The French would say made with a fume, fish or oyster fume. A fume is the product of, in this case, oysters, which are steeped, and the essence of the flavor is withdrawn to create what is called a fume or fish fume. The fume is used as a broth; however, in the case of seafood, which is so delicate, it gets the name fume. A fume is a subtle flavor where the main item is enhanced.
The wine of the sea, you might say, is a description of these savory, delicious treats. Like many foods, the flavor is a direct result of the foods they eat. As the saying goes,” you are what you eat”, so goes with these sea creatures. These tasty creatures, if they are raised close to or near the open ocean, will have a higher salinity than those raised in bays. Flavors and options are amazingly flexible.
Check out this website to learn more about oysters: theoysterguide.com
The beauty of many prepared dishes is that when you have good ingredients, you let them do the flavoring. Oysters are subtle yet rich in flavor, and this dish, enhanced by bacon, allows the unique characteristics to stand out.
Oyster Stew
Ingredients
- 4 Bacon, Thick Cut Slices Cooked, diced or chopped
- 1 Onion small, finely diced
- 2 cup Clam Juice
- 1 cup Potato Peeled, Cubed 1/2 in.
- 1 Pint Oysters Fresh shucked or canned. Drain, Reserve Juice
- 1/2 Pint Heavy Cream You could substitute 1/2 and 1/2
- 1 Cup Oyster Crackers
Instructions
- In a stock pot add clam juice, reserved oyster juice, simmer
- Add Peeled, cut potatoes and cook in Juices for about 10 minutes until tender, turn off the burner
- Cook the Bacon to slightly crisp, chop up the bacon, remove excess grease from the pan. Be cautious this fat can melt plastic and burn your skin.
- Saute finely diced onion in residual bacon fat, (only what remains after draining the fat off)
- Add Cream to stock, with potatoes, return to simmer
- Add onion, bacon, shucked oysters to the simmering stock. Cook only until oysters are cooked, about 5 minutes
