Back in the day (way back in the day) my grandparents had a beach house a few hundred yards upriver from the mouth of Colorado River where it emptied into the Gulf of Mexico.
It was a large shack in all honesty, painted a shameless red and named the Mason Rouge.
Destroyed several times by the storms of the day (including being cleaned to the slab by Carla) my grandfather built it back a little bigger every time.
Nicknamed ‘The Camp’, for a small child it represented near endless freedom to fish, throw rocks, catch blue crabs, get sunburned and eat.
Details of the days spent there tend to blur somewhat with the passage of time, though I can still smell the food Ma Ma cooked with love and care over the ancient gas stove.
Fresh fish done a dozen ways, but best simply broiled or fried, with boiled and fried shrimp, crab claws, fish and crab cakes – all followed by dense, sweet pound cake and lemon jelly.
Fresh seafood in her world meant that it was swimming minutes before she touched it.
She would shuffle to the pier as we cleaned the morning’s or afternoon’s catch, walk with us to Ed’s – the shrimper at the end of block to buy live shrimp jumping out of the tank and we’d empty the crab trap every afternoon before dinner.
Now and again my grandfather would show up with a bushel bucket of fresh oysters drug from the bay that morning. He’d eat every third one as he shucked ‘em up for dinner sitting at the end of the pier.
On a really special day Mama would conjure up a gumbo with a dark rich roux in her coal black cast iron dutch oven that makes my mouth water now just thinking about it.
Mama would think Red Chile Fried Oysters with Lime Chile Aioli was “putting on the dog”, though I have a feeling she’d be peeking over my shoulder while they fried at the stove and eat a full plate with us right after.
Red Chile Oysters
1 and 1/2 cups flour
4 tbs red chile powder
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 tbs kosher salt
24 oysters, just shucked and rinsed
4 cups vegetable oilLime Chile Aioli
1 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon white miso (also called shiro miso)
Juice of 2/3 lime
1 tbs sambal ulek
2 tbs Thai sweet chile sauce
1 tbs fresh cilantro, finely chopped
Make the aioli. Combine all the aioli ingredients and whisk together well. Chill. Best made at least an hour ahead.
Prepare the Oysters. Shuck and rinse our oysters. Combine the flour, chile powder, cornmeal and salt in a medium bowel and mix well. Heat the vegetable oil in a deep skillet or pan over medium high heat (it needs to be hot).
Flash fry the oysters. Dredge the oysters in the dry mix and flash fry for one minute or so until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.
Serve ‘em up with a drizzle of aioli and more on the side – it’s addictive (and great on any seafood or grilled chicken).
Enjoy.
Tags: Friday Feast
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