This story is part of “Cultivating the Coast,” a special report that explores Harpswell’s rapidly growing aquaculture industry.
There are more ways to prepare oysters than there are oyster farms in Maine, and each farmer, chef or oyster aficionado has a favorite method. Or two.
For Ken Beebe, of Hog Cove Oyster Co., serving raw oysters with lemongrass and pickled ginger and an ice-cold glass of sauvignon blanc is “the only way to go.” Unless, of course, you care to try his jumbo specimens grilled in the shell with peppers, prosciutto, ginger and Stilton, an English blue cheese. He calls that preparation “unbelievable!”
Peter Rand, of Dingley Cove Oysters, likes a drop or two of lemon.
“If you want the full experience of the oyster, I suggest putting as little on as possible,” he said.
Darcie Couture, of Whiskey Stones Oysters, trained as a chef before she began farming oysters.
“I like ’em every way — fried oyster po’boy sandwich, on the grill with garlic and herb butter,” she said. “I think they’re tasty no matter how you have them.”
But her preferred method is raw with her special whiskey jalapeno mignonette.
“I keep a little Mason jar of it in my fridge all summer,” she said.
For Seth White, of Sol Mariculture, “the best way is straight out of the water — cold, crisp and salty,” although he also enjoys them grilled with Parmesan, garlic, melted butter and parsley.
Love Point Oysters co-owner Cameron Barner likes to cut the fattiness of the Casco Bay product with “a squeeze of lemon or a splash of mignonette.”
Samantha Bohan, of Bella Bay Oysters, is a purist who shares her love of oysters with her three young children.
“My kids devour them. Just raw, straight — I don’t cook ’em or anything,” she said.
Jordan Kramer, president of the New Meadows River Shellfish Co-op, said oysters are a good substitution for clams in linguine or white clam pizza. Or he’ll put a few drops of oil seasoned with smoked paprika and garlic in the opened shells and toss them on the grill.
But his favorite way to eat oysters is “straight and raw, especially on the boat on a nice fall morning,” when the oysters store more sugars as they prepare to hibernate.
“That’s, I think, the best possible way to eat an oyster,” he said.
This story is part of “Cultivating the Coast,” a special report that explores Harpswell’s rapidly growing aquaculture industry.
