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Oyster: A Gastronomic History (with Recipes)

by Drew Smith

Oysters across history, culture, and the table

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Awards & Recognition

  • Critical praise

    Praise from chef Raymond Blanc

    Renowned French chef Raymond Blanc praises the book as a brilliant crusade for the oyster and its cultural influ...

AlbakiReads Editorial

Oysters across history, culture, and the table

Organized by historical period and geographical location, Drew Smith’s book uses the oyster to connect food with art, literature, politics, and community life. Its scope ranges from the oyster’s place in legend and history to scientific facts, with illustrations accompanying the text. Fifty recipes bring the subject back to the kitchen, spanning traditional country dishes and contemporary restaurant examples. The combination makes this both a culinary history and a recipe collection, with the oyster serving as a thread through changing places, eras, and forms of cultural life.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Cooks interested in oyster recipes, from traditional dishes to contemporary restaurant examples.
  • Readers curious about the connections between food, history, art, literature, and politics.
  • Oyster enthusiasts who enjoy illustrated food histories and cultural anecdotes.

Themes

Oysters and culinary historyFood, art, and literatureCommunity and ecologyPolitics and cultureRecipes and food traditions

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

From an editor of the #1 bestselling The Good Food Guide, award-winning writer Drew Smith's Oyster: A Gastronomic History offers readers 50 delicious recipes plus a global view of the oyster, tracing its role in cooking, art, literature, and politics from the dawn of time to the present day.

Oysters have inspired chefs, painters, and writers alike, have sustained communities financially and ecologically, and have loomed large in legend and history.

Using the oyster as the central theme, Smith has organized the book around time periods and geographical locations, looking at the oyster's influence through colorful anecdotes, eye-opening scientific facts, and a wide array of visuals.

The book also includes 50 recipes--traditional country dishes and contemporary examples from some of the best restaurants in the world. "A brilliant crusade for the oyster that shows how food has shaped our history, art, literature, lawmaking, culture, and, of course, lovemaking and cuisine." --renowned French chef Raymond Blanc

"Drew Smith's Oyster satisfies on so many levels. It is rich in history, lore, recipes, fascinating images--in short, a delicious book from start to finish." --Sandy Ingber, Grand Central Oyster Bar

Includes color and black-and-white illustrations

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I highly recommend to for anyone looking for inner clarity

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Great service and fast service

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