Sauteed Oysters

Drain the oysters well, season with salt and pepper, and roll them in fine bread or cracker crumbs. Place clear fat in a frying-pan (butter may be used if the difference in cost is not an object), and when it becomes very hot drop in enough oysters to cover the bottom of the pan. When one side is browned, turn the oysters carefully to brown the other side. The iron pancake griddle is often used for this purpose, as in this way many oysters may be cooked at one time. Serve very hot on toast.

Oysters Fricasseed

Twenty-five large oysters.

One large table-spoonful of butter.

One large table-spoonful of flour.

One large table-spoonful of chopped parsley.

One-half pint of milk.

Two eggs (yolks only).

Salt and pepper to taste.

Boil the oysters in their own liquor, and drain. Place the butter in a frying-pan, and when it has melted, add the flour, rubbing to a smooth paste. Now pour in the milk, and stir it until it boils ; then add the oysters, half a cupful of the liquor and the salt and pepper, and stir again until the liquid boils. At this point remove the pan from the fire, stir in the eggs, well beaten, and also the parsley, and serve at once.

Oysters On Toast

One pint of oysters. One table-spoonful of butter. One table-spoonful of flour. Salt and pepper to taste.

Heat the oysters in their own liquor, and when boiling, skim them; add the butter and flour rubbed to a cream, and season with salt and pepper; then let the whole cook about two minutes, to make certain the flour is done. Have ready some nicely toasted bread; and if the oysters do not seem rich in liquor, wet the edges of the toast carefully with a little salted water, pouring it on with a tea-spoon so as not to add too much ; then turn the oysters over the toast. Should there be plenty of liquor to moisten the toast properly, the water, of course, need not be used. This is a particularly delicate and appetizing dish for an invalid or a convalescent. Many prefer the liquor without thickening, and the flour is then omitted, with quite as good results.

Oysters Baked In The Shells

Use only large oysters for this purpose. Wash the shells and scrub them with a brush ; then place them in a baking pan, with the round sides down to hold the juice, and bake in a hot oven until the shells open. Remove the upper shells, season each oyster (which should be slightly loosened from the lower shell) with butter, salt and pepper, and serve at once in the shells. Oysters baked in this way are sometimes removed from the shells and served in a hot dish. There is no way of cooking the oyster in which the natural flavor is so fully developed.

Another method of baking oysters in the shell is as fo-lows : Open the oysters, and season them highly with butter, salt and pepper and a drop of Worcestershire sauce or a little catsup, and bake a few minutes in a very hot oven. Gentlemen who are fond of condiments generally prefer oysters roasted in this way.