Report from the St. Mary's County Oyster Festival

Home of the National Oyster Cook-off and the National Oyster Shucking Championship!

It was a beautiful drive on a beautiful day and the place was hoppin'. The festival is the third weekend in October every year. The first day features the National Oyster Cook-off. The second day features the finals of the National Oyster Shucking Championship.

We got there at lunchtime and immediately dug in. We had oysters raw, fried, and in stew. You could also get them scalded, barbequed, and in "shooters." We also indulged in some southern Maryland stuffed ham. We ate well, needless to say.

The cook-off started at 9 a.m. They had three finalists in the hors d'ouvre category, three finalists in soups and stews category, and three finalists in the main course category. We only got to watch the main course competition. First place was awarded in each category, and then from the three first placers, a National Champion is picked. One of the judges was Rob Kasper, the Baltimore Sun columnist who attened the Crabcake Meet and Eat back in April.

Texas roadfooders will be pleased to hear that Texans took both the Cook-off (Oyster and Jalapeno stew) and Shucking (24 oysters in two minutes and 45 seconds) championships this year.

Below is a link to my pictures from the day....hopefully everybody will be able to access them!

http://www.ofoto.com/I.jsp?c=epqafu5.2of0fv5d&x=0&y=-t5jbwf
Edited to update link

those pictures were wonderful! It looks like a great time was had by all :)

Thanks, Debbie, that looks like a great one to attend.

Looks excellent! Who was the National Champ, and what did they make?

Everything looked just wonderful but I guess I would have filled up on a couple of dozen raw oysters and a dish of fried oysters; oh yes, I would also sampled a little of that oyster stew, too

quote:

Originally posted by renfrew

Looks excellent! Who was the National Champ, and what did they make?

I don't remember the name of the cook-off champion. But it was an older gent from Texas, and he had made Jalapeno Oyster Stew. Of the main course contestants that I photographed, the Pecan encrusted oysters took first place.

They have updated their website to include the Shucking champions:
http://www.usoysterfest.com/winners.html

WOW! We too went to a festival yesterday, the Cedar Key Seafood festival. It's been better. I had the mullet dinner, but when I asked if I could get fish only, no sides, my head was politely snapped off with a "YOU STILL HAVE TO PAY $7!!" Hell, I didn't want a discount just fish! We had steamed clams at $5 per dozen which wasn't too bad. That was about it for seafood, seriously. OH! OH! There was a fried shrimp sandwich. They had burgers, dogs, corn on the cob that was picked too early, no heart of palm salad for the hubby to which he got pretty bent out of shape. Not near as much art as last year. It was a beautiful day for an outing though. I bought oysters from a roadside truck as were we going home, made a fire and ate em' up!

Oysters are my favorite and here in East Tennessee, it is very difficult to get good ones. I would have truly enjoyed that type of environment and thanks Debbie for the pics. I am afraid that after a dozen raw and a dozen fried, I would have been looking for a place to rest.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

What a great festival! Thanks for the pictures, Debbie. I hope the Chesapeake Bay's oyster bounty is continuing to come back. They're some of the best tasting in the world, in my opinion.

Frank
Powhatan, VA.

quote:

Originally posted by fcbaldwin

What a great festival! Thanks for the pictures, Debbie. I hope the Chesapeake Bay's oyster bounty is continuing to come back. They're some of the best tasting in the world, in my opinion.

Frank
Powhatan, VA.

Yes, they are quite delicious! All oysters served were MD harvested oysters. Aquaculture is beginning to take off, but it is still not anywhere near historical harvests. Apparently, the biggest problem for oyster aquaculturists is.....our beloved blue crab. Apparently they get caught in the aquaculture frames and happily stay put for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!!!

Both MD and VA have been experimenting with an introduced Asian oyster, but I am not sure how that has been coming along. Anybody else have an update on the introduction of non-native species to the bay?

Woah meowzart! Those are some pretty tasty pictures! We're lucky in Alaska to also have very, very delicious oysters that come out of the cold, pristine waters of Kachemak Bay and Prince William Sound.

The scariest oyster shucker I ever saw was my boss at Yankee Lobster. He was helping me close up the store at the end of the day and a couple (regular customers) walked in. Would we shuck some oysters for them? Sure. I said I would do it but the boss said, no problem, he'd take care of it. I continued to wrap up things in the kitchen and saw him struggling to open those oysters.......bare handed. I smelled a recipe for disaster but kept my mouth shut. Next thing I know, the customer's faces are ashen and boss is nowhere to be found......then I saw the trail of blood!