Rick Stein: Oysters Kilpatrick

The following is a quote from my Australian friend Richard Glover:

‘I used to be in the “how dare they” camp about cooked oyster dishes, until I went with Matt Parris and Julian to Mollymook Golf Club, and Matt insisted on ordering oysters Kilpatrick. Julian and I demurred, but then thought, “Why not?” Oh, my goodness – how delicious they are! The bacon is crispy, even a little charred, and the Worcestershire sauce forms a sort of flavour bomb that somehow doesn’t entirely drown out the fresh oyster below.’

See below for tips on opening oysters and because this is a cooked dish, I suggest you cut the meat from the shells.

To open oysters, hold an oyster in one hand, well wrapped in a tea towel. Push the point of a knife into the oyster’s hinge. Work the knife and oyster backwards and forwards, applying a little pressure. The hinge will break open quite easily. Slide the knife under the shell and sever the ligament, also known as the adductor muscle, that joins the oyster to the shell. 

Extracted from Rick Stein's Christmas - Recipes, Memories & Stories for the Festive Season, BBC Books, £28. Photography James Murphy. Buy here

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