Oyster stories

One winter way back in the 1960's, my parents rented a house at the very south end of Hood Canal, which is not a "canal" at all, but a long and narrow inlet of Puget Sound. The Cape Cod style house belonged to a doctor in a nearby city, whose family used it only in the summer. It was beautifully situated right on the water next to an overgrown creek, where salmon spawned.

At low tide the beach was covered with oyster beds and other critters. Clams were plentiful and free for the taking right in front of the house; even Geoducks if you had the energy to dig them. At the time, we didn't realize how special it was to gather up a bag of fresh shellfish and make a free dinner. None of us were brave enough to eat a raw oyster in those days, so my mom would either fry or bake them with breadcrumbs and butter. Coming from Colorado, we were scared of the "big" ones and left those on the beach. The sandy clams (after a cornmeal soak) were steamed or made into chowder.

Since then, the Hood Canal has become the poster child for environmentalists concerned about the health of Puget Sound. Population growth and septic drain fields have caused low underwater oxygen levels in the southern end of the canal, especially in the summer. Goodbye, fish and bivalves. I'm remembering this now because of the devastation on the Gulf Coast, and the destruction of delicate oyster farms. We don't know what we've got till it's gone.

View of Hood Canal

Last week I bought a small $$ jar of Willapa Bay oysters and fried them for our Friday night fish supper. Willapa Bay claims to be the cleanest estuary in the U.S., and is located way out on the Washington coast, hundreds of miles from the polluted south end of Hood Canal. This is not John's favorite meal and since he is spoiled, I also made a couple of Mahi-Mahi fillets:
But I think oysters are delicious fried quickly in a light coating of "Golden Dipt", my favorite packaged mix for seafood. In restaurants, oysters are often too heavily breaded, overcooked or soggy. I'm no longer squeamish about the strange innards of oysters, and I like to eat the big fried ones with tartar sauce. I know, I know...fattening! But it's just an occasional treat.

Have you ever heard the saying you should only eat oysters in the months with an "r"? That would be September, October, November, etc. (the cold months.) Good advice in the days before refrigerated transport.

If you looked at the national forecast last week, you may have noticed the Pacific Northwest was the one cold spot of the country. We had a heavy marine overcast and most days struggled to even reach 70. This probably sounds good to those of you sweltering through heat waves.

To make a long story short, fried oysters were good on a chilly night in a month without an "r."