_George Ade_
“SCOLLOPED” OYSTERS
If I must make a decision, I think I shall have to vote in favor of
escalloped oysters. Back home we call them “scolloped.” The restaurant
and hotel article is not the real thing. The portions are stingy and
the oysters are heated just enough to render them helpless and they lie
embedded in some dry packing, evidently meant to be an article of food.
Escalloped oysters, as prepared at home, came in a deep pan which had
been subjected to great heat. The oysters were used with the greatest
prodigality. They were cooked in cracker crumbs or corn meal and they
were cooked until the delicious flavor of the bivalve had permeated all
parts of the dish. Milk or cream and real country butter had been used
unsparingly, so that the whole compound was moist and the seasoning
had been well distributed, and the whole result was, in my opinion, a
triumph. For some reason, the real “scolloped” oysters attain their
perfection only when prepared by women past thirty years of age.
I am not undertaking to give the recipe. Probably it is something
secret—beyond the reach or comprehension of any man, but the dish
itself is worthy of all the complimentary adjectives.
EDITOR’S NOTE:—Here is the way to do it—first butter the
bottom and sides of a pan (deep) or baking dish, then
cover the bottom with those little, round, old-fashioned
oyster crackers, all crisp and salty. Next place a layer of
oysters, fresh or cove. If you don’t know what cove oysters
are ask some one who was raised in the Middle West. Now a
layer of crackers crushed; then more oysters and so on until
the pan is full. Season each layer of oysters with salt
and pepper. Put little bits of butter all over the cracker
layers. Now fill the pan with milk and cream to which has
been added a bit of the oyster liquor. Cover the top well
with crushed crackers. Put a cover on the dish or pan and
slip it into the oven. Some folks add a teaspoonful of
Worcestershire sauce to the milk and cream. Bake until the
juices bubble up. Don’t let too much of the moisture bake
away. At the last minute take the cover off the dish and
brown the top.
The richer the cream and butter the better the result.
The dish is even better than Mr. Ade would lead you to
believe, and it _can be made_ by an amateur male cook—that’s
why Mr. Ade’s contribution is printed in spite of the rank
heresy to which he professes.