Nigel Slater’s oyster recipes

Oysters are usually best served raw, but if you’re going to cook them, do it with smoked bacon, pork shoulder or pancetta – it’s one of the happiest culinary marriages

There is something so utterly wonderful about the combination of a soft, quivering oyster straight from its shell and crisp, sizzling bacon that I think the marriage is worth exploring a bit further.
I have never forgotten that first meeting of oysters and pork in the same mouthful. Not, as you might expect, in the well-known angels on horseback, where the seafood is rolled in streaky bacon and grilled (a recipe almost impossible to get right, it being tricky to get the bacon crisp without overcooking the oysters.) No, I first came across it in Chinatown when a couple of deep-fried oysters were tucked into a pot of chilli-hot pork casserole. It was a moment that opened my eyes to just what magic happens when these two ingredients meet.
On the very rare occasion I eat an oyster that isn’t raw, I want to eat it teamed up with pork, smoked bacon or pancetta. I might add it took a while for me to accept the idea of eating oysters hot. Even now, I baulk at some traditional recipes that see them meeting the heat for anything more than a few seconds.
Earlier in the week I added a handful of oysters into a steaming stew of pork shoulder and fennel (oysters also love being teamed up with anything aniseed-related). The effect was extraordinary and wonderful, even though the seafood was in touch with the sauce for such a brief time. I also tossed oysters into a plate of warm pasta with spinach and toasted crumbs (a gentle whiff of oysters Rockefeller going on) just long enough to warm their tender flesh, but not totally cook them. You really couldn’t ask for a happier marriage.

Pork, fennel and oysters

This little casserole, marrying two good friends, brings out the best in the ingredients. I have resisted the temptation to thicken the sauce, preferring to simply offer everyone a soup spoon. Serves 4.
onions 2
olive oil 4 tbsp
garlic 2 cloves
fennel 1 head
pork shoulder or leg, cubed 400g
chicken stock 1 litre
new potatoes 300g
parsley a handful
crème fraîche 200g
oysters 8-12
Peel the onions then cut them into quarters. Warm half of the olive oil in a heavy-based, high-sided casserole over a moderate heat, then add the onions. Peel the garlic and slice each clove finely, then stir into the onions and leave to cook for a good 15 minutes till soft and translucent. Stir regularly, and try not to let the onion brown.
Halve the head of fennel lengthways and slice thinly, stir into the onions and leave to cook for 5 minutes. In a shallow-sided pan, warm the remaining oil, then add the cubed pork and lightly brown on all sides. Remove the meat from the pan and add to the onions. Remove any excess fat from the pan, pour in half of the stock and bring to the boil. Stir to dissolve any tasty sediment into the stock, then pour into the pork and onions, together with the remaining stock and bring to the boil.
Lower the heat, season with salt and leave to simmer, partially covered with a lid, giving it the occasional stir to make sure it doesn’t stick, for an hour. Halfway through the cooking time, scrub the new potatoes, cut them in half then add to the simmering pork and onions. Chop the parsley.
When the potatoes and pork are tender, stir in the crème fraîche and chopped parsley, season generously with coarsely ground black pepper and continue simmering for 5 minutes. There should plenty of creamy cooking liquor in the pan.
Open the oysters, check them scrupulously for grit then add them to the casserole. Serve immediately, in bowls or deep plates, ladling the cooking liquor over as you go. Provide plenty of bread and spoons.

Tagliatelle with spinach and oysters

A tangle of creamy pasta ribbons, oysters and pancetta. Serves 4.

 

smoked pancetta, in the piece 175g
olive oil 2 tbsp
a large banana shallot
garlic 2 cloves
dried chilli flakes 1 tsp
tagliatelle 250g
young spinach 200g
oysters 12
panko breadcrumbs 30g (4 tbsp)
butter a thick slice
crème fraîche 200g
grated parmesan 30g
Cut the pancetta into thick strips, about 1 cm in width. Warm the oil in a shallow pan set over a low heat, add the pancetta and cook for 5-7 minutes until the fat is starting to turn pale gold. Peel, halve and finely chop the shallot then let it soften with the pancetta. Peel and finely slice the garlic and add to the shallots together with the chilli flakes.
Put a large, deep pan of water on to boil for the pasta. Wash the spinach thoroughly then place it, still wet, into a non-stick pan with a lid over a moderate heat. Let the spinach steam for a couple of minutes, adding a little extra water if it appears to be sticking to the pan. Drain and gently squeeze dry then roughly chop. Cook the pasta in the boiling water, generously salted, for about 9 minutes.
While the pasta cooks, open and check the oysters for grit and remove from their shells. When the pasta is al dente, drain it lightly.
In a shallow pan, brown the breadcrumbs in the butter over a moderate heat, turning them gently as they turn a rich golden colour.
Add the spinach to the pancetta, then the crème fraîche, the grated parmesan and a little salt and pepper. Fold in the cooked tagliatelle and then the oysters. Divide the pasta among four plates, then scatter over the toasted crumbs.