How to Cook Oysters- In the Oven

What do you do when oysters are $0.58 each at your local grocery store?

You eat them on the weekly, of course!

I grew up on New England seafood and I LOVE seafood. I can't get NE seafood in Utah, so when fresh seafood is available and at a reasonable price here, I don't let them swim away :)

Here is how I prep, cook, and eat oysters in the shell. Don't be intimidated by the shell; you don't need anything you don't already have in your kitchen to prep/cook/open/eat them. It's super easy! My recipe for cooking oysters in the oven:

Ingredients & tools:

- oysters in shell (as many as you can eat!)

- oven-safe pans/sheets

- toothbrush (recommended)

- aluminum foil (optional)
- metal fork/butter knife or oyster shucking knife (http://amzn.to/2jRIPiC) * Amazon affliate link

- salt, pepper, lime, hot sauce (all optional)

1. Preheat oven

425 degrees on broil

2. Wash & scrub the oysters

Wash in water. Using a toothbrush, scrub oysters individually under water/running water to remove as much sand as possible. The more sand you remove, the less sand there will be when you open and eat them. So, scrub, scrub, scrub away.

3. Place oysters in oven-safe pan/cookie sheet(s)

My preference: cookie sheets. Tip: line cookie sheets with aluminum foil to make the aftermath easier to clean. Important: place each oyster down strategically to retain as much juice as possible. Think of oyster as a bowl filled with water. Place right-side up to keep water in; place upside down and water spills out.

4. Cook oysters 7-12 mins

If cooking with two cookie sheets, place side-by-side in oven (if possible) to ensure even cooking. Cooking time depends on how big oysters are, number of oysters, placement in oven (longer if using both racks in the oven-- add 5+ mins), and your preference for how well done you like them.

5. Open oysters
The heat naturally separates the two shells when oysters are cooked. Look for a crack between the two shells, stick oyster shucking knife (or metal butter knife/fork), and pry open. Careful not to tilt too much so the juice is retained. Some open effortlessly while some are a bit stubborn. Since they're so hot, use a paper towel to handle. Oyster shucking knife I have: http://amzn.to/2jRIPiC

6. Season/dip, and devour
My absolute fave sauce for seafood: salt, pepper, and lime. My friend introduced me to pairing hot sauce with oysters-- I'm a fan. He uses Tabasco but we are Tapatio lovers so we always have some on hand.

Watch a demo of this recipe on my YouTube channel and join me in my kitchen where everything is served with love.

Note: Amazon links are affiliate links.

♥ Yen

100 Subscriber Giveaway!

How can I thank you enough? I started my YouTube channel (LetsGetCookinggg) to share what I know best and what I love dearly with everyone: food and cooking. I love to eat, and I love to cook. I eat a lot, and I cook a lot. Basically, my life revolves around food. I wanted to share what I have learned about food and cooking with beginner cooks to demonstrate how easy it is to cook, and hopefully help advanced cooks discover new tricks/tips/suggestions. And for those who don't cook, a chance to see how food can be cooked, or just watch me look silly on camera :)

Every time I have a new subscriber, it makes me happy and all giddily inside to know that a new person is following and supporting my videos. I also appreciate it when my viewers take the time to comment on my videos, thumbs up my videos, favorite my videos, etc,. I recently reached 100 subscribers and I feel so grateful for all of your support! It has been an incredible experience connecting with everyone from a diverse background and from all over the world! Thank you for this opportunity!

As a token of my gratitude, I would like to offer a giveaway. I want to give something thoughtful, something useful, something I love, and something everyone (or almost everyone) can relate with. A few things fit my demanding requirements:

1. Seasoning & Spices. If you are new to cooking, what a nice start up collection this would make! If you already have a collection, you can be ready to restock when the time comes. If you don't cook, you can gift this to the person who cooks for you wink * wink ;) I use all of these in my kitchen, and they are my favorites. I have a couple of other favorites but the store ran out of them. I brought these from Sprout's Farmer's Market (formerly Sunflower Farmer's Market). They have multiple sets of product ID #s for each seasoning/sprices, and I happened to guessed the wrong set. Oops! The products were in no way effected by my boo boo, except for the labels on each of the seasoning/spices-- they have 2 sets of product ID #s, one of which were crossed out by me and the cashier. It didn't look so neat or pretty anymore, so I covered the wrong product ID #s with stickers. That is why there are random stickers that say: WOW, Fantastic, Terrific, Way to Go, Cool, etc,. Just so ya know :)

2. Plastic gloves. I constantly talk about how awesome plastic gloves are around the kitchen. I thought I would throw in a pack of those too.

 

3. Hello Pandas. I have a super sweet tooth. My boyfriend says that's an understatement, it's more like a super sweet mouth. Anywho, I like to share what I love, and 90% of the time when I give a present, I always add a sweet treat on the side. It's like my signature gesture; a gift without sugar on the side is not a gift from Yen. So that explains the Hello Panda snacks :)

Giveaway rules:

1. Must be a subscriber to my YouTube channel. If you are not yet a subscriber, subscribe now!
2. Must be 18 or older, or have parent's permission
3. Like my facebook page: www.facebook.com/LetsGetCookinggg
- or follow my blog: LetsGetCookinggg.blogspot.com
- completing one of the two will grant you 1 entry, completing both will gain you 2 entries
4. Comment on my giveaway video and let me know if you have liked my facebook page, followed my blog, or both, and include your user name for each.
5. Giveaway is open to everyone! As long as the United States Postal Services (USPS) will ship it to you, I will have it shipped to you!
6. Giveaway ends October 8, 2012 @ 12AM EST.
7. Winner will be randomly selected by random.org.
8. Winner will be notified via personal message from my YouTube username: LetsGetCookinggg. Winner will have 1 week to respond or else a new winner will be chosen.

Good luck! I wish everyone can win, but last time I checked, I'm not a millionaire... yet. Someday? Again, thank you so much for all of your support! It means a lot to me, and I appreciate you all!

♥ Yen

Eat, Cook, Love

I'm not a professional; I'm just a girl who loves to eat, and who loves to cook :)

I can't say that I've had the fortunate opportunity to travel to different countries and collaborate with chefs around the world. What I do have, are active taste buds that have been introduced to a plethora of flavors, cuisines, and exotic foods. They are friendly taste buds that only dislike two food items-- but even then I still eat them, just not in excess. Therefore, I think I can say that my taste buds are very "well-rounded."

I also have a very needy gut that cannot be neglected. You will never hear me say: I forgot to eat lunch, I haven't eaten anything today (and it's 6PM), there wasn't anything to eat, or any of that nonsense. I am extremely talented when it comes to eating and simultaneously doing another task. Eating + simultaneously doing something else, is the strongest multitasking skill which I have mastered. If you know how to operate a stove, oven, grill, microwave, fridge, toaster oven, etc., the rest comes easy (maybe with a little trial and error here and there). With that said, there's always something to eat (if you are fortunate to afford to eat-- sadly, food is not a luxury to all).

I have a great appreciation for food (girls splurge on make-up and shoes, I choose food), and an even deeper appreciation for the loving soul(s) who puts his/her blood and sweat into preparing food... just not literally. On cooking shows, I have seen a water fountain of sweat running from the chef's forehead down to the food-- extra seasoning-- not cool.

I enjoy eating out, but I also enjoy cooking at home. When I dine out and I experience a dish/flavor that I really admire, I have a desire to recreate it in my kitchen. At the same time, when I dine out and I taste a dish/flavor that did not meet my expectations, I have a strong desire to make it better in my kitchen. I have to thank good chefs and not-as-good chefs for my inspiration to cook; a good chef's triumph is my inspiration, and a not-as-good chef's demise is also my inspiration.

And that's why I like to cook. I can't always have things my way in life, but I can always have things my way as the chef in my kitchen. I started my YouTube cooking channel to share the adventures in my kitchen. I'm not the world's greatest chef, but I like to think that I'm up there somewhere in the book :)

Subscribe to my channel and join me in my kitchen were everything is served with love.

My YouTube Channel: LetsGetCookinggg

♥ Yen