshing out of the shell once they heat
Sourdough bread

Instructions

For the tomato sauce: Combine the olive oil, tomatoes, onion, 1 garlic clove, thyme leaves, salt and brown sugar in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until you can smash the garlic clove against the pot with the back of a spoon, about 25 minutes. Remove from heat and pass through fine food mill, or puree in a blender.
Return the sauce to the saucepan; add the vinegar(s), fish sauce, chili sauce, Bourbon and Tabasco, bring to a simmer, and cook for about 30 minutes, or until thickened. You should have about 1 cup of sauce.
Strain out the tomato seeds, then let cool. Stir in grated horseradish; set aside or refrigerate.
For the garlic butter: Mince the remaining four cloves of garlic. Melt the butter, add the garlic. minced parsley and liquid smoke, then refrigerate until solid.
For the oysters: Shuck oysters over a bowl, and being sure to preserve all the oyster liquor. Try to keep all the liquor in the shell with the oyster meat; otherwise you can add it back to the shells from the bowl after you put the oysters on the grill.
To finish: Prepare and heat the grill to medium high. Carefully arrange the oysters on the grill to prevent loss of liquor and cook, uncovered, until done, about 2 minutes. If the grill slats are too wide, nestle the oysters into a bed of rock salt layered into a shallow pan, and set that on the grill; cover and cook for about 4 minutes, until done.
Spoon a dollop of garlic butter onto each cooked oyster while still on grill; once the butter melts, add a dime-size “hat” of tomato horseradish sauce. Plate carefully to prevent loss of liquid, over rock salt if need be. Serve with warm sourdough.