Embracing holiday flavours with a Weskus twist, I developed this recipe for Krone – one of Tulbagh’s premier wine estates and home to award-winning Method Cap Classique.
Plump oysters from Saldanha Bay on the Cape West Coast are delicious when cooked over the coals. Taking on a smoky flavour, the umami appeal of the molluscs is increased with a brushing of bokkom butter infused with coastal sage.
When cooking oysters over open flame, one can choose to shuck them or leave them intact – essentially poaching the oysters in their liquid. Once cooked, the lid of the shell will pop open. Here I’ve used shucked oysters, covering them with a large metal dish to smoke them before brushing with the bokkom butter. If bokkoms or coastal sage (Salvia aurea) are tricky to acquire, one can replace the grated bokkom in the recipe for 2 brown anchovy fillets and regular sage can replace the coastal sage.
Redolent of citrus and oyster shell minerality, Krone Borealis Vintage Cuvée Brut makes the ideal accompaniment to this dish – tempering the richness of the butter whilst not detracting from the subtle oceanic sapidity of the oysters.
Fire-roasted Oysters with Bokkom Butter
Prep time: 10 mins /Cook time: 5 mins /Serves: 2
You will need:
- 12 fresh Saldanha Bay oysters, shucked
- 1 large sprig of coastal sage, leaves finely chopped
- 30ml butter
- 5ml finely grated bokkom
Combine the sage, butter and bokkom in a fireproof saucepan. Place the saucepan over medium to hot coals and stir until the butter has melted. Arrange the oysters on a grid over the coals, making sure to balance them so the molluscs face upwards. Cover the oysters with a large metal or enamel dish and smoke them for 4 minutes. Remove the dish and brush each oyster with the bokkom butter. Replace the lid for a further 2-3 minutes before removing the oysters from the fire and plating them on a bed of rock salt.
Serve the oysters as a snack with chilled Krone Borealis Vintage Cuvée Brut.
