I Used to Shuck 200 Oysters A Day
A story of a girl in the window.
A defining moment in my culinary journey has been learning to shuck oysters as a line cook at State Bird Provisions. Working on the raw bar was challenging; they train you to shuck 30 oysters in under 4 minutes. Let alone at a Michelin star restaurant, where the standards and quality are higher than ever.
I have always loved oysters, I loved the taste and eating them fresh. A squeeze of lemon, a dab of cocktail sauce. I love a classic french Mignonette with shallot. I love Hog Island ones especially, located in Bodega Bay, they are one of the best oyster farms on the West Coat. That’s where all the oysters at SBP are sourced because they truly are the local best. That first month shucking them nonstop, 5 days a week, for hours a day, I couldn’t think about eating them.
With the oysters at SBP, there’s a constant push to get faster and they want you to shuck right into your hand. It’s faster than using a towel I guess. The Sous Chefs loved to race in oyster shucking for healthy competition. It was for the sense of urgency, to get it to the guest as fast as possible without compromising quality. It definitely motivated me to shuck faster and faster, with multiple stabs along the way.
The first 3 weeks I worked the raw bar my hands were coated in stab marks and cuts. I would go home in pain and soreness, showering the sting away at 1am after my shift.
After each day, bandaged up, I thought about how to get better. Each week I saw myself get better, faster, I would slip less. I stabbed myself less, thank god. When I started, it took me 10 minutes to shuck a full tub (about 16-20 oysters) and I got down to under 2 minutes. I was so proud and it really showed me that I could do hard things. I could learn new techniques and skills- we are never to old to learn.
What made shucking this many oysters even funnier was that my station, my all-day spot, was right in the front window. Every person that came to the restaurant looked in to the kitchen and saw me shucking oysters and plating crudo dishes.
When I started at State Bird, I wasn’t a complete stranger to oysters. I shucked them in my first line cook job in Chicago at Trivoli Tavern. There we used towels to shuck and it wasn’t too fast. I definitely thought differently while I was working there but after the speed I saw at State Bird, it was nothing. Shucking oysters on the line was different when you were filling 2 carts with 120 of them ready to go when we opened at 5:30. It was faster and high-pressure, but it was also about making them look pretty. Making sure they were “sexy” and appealing. People saw them before they ordered them unlike a traditional restaurant. The dim sum carts rolled out right as the first seating began and we filled the whole restaurant as soon as we opened.
Every turn of service, we filled big silver bins with ice and oysters. These were carted around the restaurant, topped high with kohlrabi kraut and toasted sesame seeds, ready to eat and enjoy. And even though my relationship with shucking them every day started hate-filled, I soon learned to love the practice. It became meditative. Like a box to unlock.
Oysters are something not everyone likes. Some people think the texture is awful or that they look too weird (booger of the sea!). I think they taste like a briney ocean soup. You don’t really have to chew, unless there’s toppings and crunchy items on it. And I’m fascinated by the fact that they taste different based on what ocean or environment they are from. Many people don’t eat oysters at home because of the hassle of cracking them open. I want people to see seafood and oysters as more approachable. As something you can make as easy as chicken or beef. I want people to consider cooking a whole fish or a grilled oyster or making a crudo dish for someone they love.
Since I left State Bird and started cooking privately in the past few months, I integrate seafood and oysters into my menus as much as I can. Recently I served oysters for a client dinner with shaved tomato sorbet and Jalapeño. I’m excited about the possibilities of introducing innovative oysters to more people and here are some ideas I’m playing around with.
Fresh Oysters with Shaved Carrot Sorbet and Sumac
Fried Oysters with Preserved Lemon Aioli and Chive Oil
Grilled Oyster with Parmesan Breadcrumb and Tomato Confit
Oyster Confited in some fat, maybe chicken, with labneh and harissa whip, served with crusty bread
