OYSTER

Excerpts from Bender, Arnold E. 1990. Dictionary of Nutrition and Food Technology. Butterworths, Boston.

Marine bivalve mollusk, Ostreidae and Crassostrea species. Analysis per 100 g.: protein 10 g, traces of fat and carbohydrate (some glycogen when alive) iron 6 mg., zinc 50 mg, vitamin B12 15 ug, only traces of other vitamins (contrary to popular superstition), 50 kcal (200 kJ).

Excerpts from Passmore, Jacki. 1991. The Encyclopedia of Asian Food and Cooking. Hearst Books, New York.

OYSTER, CRASSOSTREA SP. C CUCULLATA, CRASSOSTREA PINCTADA MAXIMA

Three main types of oysters that are taken from Asian waters. The first is a very large oyster which is cultivated in Hong Kong and is found widely elsewhere. As it has a strong flavor and tougher flesh than can be enjoyed raw, it is the one that is cooked or dried. A percentage of the crop is also cooked to produce a concentrated flavoring liquid used commercially in the production of sauces and a food product. The second, smaller type has a rectangular-shaped, blackish shell with a pink margin. Asians rarely eat raw oysters, as people do in the West with just a squeeze of lemon. Instead, in Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore, these tiny, tasty oysters are heaped into omelettes; in Japan they are simmered in a rich miso broth to make kaki-no-dote-nabe, or simmered with mioso and sake to make kaki-miso, a dish perfected in the bayside city of Shiogama. In Kampuchea, where oysters are plentiful, they are quick-cooked with copped lemon grass, chili and herbs, then returned to the shell to be served. Pearl oysters are found in deep Asian waters and must be harvested by divers. The meat is delicious.

Garrett, Theodore Francis (edited by). 1898. the Encyclopedia of Practical Cookery. L. Upcott Gill, 170, Strand, W.C. London. Vol. III

(Ostrea edulis) is found on almost every coast. This is a shell fish.

Grimes, William. 2004. Eating Your Worlds. Oxford University Press.

is any of a number of bivalve mollusks with rough irregular shells. Several kinds are eaten (especially raw) as a delicacy and may be farmed. An oyster-shaped morsel of meat on each side of the backbone in poultry -
ORIGIN Middle English: from old French oistre, via Latin Greek ostreon; related to osteon 'bone' and ostrakon 'shell or tile.'

Oyster	Description	Availability	Taste
Pacific (Crassotrea gigas)	A large Pacific oyster, is a native of Japan. Growing characteristics depend upon source. Samish Bay oysters have wide, almost fan-shaped shells, Hood Canal oysters are smaller and straighter, with deep cups. Oysters raised in southern Puget Sound get enormous with an elongated shape.	Year-round	Samish Bay oysters tend to be salty, Hood Canal oysters are sweet and oysters raised in southern Puget Sound and Willapa Bay are pleasant redolent of algae and mud.
Kumamoto (Crassostrea sikamea)	A medium-size Kumo native to Japan.	December-August	Sweet and buttery.
Olympia (Ostrea lurida)	A small Olympia oyster native to the Pacific Coasting.	December-May	Salty, slightly metallic
European Flat (Ostrea edulis)	The European Flat medium-sized oyster [also referred to as Belon] has a rounder shell than Pacifics and Kumos.	October-June	sweet and metallic

Compiled for Food Resource http://food.oregonstate.edu