Your nearest seafood purveyor is flush with shellfish, both farmed
and harvested from the wild, so consider the following excerpts
from our recipe files that will provide you with peak enjoyment.
Each recipe will serve 4-6 persons. We’ve savored many various
renditions of Oyster Stew, but Oregon native Marlene Delkin has
a version that tops them all:

OYSTER STEW

1 Onion, finely chopped 3 strips Bacon, chopped
1/8 lb. Unsalted Butter 2 pints extra small Pacific Oysters
Cayenne Pepper Dried Dill
Salt 1pint Half & Half
White Pepper Fresh Parsley, chopped

Saute’ Onion, Bacon and Butter in large pan over medium heat
until Onion is transparent. Drain Oysters and add juice to the
saute’ pan contents with Cayenne, Dill and Salt to taste, stir over
medium heat for one minute. Heat Half & Half in microwave for 40
seconds, add with Oysters to the saute’ pan and stir for another
minute. Warm bowls in microwave, serve stew with topping of
White Pepper and Parsley.

STEAMED SHELLFISH

No water is needed to coax open Clams or Mussels in the shell.
The natural briny juice of the shellfish mixes with the following
ingredients to form a marvelous broth. We prefer to mix a pound
each of Butter Clams and farmed Penn Cove Mussels from Puget
Sound.

1 lb. Each, Clams & Mussels ¼ lb. Butter
¼ tsp White Pepper 4 dashes Tabasco
6 Green Onions, sliced 1 cup White Vermouth

Place all ingredients in a covered saucepot, heat until a steaming
simmer is reached, continue simmering until shells open, 6-10
minutes. Remove shellfish, place in heated serving bowls, pour
broth

Into bowls, garnish with chopped fresh Parsley. Serve with
French Bread slices for dipping in the broth.

SHRIMP MARTINIS

This creative way to enjoy the current harvest of fresh Oregon
cocktail Shrimp was created at the Agate Beach, OR Holiday Inn. 

          18 oz. Oregon Shrimp 12 Juniper Berries
          4 oz. Mayonnaise 8 oz. White Vermouth
          2 oz. Gin 6 large pitted Green Olives

Reduce Vermouth and Juniper Berries over medium heat until
some 2 oz. remain. Mash Berries with Vermouth, add Gin and fold
in Mayo. In a cocktail shaker, toss Shrimp with Mayo mix, divide
amongst 6 martini glasses, garnish each with a toothpicked Olive.

PICKLED PRAWNS

This is a festive Appetizer, requiring a plethora of paper napkins
to wipe fingers used to shell the Prawns.

25 10-12 count Prawns in shell ¾ cup Kosher Salt
2 quarts Water 2 cups White Wine Vinegar
5 cups Water 2 tblsp Pickling Spice
2 tblsp Old Bay Shrimp & Crab Boil Seasoning

Soak Prawns in salted Water for 24 hrs, rinse well. Mix Vinegar,
Water and seasonings, bring to a boil, add Prawns, when they’ve
just turned pink, remove pot from heat, allow contents to cool.
Bottle the results and refrigerate 2 hours prior to serving.

© 2005 Oregon Magazine