Oysters and Quinoa Salad by the Bay

One can do so much eating over Memorial Day weekend! It is always exciting to pack a picnic and head to the bay side to crack into some fresh oysters while munching on fresh cherries and quinoa salad!   We prepared the quinoa salad ahead of time and stuck it in a cooler with some fresh cherries, and left overs from our cook-out the night before.  We headed up to Tomales Bay Oyster Co where they have scores of picnic tables each decked out with a bbq and an oyster shell recycling bin.

The scene there is always lively on a beautiful day and I love being surrounded by various people having a good time around fresh food and a smokey bbq.  For the picnic, we opted to eat our oysters raw.  When they have just been pulled out of the bay that day, it is not possible to get any fresher and the best opportunity to eat some good seafood!

Oysters Raw

You will need an oyster shucking knife and as many raw oysters as you think you can eat!  

Picking oysters: When choosing oysters, it is important to make sure they're fresh so there are two rules!

     1. they do not smell 

     2. they should not be open.  If it is open, it should quickly snap shut once tapped. 

If the oyster doesn't fit both of these criteria, don't buy it!

1. To shuck, hold the oyster firmly in one hand with a cloth towel so the shell does not hurt your hand.  If you can, find a bit of a gap in the oyster shells and slip the knife blade between the shells.  Ideally, the hinge of the two shells will be opposite of where your leverage is with the knife.

2. Using a twisting motion, pry the top and bottom shells apart.  Run the knife around the oyster continually doing this.  Try not to lose the delicious brine inside!  As you get more practice, you can also work on keeping little pieces of shell from getting into the meat too!  Remember, this is challenging so be forceful yet patient!  

3. Once you are in and have removed the top part of the shell, run the knife along the bottom of the oyster to detach the tough knob from the underside. 

4. Toss some hot sauce on the meat and down the hatch!

We ended up ordering too many oysters so we had the raw for lunch and then took the leftovers home to grill out that evening. 

Storing: Do not store the oysters in water. If you do not plan to eat them right away, arrange them flat on a tray, cover them with a damp towel, and store them in the refrigerator. They'll keep this way for about a day.  Or if you're on an out door adventure like we were, keep them in a cooler with a bag of ice on them until you can get to a refrigerator.


Grilling Oysters

Once you have a hot grill going, place your closed, raw oysters on hot grill.  Be sure to place them so the cup side on bottom to keep all the delicious juices in the oyster.  Cover barbecue with lid and cook until shells just begin to open to indicate doneness.

Spicy Quinoa, Cucumber and Tomato Salad

1 cup quinoa
3 cups water
Salt to taste
2 cups diced cucumber
1 small red onion, green onion, or shallot finely minced (optional)
2 cups finely diced tomatoes
1 to 2 jalapeño or serrano peppers (to taste), seeded if desired and finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped cilantro, plus several sprigs for garnish
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 avocado, sliced, for garnish

1. Bring the 3 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Rinse quinoa and add to boiling water along with a dash of salt. Simmer for about until most of the water has been cooked into the grain. Cover the pan and allow to sit while you are preparing the veggies.

2. While the quinoa is cooking, finely chop the jalapeño and onion.  Since they will be raw, you only want small bits of these in your mouth when eating the end product.  Chop cucumber, cilantro and tomato. 

3. Combine the tomatoes, cucumber, onion, chilies, cilantro, vinegar, lime juice and olive oil in a bowl.  Add quinoa then toss together, and taste and adjust seasonings to your liking. Serve garnished with sliced avocado and cilantro sprigs.

Inspiration for quinoa salad is from nytimes.

Curried Egg Salad with Mango Chutney

Getting ready for the week takes lots of planning.  I like to make lunches that I can easily put into to-go containers throughout the week.  Egg salad definitely fits into that category!  This is a new recipe I tried from Simple Recipes.  I cut down on the chutney and added some celery to reduce the sweetness.  Plus, the cilantro lover that I am, I can't resist adding it to dishes for an extra twist.  

The initial inspiration came from one of my favorite dishes that I periodically order at a local tea shop.  This recipe comes close, but not quite.  I will have to continue to tamper.  I hard boiled the eggs by bringing water to a boil then placing the egg in the boiling water.  After about 12 minutes I remover the eggs from the water and rinsed them in cool water to prevent them from cooking any further.

Curried Egg Salad with Mango Chutney

 

6 hard boiled eggs, peeled

1/3 cup mango chutney

1 1/2 tsp yellow curry powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 Tbs mayonnaise
1 Tbs chives, diced
2 stalks celery, chopped
cayenne for taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste
lettuce or raw spinach
cilantro for garnish




1. Do the prep: chop celery, dice chives.

2. Place peeled, hard boiled eggs into a medium sized bowl and roughly chop by taking two table knives and slicing them accross the eggs. (To make a finer egg salad, you can use forks to press against the cooked egg pieces to break them into smaller pieces.)

 

3. Add the mango chutney, yellow curry powder, salt, mayonnaise, chives, celery, black pepper, and cayenne to the eggs. Mix until well combined.

4. Place lettuce or spinach on place and serve the curried egg salad on the bed of lettuce.  Sprinkle chopped cilantro on top. 

Note: If you're making appetizers, just get some gluten free crackers from the store and spread the curried egg salad on the crackers, then top with a touch of cilantro. 

Spicy Corn with Lime and Cilantro

Ahh... summertime, the season of fresh corn and tomatoes.  Ok ok, it really isn't summer yet, but when your local market already has ears of corn at summer discounts and the tomatoes are looking so fresh and good, who can resist?   I get this recipe from Annie Somerville's Fields of Greens cookbook.  Her flavor combinations in this book are fabulous and has a wide variety of selection to fit your mood.  I like this dish because it is a fresh, tangy meal that can be eaten hot out of the pan or stored packed in lunches and eaten chilled throughout the week.


Spicy Corn with Lime and Cilantro

1 Tbs olive oil
4 ears of corn shaved, or approx. 4 cups of corn kernels
1-2 jalapeño, seeded and diced
salt
2 Tbs sherry vinegar
4 tsp lime juice
cayenne pepper
1 scallion, white and green parts, thinly sliced
2 Tbs chopped cilantro
1 cup chopped tomatoes (approx 1 large tomato or half pint of cherry tomatoes)
black pepper

1. If you use frozen corn, have it defrost in a colander at least an hour before you make this dish.  It helps to periodically rinse the corn in cold water to aid in the defrosting process.

2. Dice jalapeños and slice corn kernels off cob (if using fresh corn).

2. Heat olive oil in a large frying pan and tilt the pan from side to side to cover the bottom with the oil.  Toss the diced jalapeños in the pan with a pinch of salt.  Sauté at medium heat until they begin to turn brown.

3. Increase the temperature of the stove top to medium-high heat and add corn to the pan.  Stir until the jalapeños have been incorporated then let the corn stand in the pan for several minutes to allow it to toast. Once the kernels at the bottom of the pan begin to turn brown in color, stir and let stand again.  Repeat until corn is cooked to your liking (this should not take longer than 10 minutes!).

4. Remove from heat.  Stir in vinegar, lime juice, and cayenne pepper to your taste.  Let corn cool while you chop the scallion, cilantro and tomato then mix them in.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

5. Serve warm or store in the fridge to eat chilled at a later time!