2014 Gift Guide, Day Eleven

For a Walrus or a Carpenter

There is, for me, something magical about getting a box of oysters just hours out of the ocean, on the far side of the country.  Aroudn my house the holidays wouldn't seem quite right without a few dozen Pacific oysters.

I order mine from Taylor Shellfish Farms, a family-owned company that's been raising oysters (and geoducks and clams) in Puget Sound for more than a hundred years.  I'm fond of the Shikogus (above), but this time of year they also have Kumamotos and small Pacifics as well. 

Oysters keep well in the refrigerator for a good week.  Take them out of the bag, snuggle them into the refrigerator and cover them with a damp cloth: they'll live there very happily. 

You might also want to throw in an oyster knife: this one, also sold by Taylor, makes opening oysters seem extremely easy.  

As for those expensive metal oyster mitts, I no longer bother.  I've found a durable rubber oven mitt  like this one protects you better, is more comfortable and is only a fraction of the cost.