They’re probably not aphrodisiacs but oysters are still reason to celebrate
Jo-Ann Bekker
Growing up inland, my idea of seafood was grilled sole. When someone pulled a mussel off a rock, prised it open and gave it to me to eat, I tried to keep an open mind, but it tasted slimy and horrible.
So when I moved to Knysna 11 years ago I was more than a little reluctant to sample another raw shellfish. I refused the first plate of oysters that came my way. Then I went to dinner where the only food on offer was a mountain of oysters. The others talked me through it as though I was having my first tequila: hold the oyster shell in your left hand, now squeeze a bit of lemon juice on to the flesh, grind a fraction of black pepper over it, gently dislodge the flesh with your fork, pop the whole oyster into your mouth. Chew. Now quickly have a bite of brown bread and butter and drink some white wine.
The combination was strangely satisfying. After half a dozen I could see what the fuss was all about.
Real aficionados don’t need any extras to enjoy their favourite food (except usually a great deal of wine or beer). For true oyster lovers the first prize is wild oysters harvested off coastal rocks from Tsitsikamma to south of Riversdale. One menu warns that the full, rich taste “may be almost overwhelming”. I find them creamy and delicious (although I wouldn’t attempt them without lemon, pepper and a drop of Tabasco).
But our indigenous oysters take five to 10 years to mature. Harvesting is erratic and coastal oysters often aren’t on the menu hence their steep price when they are.
To try to meet the insatiable demand for these molluscs, oysters have been artificially cultivated in the Knysna lagoon since 1949. Today the Knysna Oyster Company imports three-month-old Pacific oyster seeds from Chile and raises them in inter-tidal racks, which are sometimes visible at low tide if you catch the steam train to George across the lagoon.
These oysters, indigenous to Japan and Korea, reach maturity relatively quickly in 18 months to two years. Their taste is “lean and crisp and characterised by a nutty undertone”, the same menu advises.
Size definitely matters when it comes to cultivated oysters. The bigger the oyster, the more satisfying the mouthful. The ascending scale for cultivated molluscs (in price as well as size) is cocktail, champagne, medium and large.
Most Knysna restaurants serve oysters, and during the Knysna Oyster Festival oysters are on offer at most of the sporting functions and of course at the oyster cooking competition. But in my view there are only three places to really enjoy oysters:
The Knysna Oyster Catcher is a fairly new sundowner spot that is set on a working jetty close to the Knysna Quays. You can enjoy lunch, an early dinner, or anything in-between in a trendy wood-and-steel setting with great views through yachts to the Knysna estuary. This is the place to come and linger with a group of friends.
The Knysna Oyster Tavern is the right choice for people with small children or extended families. The inside is spacious and the garden area leads down to the edge of the lagoon. Knysna purists bemoan the loss of the original Knysna Oyster Company restaurant with its rustic tables and benches and its sparse menu of oysters or mussles (steamed and served in garlic butter). Those who liked neither just had to eat bread. The new tavern offers all kinds of seafood, salads, deserts and even lamb and chicken.
The third venue for eating oysters is entirely of your own choice: a picnic in the forest or on the wild beach of Coney Glen, a deck with a view, even your holiday bedroom. Take-away boxes of oysters can be purchased from the Oyster Catcher and the Oyster Tavern. Just make sure you order opened shells. Opening oysters is a skill too difficult and dangerous to master on holiday.
There are many things oysters are: rich in vitamins A, B2, B12 and C and low in calories (12 oysters have just over 100 calories). They are even able to change their sex; interesting that as oysters age, more and more elect to become (or remain) female.
However, the mollusc’s legendary aphrodisiac qualities remain scientifically unproven, though they certainly do help create the right mood.
So when in Knysna be sure to sample these delectable delicacies with a glass of white wine, dry or sparking, or the excellent locally brewed beer. Because there is one thing oyster eating is not (as a colleague of mine who spent every lunch-time watching her husband devour 36 oysters will vouch) and that is a spectator sport.