The many advantages of cooking with Louisiana Oysters

Louisiana oysters have long had a reputation as the best type for cooking. Executive chef Mark Falgoust of Grand Isle seafood restaurant found out why the hard way.

When the BP oil spill happened last year, Falgoust was one of many local chefs who couldn't get Louisiana oysters from regular suppliers.

"I had to outsource oysters from all over the country," he said.

In the six months that local product was unavailable, the restaurant received oysters from South Carolina, Florida, Oregon and northern California.

The difference? "It was night and day."

The best out-of-state oysters were from northern California. But the ones from north of there "made me feel sorry for Oregon people."

Falgoust said the Oregon oysters "couldn't come close to our oysters. They were darker and firmer in texture, and the green stuff inside (the liver and organs) was about 100 percent more than in our oysters. Louisiana oysters have that, but not so prominent."

"All oysters are going to have the oyster flavor," he added, "but it's something, it's that Mississippi fresh water coming down that the others don't have, that real nice brackish mix."

Another big difference: The texture.

Falgoust said Louisiana oysters are "not as toothy as the ones around the country. I find when you bite into them, they have the perfect balance of texture and softness."

However, for large Louisiana oysters, Falgoust makes sure his cooks remove the muscle that attaches to the shell.

"It can get chewy. It's like a rubber ball," he said.

As for fried oysters, Falgoust found some of the nonlocal ones "would get tough, and some of them would get very dark before they got crispy. Nothing fries up better than a Louisiana oyster."

The half a year without local oysters "were the dark days of the seafood restaurant," Falgoust said. "It was so hard. One day I was ordering this, this and that thing, and everything's fine, and a week later, I have this whole humongous seafood menu and I couldn't get anything. I had to get Asian this and Indian that, which is totally against everything in me. It just broke my heart. I'm glad that's over. But it did make me learn about other oysters, which is good."

Chef Jeremy Wolgamott at High Hat Cafe on Freret Street said he likes the briny taste of Louisiana oysters for cooking.

"I've eaten oysters from lots of different places," Wolgamott said. "The oysters from Japan are real fruity and sweet, and the ones from the northern East Coast taste real clean. In Louisiana oysters, the flavor holds up even when you cook them.

"Other oysters you can cook them, but you don't taste anything. Oysters from down here hold their flavor better."

To help home cooks take advantage of this year's bounty of fat, large and salty oysters, both Wolgamott and Falgoust have shared recipes.Wolgamott offers the Oyster and Fennel Soup he's serving this season at High Hat Cafe.

"Oyster stew is a pretty traditional thing all across south Louisiana, with oysters, oyster liquor and milk. And in Louisiana there's oysters Rockefeller soup and oyster-artichoke soup. I wanted to do something fairly traditional, but just a bit different. The fennel plays with the idea of the Rockefeller. I'm taking what people did before me and just changing it up."

Falgoust shares a couple of his oyster recipes, one of which he inherited when he became the executive chef more than three years ago; it can be prepped almost entirely ahead of time and baked at the last minute. Another is for his oysters and spaghetti dish that contains pancetta, which Grand Isle makes in-house.

"I have a kitchen full of young eager chefs, and I said 'Do you want to learn about (making pancetta)?' And so we had a lot of pancetta hanging around when we were coming out with a new menu. So I thought, well, I'd like to do a really rich, luxurious oyster pasta. It's really simple and really good."

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In Grand Isle restaurant, this oyster dish is baked and served on the half shell, but it's much simpler to do it at home in a casserole dish, the chef says. If you wish to use 24 shells, make sure they are well cleaned and place them on trays of salt to bake.

Ted Jackson/The Times-PicayuneOysters Grand are baked on the half shell at the restaurant, or you can cook them in a casserole dish at home.
The thick cheese sauce can be prepared a day ahead, refrigerated, and then placed atop the oysters to cook the next day.

Grand Oysters

Makes 4 to 6 servings

?1 stick unsalted butter
?8 ounces minced pork tasso
?1 onion, minced
?1 green bell pepper, minced
?4 ribs celery, minced
?3 tablespoons minced garlic
?1 cup minced pickled nacho-style jalapenos
?6 ounces shredded Havarti cheese
?6 ounces shredded white cheddar cheese
?1/4 cup soft bread crumbs, made from French bread
?Salt, pepper, and hot sauce to taste
?24 shucked large oysters
In a large, heavy saucepan, melt butter and add tasso; cook for 3 minutes on medium-high. Add onions, celery, and bell pepper. Smother down for 5 minutes, then add the garlic. Cook until all vegetables are wilted, about 15 minutes. Turn off heat; add jalapenos and cheeses. Stir to melt cheese evenly, then add bread crumbs to bind it all together. Taste for seasoning and add salt, pepper and hot sauce, if needed.

Let mixture cool to room temperature. Arrange oysters in one or two casserole dishes coated with nonstick spray. Spoon mixture over the oysters, using enough to cover each one. Bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 13 to 18 minutes. The topping should be golden cheesy brown and the oysters underneath should be plumped and cooked through. Serve immediately.

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Ted Jackson/The Times-PicayuneChef Mark Falgoust created this Creamy Oyster Spaghetti to use housemade pancetta.
Cities in the Northeast have clam sauces with spaghetti. New Orleans has oyster and spaghetti dishes such as this one.

Creamy Oyster Pasta

Makes 2 to 4 servings

?8 ounces thin spaghetti
?1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
?4 ounces minced pancetta
?4 tablespoons minced shallot
?1 tablespoon minced garlic
?3/4 cup heavy cream
?12 freshly shucked oysters
?2 ounces grated fresh Parmesan (about 1/4 cup)
?Chopped green onions and parsley for garnish
Cook spaghetti per package directions, then drain and keep warm, adding a little olive oil if it's sticking together.

As spaghetti cooks, in a medium sauce pot render pancetta with olive oil on medium heat until crisp, about 10 minutes. Add shallot and cook 1 minute, then add garlic and cook on low heat another minute. Add heavy cream and bring to a rapid boil, then lower heat and simmer about 2 minutes. Since oysters will dilute the sauce, make sure it's thick before adding oysters.

Turn heat up to high. When oysters start to curl at the edges, add pasta. Bring the mixture to a simmer and add salt and pepper to taste and a dash of hot sauce. Before plating, fold in Parmesan cheese. Garnish each serving with sliced green onions and parsley.

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High Hat Cafe has been serving this irresistible soup since this year's oyster season started. Chef Jeremy Wolgamott shared the recipe.

Oyster and Fennel Soup

?1-1/2 cups diced onion
?1-1/2 cups diced fennel, plus chopped fennel greens for garnish
?1 cup diced carrots
?2 tablespoons butter
?1/2 ounce Herbsaint liquor
?2 tablespoons flour
?1/2 bunch mustard greens, cut into ribbons
?1 quart oyster liquor
?1/8 teaspoon baking soda
?1/2 teaspoon water
?2 cups milk
?1/2 cup heavy cream
?3/4 teaspoon hot sauce
?Salt and pepper to taste
?24 fresh oysters, broiled just until edges curl
?1 cup diced cooked slab bacon
?Sliced green onions
In a large saucepan, sweat onion, fennel and carrots until onions start to turn clear. Add butter and Herbsaint. When butter is melted, stir in flour and cook 5 minutes. Add oyster liquor and baking soda dissolved in the water. Add mustard greens and bring to a boil. Boil 10 minutes and then turn down to a simmer.

In a separate pot, heat milk and cream until almost boiling, then add to the soup. Do not boil the soup once the milk is in. Continue to simmer 10 more minutes. Season with hot sauce and salt and black pepper to taste, then serve immediately. Garnish each bowl with broiled oysters, bacon, sliced green onions and a pinch of the fennel greens.

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Art Scott of Folsom shared his recipe for the soup he makes for his family every year at Thanksgiving on vacation in Destin, with 2 gallons of oysters. He calls it Mock Mock Oyster soup: In other words, the real thing. This makes enough for 40 people, with some left over.

Mock Mock Oyster Soup

Makes 40 servings

?2 gallons oysters
?4 cups oyster liquor
?2 quarts heavy whipping cream
?1/2 cup olive oil
?4 large yellow onions, minced
?1 head celery, chopped
?6 tablespoons minced garlic
?2 bunches cilantro, chopped
?8 cans Campbell's cream of mushroom soup
?2 tablespoons Zatarain's concentrated liquid crab boil
?3 tablespoons sugar
?16 ounce package mushrooms, sliced
Liquefy 1 gallon of oysters in a blender or food processor. Warm oyster liquor gently and combine in a large container with cream and liquefied oysters. Blend gently.

In a 16-quart pot, heat olive oil and saute onions, garlic and celery. Add oyster-cream mixture to pot, then add all other ingredients except mushrooms and whole oysters.

Simmer for 1 hour. Gently heat the remaining gallon of oysters to warm. (This will prevent the cream from curdling when oysters are added to the soup.)

Add warmed, whole oysters and sliced mushrooms and return soup to a boil. About 25 minutes after the oysters are added, and 2 or 3 minutes after the soup returns to a boil, the edges of the oysters will begin to curl. Remove from heat. (If oysters are allowed to boil for an extended period, they become tough and the flavor is diminished.)

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In the 1990s, before the restaurant was closed forever by floodwaters following Katrina, Saveur magazine published a recipe for Mandich's Oysters Bordelaise.

Mandich's Oysters Bordelaise

Makes 6 to 8 servings

FOR THE SAUCE:

?1-1/2 cups vegetable oil
?1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
?1 small head garlic, peeled and minced
?4 scallions, minced
?2 tablespoons dry sherry
?Salt and freshly ground black pepper
FOR THE OYSTERS:

?2 cups flour
?1 tablespoons paprika
?Vegetable oil
?24 fresh oysters, shucked, shells reserved
?1/2 bunch parsley, chopped
For the sauce: Combine vegetable oil, olive oil, garlic, scallions and 1 tablespoon water in a medium-size heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Continue to simmer gently, lowering heat if necessary, until scallions and garlic are soft and translucent, 15 to 20 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Stir in the sherry and season to taste with salt and pepper. Keep sauce warm while preparing the oysters.

For the oysters: Combine flour and paprika in a medium mixing bowl. Select the rounder of the two shells from each oyster, clean well and pat dry with paper towels.

Pour vegetable oil into a large, heavy skillet to a depth of 1 inch and heat until hot (about 350 degrees) over medium-high heat. Pat oysters dry with paper towels. Dredge oysters in seasoned flour, then fry, working in batches if necessary, until crisp and golden, about 2 minutes. Transfer oysters with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain.

Place one oyster on each of the prepared shells, spoon some of the warm bordelaise sauce over each oyster, and serve garnished with a little chopped parsley and with lemon wedges.