How To Make Oysters Less Creepy Part II: Smoked Oyster Pâté
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I’m back with more creative ways to eat weird things. And this time, I’m making a weird thing (oysters) possible even LESS appetizing by turning it into pâté. Idk, I fucking loveeeeee pâté and liver mousse, so maybe you don’t think it’s weird, but liver is (for most people) a whole different level of hard-to-swallow. I’ll be tackling liver next, don’t worry.
If you need a reminder why I’m even doing a series about including more oysters in your diet, check out my first post here.
But if the destination is health, the journey is fraught with doing (and eating) things that make you step out of your comfort zone. It’s like flying commercial from Pecoima to Santorini…the journey might be smelly, hot, and surrounded by commoners, but it will be worth it when you’re standing at the top of the island, looking down on everyone else.
For the uninitiated, pâté is a silky mousse made by blending chicken livers with spices and cream. You eat it like you would a charcuterie board. What I’ve done here is roughly the same idea, but with smoked oysters in place of the liver, which actually makes the recipe even easier to throw together since the oysters require no cooking.
If this whole thing gives you the ick, let me assure you it’s delicious! I will preface by saying it *is* more seafood-y than my smoked oyster linguine recipe, but in a “I’m a housewife on vacay in Rhode Island in the summer, dining al fresco on freshly shucked oysters, sipping VERY COLD Chardonnay, and texting my son’s wedding planner for the 7th time today about table linens and I’m NOT happy about it but thank god for these oysters and Chard for taking the edge off.” You know the feeling.
So it’s a little briny, a little salty, a little…oyster-y, and then you get the mouth-watering umami cut with the herbaceousness of the thyme and rosemary. It’s truly lovely. And when you serve it among a beautiful charcuterie board, you might for a moment think you have transported to Santorini, or at least somewhere rich as fuck, cus you’d surely pay money for it! And yet, it costs under $10 to make.
You certainly don’t have to make it fancy though. It would make an incredible breakfast - just slather a piece of toast with it, top it with an over easy egg, or even some sliced avocado and holy shitballs! It would also make an incredible steak topping for dinner. There’s plenty of ways to enjoy this unusual delicacy but you won’t know unless you make it yourself!!
Are you already a smoked oyster fan? What’s your favorite preparation of them? What other dishes should I try to get smoked oysters into next??
Smoked Oyster Pâté
Ingredients
Instructions
- Bring a small pan to medium heat and add butter. When butter is melted and starts to bubble, add shallots with a pinch of salt and cook until they start to turn transluscent.
- Add garlic to the shallots and stir to keep from burning. Cook another 1-2 minutes, until garlic is softened and fragrant.
- Remove pan from heat and allow onions and garlic to cool for a few minutes.
- Add oysters (with the oil), cooled onions and garlic, and remaining ingredients to a small blender or food processor. I used my Ninja smoothie blender and it worked perfectly. Blend until everything is smooth - if it's having trouble, add a splash of cream until you reach the desired consistency. It will be smooth like hummus.
- Transfer the pâté to a small ramekin or bowl, cover with plastic wrap, pressing it onto the surface of the pâté and then place in the refrigerator overnight.
- Serve with toasts, crackers, crudité, or spread on bread for a decadent sandwich.
