St. Mary’s County Oyster Festival

Mark your calendar! The 48th Annual Festival is coming!
OCTOBER 18th and 19th, 2014
Sat. 10am-6pm Sun 11am-6pm

Admission:
$5 each; kids under 12 are FREE; food is pay as you eat.

Contact the Administrator:
smcoysterfestival@gmail.com
301-863-5015

Grandpa’s Oyster Stew

Copied from elsewhere:  Born and raised on the water, oystering is in chef Madden Surbaugh’s blood. Every year at Christmas his grandfather made his famous oyster stew.

Grandpa's Oyster Stew Recipe

Ingredients:

recipe makes 4 servings

    • 2 tablespoons butter
    • 1 clove garlic, crushed
    • 2 shallots, minced
    • 1/2 cup dry sherry or dry white wine
    • 24 freshly shucked oysters, oyster liquor reserved
    • 1 1/2 cups whole milk
    • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
    • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
    • sea salt to taste
    • 1 pinch sweet paprika
    • 1 cup oyster crackers

Directions:

Stir butter and garlic in stockpot over medium heat until butter begins to brown. Remove garlic and discard.

Stir shallots into browned butter. Cook and stir until translucent, 5 to 7 minutes.

Pour sherry over shallots in the stockpot and bring to a boil while scraping any browned bits off of the bottom of the pot. Simmer until liquid is reduced by half, 3 to 5 minutes.

Pour reserved oyster liquor, milk, and cream into the stockpot; bring mixture to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and stir in oysters; cook until oyster edges begin to ruffle, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat.

Stir in parsley; season with sea salt to taste. Ladle into bowls and garnish with sweet paprika and oyster crackers.

Fried Oysters

Copied from elsewhere:   Simple recipe for fried oysters. You can use the same recipe for shrimp and scallops too.

Deep Fried Oysters

Original recipe makes 4 servings

  • 2 quarts vegetable oil for deep frying
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 12 ounces shucked oysters, drained
  • 2 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 3/4 cup fine bread crumbs

Directions

  1. Heat deep fryer to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
  2. Combine flour, salt and black pepper. Dredge oysters in flour mixture, dip in egg and roll in bread crumbs.
  3. Carefully slide oysters into hot oil. Cook five at a time until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Drain briefly on paper towels. Serve hot.