ABOUT OYSTERS

Oysters – The Food of Gods:

You can learn a lot about an oyster just by looking at it. Well that’s what I think anyway. I’ll teach you a few things about this delicacy.

When open look at it, you should see a cream to light brown with a ruffled edge and silky textured meat. Don’t get close to fluffy white oysters filled with water as they should not be floating but closely packed with a minimal amount of liquid.

If it smells offensive, don’t accept it.  A fresh oyster has a clean ocean smell.  The taste, oh the taste – heaven too many… it’s not easy to describe; it is salty and has a  slight different taste depending where it comes from.  I wont attempt to describe it here, you have to taste it!

Nutritional Value of an Oyster:

Oysters are not only delicious, but they’re also one of the most nutritionally well balanced of foods, containing protein, carbohydrates and lipids and they are an ideal food for inclusion in low-cholesterol diets. Oysters are an excellent source of vitamins A, B1(thiamine), B2 (riboflavin), B3 (niacin), C (ascorbic acid) and D (calciferol). Four or five medium size oysters supply the recommended daily allowance of iron, copper, iodine, magnesium, calcium, zinc, manganese and phosphorus.

Just remember:

As oysters can and are consumed raw, they may carry bacteria that can affect chronic liver disease sufferers and cancer patients.  Advice is to refrain from eating if you suffer from these conditions.

What drinks best accompany Oysters:

Bare in mind that you are trying to match the distinctive seaweedy, salty and mineral tastes with which the beverage will have to compete.

Champagne can be the perfect marriage, but it is not always necessary to serve expensive white wine with oysters: Muscadet is a good choice, suggest a Riesling from Alsace (Portugal) which is bone dry and a suitable complement for oysters. You may also want a Chardonnay, whether Californian, French or Australian, but in particular one with the rich wood flavours which Australian wines matches beautifully.

Serving Size:
6 medium (84.0 g)
Amount Per Serving
Calories
57
Calories from Fat
19		 % Daily Value
Total Fat
2.1g		 3%
  Saturated Fat
0.6g		 3%
  Polyunsaturated Fat
0.8g
  Monounsaturated Fat
0.3g
Cholesterol
45mg		 15%
Sodium
177mg		 17%
Total Carbohydrates
3.3g		 1%
Protein
5.9g
Vitamin A 2%
Calcium 4%
Vitamin C 5%
Iron 31%

Rumoured that the slippery, salty and succulent oyster acts as an aphrodisiac and can do much more than boost your love life. The actual nutritional facts of an oyster vary depending on where they were raised or caught.

Calories, Fat, Protein and Carbohydrates:

They are low in calories but filling due to the amount of protein in them. Six raw oysters contain 57 calories and nearly 6gm of protein as well as small amounts of naturally occurring carbohydrates.