How to Open Live Oysters

[KD]

I tried the 3 day old raw mussels and unfortunately still cannot stand them. I've learned that mussels is one of my tastiest foods when steamed, but I hate them when raw. I'll stick to oysters when it comes to raw shellfish.

Did they open this way? by waiting?

I'm handy with a knife, and will try it on oysters next chance I get, but I can see myself after trying to open 20 or more so mussels I might be left with some kind of mess possibly of my kitchen and hands.

[RawZi]

Did they open this way? by waiting?

I'm handy with a knife, and will try it on oysters next chance I get, but I can see myself after trying to open 20 or more so mussels I might be left with some kind of mess possibly of my kitchen and hands.

    I tried raw mussels a couple of times and they were a total mess.  Maybe I should age them.

    I cracked cockles open recently with a nutcracker.  That worked pretty well.  They tasted good too.

[TylerDurden]

Waiting for the mussels to die(and therefore open their shells) is a non-starter as the amount of mussel-flesh is a lot less after spending many days in the fridge. If one can't handle the taste of raw fresh mussels at first, then a solution would be to take out the mussel-flesh put them all in a pint-glass, and then turn the glass upside down with a hand to cover the mussels and not let them out, but with enough of an opening to let the seawater around the mussels to get out. Worked for me ,anyway.

[PaleoPhil]

Mussels are indeed messier to eat raw than steamed. That may be why oysters are the shellfish most commonly eaten raw--they are in decent shape raw and easier to eat and tastier raw.

[Techydude]

Do you have to disinfect the oysters to eat them raw?

[Iguana]

 

[michaelwh]

Do you have to disinfect the oysters to eat them raw?

Take a look at wild animals in nature. Do they disinfect anything before they eat it?

I've eaten raw oysters that have been dead for ~1 week. Full of bacteria. Smell is quite strong, but they're still nutritious.

[goodsamaritan]

Do you have to disinfect the oysters to eat them raw?

If you are the one opening them, no.

If you buy it in a bag where you don't know who handled it, dip it in vinegar.

[janjan23]

One of my fav so yummmy

[PaleoPhil]

Do you have to disinfect the oysters to eat them raw?

Yeah, I soak mine in bleach and then cook them at 1000 degrees Celsius for two hours to make sure I kill every last evil germ. Of course, there's nothing left to eat at that point, which further reduces the chances of ingesting an evil germ. Phew!

[cherimoya_kid]

With oysters in the USA, it's very important to be careful about your source.  Oysters from the Gulf of Mexico area (Louisiana, Alabama, etc.) are often not safe to eat raw.  Their food handling regulations are lax and poorly enforced.  From the Chesapeake Bay area, the oysters are safe.

[Aaaaaa]

Hmmm I've been able to find some raw (presumably dead, though??--they didn't SAY live...) oysters at my local grocery store...they are still in the shell.  The sign said they are wild harvested...but I'm not sure from where.  I will ask next time I go, though.
 cherimoya_kid--Do you mean if they are already shelled, about the ones unsafe to eat raw?  Aren't the ones you shell yourself probably OK?  I've eaten at least 8 and haven't died yet!!! :-D
I am SO jealous of all you guys who can get fresh LIVE seafood!  Everything I can find is previously frozen...boo :-(  But at least I've located raw wild tuna, scallops, oysters and Alaskan salmon!  Someday I will live near an ocean or sea........

[eveheart]

Oysters in the shell are alive. If any have died in transit, one would not eat them. They die when you open them. Live oysters from clean waters that you open with an oyster knife can be eaten raw. There are other ways to prepare them that involve cooking, no need to discuss that on this forum. If you need to see how to open them, I recommend youtube. An oyster knife has a firm, short blade and is not dangerous to use. There is a knack to opening oysters, but it's not hard to learn. Good oysters that I buy in the winter months come from the Pacific Northwest, northern California through British Columbia.

Oysters in the jar are dead, are are not for eating raw.

[Aaaaaa]

Ohh, wow, thanks eveheart!  That really helps!  So I guess the in-shell ones must be live.  I saw they also had ones in a jar.  Good to know I picked the right kind!
I bought an oyster knife, but I think it was really crappy quality because it just bent when I tried to open the oysters with it.  I then tried a flathead screw driver, which works wonderfully LOL!

[goodsamaritan]

If you open live oysters, sometimes you can still see them alive in their half shell.  Like so:

Oyster Still Alive Shelled and will be Eaten

[Aaaaaa]

Oh gosh, GS you and your kids are too funny!!!  I love it!
I don't think my oysters were breathing when I opened them, though haha.  I probably would have noticed if they were!! ;-)  Is that a bad thing?

[cherimoya_kid]

 cherimoya_kid--Do you mean if they are already shelled, about the ones unsafe to eat raw?  Aren't the ones you shell yourself probably OK? 

I had SERIOUS food poisoning from some Gulf oysters on the half-shell back in in 2006.  They didn't taste bad, either, so...be careful with the Gulf oysters.

I got them at a restaurant, so maybe they had been shelled earlier, like the day before.  However, I have heard from several fish sellers that Gulf oysters are much less carefully handled.

[Aaaaaa]

Hm...thanks for the warning.  I'll have to check with the store and see if they know where they're sourced from next time I go grocery shopping.  I don't want to get food poisoning!!! :

[bookittyrun]

just wanted to update this thread... 

first off, gs - thank you so much for this post, it compelled me to try.  and to all of you who replied, i was able to make what i feel are somewhat "educated" decisions about trying something new.  i did buy some live oysters, and i'm so glad i did!  delicious!  wonderful!  can't wait to do it again!  i didn't have an oyster knife, and didn't really need to...

washed the oysters off real good (ya, they were a little cruddy...  btw, i imagine if you bought them cleaned already, you'd be paying more for them...).  i then placed them in some cold fresh water to "soak" for less than 10 minutes.  the oysters ended up opening slightly on their own, perhaps they were gasping for saltwater???  but it did allow me to sneak a large, somewhat flat, stainless spoon between the halves to coerce them open (inserted spoon while submerged.  when i took them out of the water, they closed again).  no broken shells or bits.  once open, the spoon seemed to "scoop" the oyster out with minimal effort.  trying to remove the first one from the shell by hand, just mangled the poor little fella...  but i ate him anyway!  rinsed the "meat" off with running cold water, and didn't experience anything bitter or overly salty.  no need for vinegar, or lemon juice with these guys, they were just good!

some replies here got me to pick up some fresh, unfrozen clams, too.  treated them the same, but they didn't open when submerged.  a gentle rap with a small hammer was enough to break the shell, mostly into manageable size pieces.  again, a (smaller) spoon scooped out the clam with minimal effort, rinsed them under running water (to remove the few smaller chips that occurred during the rap with the hammer), and i soon had seven whole, unmangled clam buddies on a plate.  didn't find them to be bitter, overly salty, or in need of lemon or vinegar...  they were tasty, too!

perhaps it was rinsing, or maybe my attitude, but this went so well for me, i can't wait to try again!

as for the fresh, unfrozen sea scallops i got (it was a day full of new attempts!)...  the flavor was fine, but the texture was too soft and gooey for my liking.  used to eat these cooked in butter, and they were far more appealing in a more "firm" condition.  i don't know if i'll buy these again, but i'm willing to try the smaller bay scallops to make sure.  i'm hoping they are of a different consistency, because i really do miss the cooked versions of scallops, they were a treat when growing up!  yum yum!

in the same way i truly appreciated this thread, i hope others find this additional info useful!

thanks again, everyone!

p.s.  currently living on the gulf, and even after the bp oil debacle (still makes me sick to my stomach to think about that...)  these items, if they were "fresh" from this area, didn't make me sick...  the claim about gulf seafood being "unsafe" may be somewhat unfounded?  time will tell...