Friday, February 24, 2012

FEED YOUR FACE: Mountain Oysters

OK now, no belly aching. You should try things at least once, just to say you tried.

My great grandma, my grand mother, and grandfather handed me this recipe a long time ago. I will admit that, at first, I was NOT going to eat Mountain Oysters. But you know what? They do taste pretty darn good. So don't be a sissy! Give them a try.

So, here is how to fix them up.
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
salt and pepper
garlic powder
vegetable oil
1 bottle of beer
1 dozen (ish) mountain oysters (fresh ones are the best, but you can use frozen if you need to)

Make the batter by mixing the flour, cornmeal, and beer. Season it with some salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste. Try to make the batter a little on the thick side.

Slice the oysters about 1/4 inch thick, then dip 'em in the batter. Cook them puppies in hot oil until medium crisp.

They are best if served while hot, and with a dipping sauce of your liking. I like to make a little sauce of ketchup with horseradish.

Now, I know that a lot of people won't try this. But, you should really be adventurous sometimes and try something new now and then. Or if you have a relative or someone that you are not really fond of, invite them over to watch a football game, baseball, or whatever and serve these up. Tell them that's all you have for munching on. They won't be coming back to soon to your house.

The first time I had these, was when I was a little kid. It was at Thanksgiving. I heard my grandparents talking about having oysters to snack on before we had our big meal. I had just discovered seafood. I love it all.

But, when they served up these oysters (and they were good), I was a little upset that they were not the oysters on the half shell like I had eaten before. They didn't taste like the fried oysters I'd had at the seafood place, and I said as much to my grandparents. You could have heard a pin drop. Papa and Pappy got up and left the kitchen. Mama hollered at them to come back in the kitchen and explain to me just what it was I was eating.

Papa grabbed his coat, and out the front door he went. Pappy,just didn't move fast enough. He came back into the kitchen, beet red, just about ready to bite his pipe in half. 'Course, I've been munching the whole time on these oysters. Pappy just looked at me and started laughing. Mama, giggled, and grandmother, beet red, giggled. Pretty soon the whole family was laughing.

And I just kept on eating them oysters.

It finally came down to my uncle who owned a ranch. He told me what the oysters were. I didn't believe him for one minute and I kept on eating them oysters. Then he asked me if I remembered being on the ranch last summer, and how they took some of the young bulls and had the vet checking on them. He reminded me that old Joe was there with his pocket knife out and the bucket next to him. I said that I remembered that. Well, my uncle asked, what do you think was in the bucket?

OH MY GOD! Them poor young bulls!

I really felt for them. I think I even cried a little at the time on the ranch. Well, they didn't get the reaction I think they thought they were going to get after eating about a half dozen or so and having decided that I liked them. We had them about every other Thanksgiving after that. I even got Mama to fix some up when I would go to her house. Papa and I would just wolf them down and Mama would have to make another batch, just so she could have some.

So, don't be a baby. As they used to say, "Try it, you'll like it." Whip up a batch and FEED YOUR FACE!

12 comments:

  1. They are actually really good. In West Texas where I usually eat them, they slice them do them just like this and dip them in a cornmeal and flour batter and deep fry them. It's usually a special occasion when they are served. They call them "calf fries" or just "fries", though sometimes "mountain oysters". I will actually eat just about anything that I think won't make me sick. I probably have some Cajun somewhere in my family. :)

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    1. 45er, I'll have to try the cornmeal and flour batter. Plus, I think that we all have a little Cajun in us.

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  2. My first time was similar, although an family reunion (potluck, of course). As I worked on my 2nd or 3rd helping, Mom asked if I knew what I was eating, when I said no, she proceeded to explain, I just shrugged and said 'whatever that is, they sure is good!'

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    1. Midwest Patriot, Some times, it might be better if we don't know what it is we are eating. I had a bad experience as a child with frog legs. Took me a lot of years, before I could eat them again.

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  3. i can't say i have ever tried them as i have now just heard of them! i had to look it up on wikipedia to be sure that i knew what you were referring to. i would probably at least try one, if it tastes good, i will try anything. but it might take me a few minutes to get enough "balls" to do so - bahahahahah! oh and Flier - i love these stories!

    your friend,
    kymber

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    1. Kymber, If they are done right, they taste wonderful. If they are prepped, or done wrong. They can be pretty down right hard to eat. And if you can eat them, and like them, just think. You have had beef, from stem to sturn. (That is from front to back.) You can also get what are called turkey fries. Same thing, just a lot smaller.

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  4. Haven't been to nut fry for years. Very tasty!

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    1. John, Oh man, I haven't been to one in years also. Last one I went to was up in Steam Boat Springs Colorado.

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  5. I haven't had these in years. My dad worked on a large cattle ranch for awhile, and at brandin time, all the bull calves got "fixed", and there were at least 2-5 gallon buckets full of these things to clean before dinner time, another 2 or 3 buckets for supper time. I was too young to help, but I sure watched to see how it was done. There is a lotta cleaning to do!
    I really enjoy your posts.
    T

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    1. tea4too, thank you. My Aunt and Uncle had a ranch many years ago. I remember them "fixing" the bull calves also. My sister and I also watched as they pulled calves. I sure miss them having that ranch. Old Joe, a hired hand from Texas, was in charge of fixing the bull calves, and cleaning them oysters. He was really quick at it. And he loved to cook also. I learned a lot from that old cowboy.

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  6. Duke's Steakhouse, now located in Castle Pines North, used to serve a pretty good batch of Rocky Mt. oysters. I haven't visited their new location (they used to be down here in Castle Rock) but if they're still serving said oysters, they're probably still pretty good!

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  7. Chico, Thanks, I didn't know. I'm going to have to check them out. Again, thanks for the info.

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