Simple Oysters with Shallot Vinegar

One of the things I love about living in Sydney is the ready supply of really good oysters. They are not cheap but they are sold already shucked so for me they make a perfect, quick lunch which makes you feel a little decadent.  I spent most of my summers in France so I certainly know how to shuck oysters (I still have the scars to prove this) but I would much prefer to spend a little more and leave this art to the experts.  Fresh Oysters, with fresh bread, salted butter and shallot vinegar dressing is very hard to beat once the thermometer goes over the 25 Deg C point.  Simple but timeless.

Here is how I do them:

• 1/2 Dozen oysters per person
• Good crusty bread, sliced
• Shallot vinegar, two tablespoons of finely diced shallots into good quality red wine vinegar
• Salted butter, if you can't find any mix good quality sea salt into good quality unsalted butter

Some people question my choice of salted butter on the premise that salt is bad for you. Well too much salt is bad for you but if you are consuming a balanced diet and you don't eat too much salt, then mixing a few pinches of sea salt into your butter is really not going to make any real impact.  Indeed, living in a hot climate, you need to make sure you have enough salt to replenish what you loose via perspiration.  But anyway, the real star here are the oysters...

Serve with a glass of chilled white wine, something like a Sauvignon Blanc or a Pinot Grigio is perfect.  I would be hard pressed to come up with a better way to spend a warm, sunny afternoon.