Oysters Dunbar
Tom Fitzmorris's New Orleans Food:
More Than 225 of the City's Best
Recipes to Cook at Home
© 2006 by Tom Fitzmorris (Stewart, Tabori & Chang)
"Next to the Holy Grail, the most difficult thing in the world to find
is a
recipe from a restaurant that is no longer in business. I'm asked for
them
at the rate of about one a week. I think I have been asked for this one
at
least a hundred times.
Corinne Dunbar's was a unique restaurant on St. Charles Avenue that
operated more like a private home. It had a fixed menu each day, and
you never knew what you'd be served. But you hoped it would be oysters
Dunbar, the restaurant's more famous dish.
It was an oyster-and-artichoke casserole, and although I have never been
able to obtain an authentic recipe from original sources, I've managed
to
piece together enough facts about it to come up with this one. At the
very
least, it seems close to what I remember from the one time I went to
Dunbar's in the early 1970s."
2 dozen fresh, shucked oysters, with their liquor
2 tablespoons salt, plus more to taste
Juice of 1 lemon
4 large artichokes
1 stick (8 tablespoons) plus 2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 cup finely chopped green onion
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees [F]. Drain the oysters, reserving the
liquor. Put the oyster liquor into a 1-cup measuring cup and add
enough water, if necessary, to make 1 cup liquid.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil with the 2 tablespoons of salt
and
half the lemon juice. Cook the artichokes until tender, then remove
from the water and set aside to cool.
3. Using a spoon, scrape the meat from the tough outer artichoke leaves
into a bowl and discard the leaves. Pull off the tender inner leaves and
reserve them whole. Remove the fuzzy "choke" from the artichoke
bottom, chop the bottom into medium dice, and reserve.
4. In a skillet, melt the stick of butter until it bubbles. Add the
flour and
cook, stirring often, to form a loose blond roux. Add the green onion
and cook until tender.
5. Add the reserved oyster liquor and mushrooms. Bring to a light boil,
reduce heat to a simmer, and cook until the mushrooms are tender
and the liquid is very thick. Add the oysters and cook for 2 minutes
more. Season to taste with Tabasco, salt and pepper.
6. Scatter the reserved artichoke leaves and meat evenly in a baking
dish, Pour the sauced oyster mixture over the artichokes and top
with bread crumbs. Dot the top with the remaining butter and bake
until the bread crumbs are browned and the rapid bubbling of the
liquid contents has begun to slow, 12 - 15 minutes. Allow to cool
for about 5 minutes.
Serves four to six.
Few are those who see with their own eyes and feel with their own
hearts.
*Angelique*
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