My breath coming a little short, I bent my head to my oyster stew. Jamie appeared not to have noticed, he added a large pat of butter to his bowl, shaking his head as he did so.
“Sawney’s what they say in the Highlands,” he informed me. “and in the Isles, too. Sandy’s more what ye’d hear in the Lowlands – or from an ignorant Sassenach.” He lifted one eyebrow at me, smiling, and raised a spoonful of the rich, fragrant stew to his mouth.
VOYAGER, OUTLANDER BOOK SERIES, DIANA GABALDON
“You don’t suppose there’s too much pepper in this stew?” I asked, swallowing another spoonful. “Are you sure, Jamie?”
“Aye,” he said. “Aye, I’m sure,” he amended, “and no, the pepper’s fine. I like a wee bit of pepper.”
VOYAGER, OUTLANDER BOOK SERIES, DIANA GABALDON
It’s all great and all with the start of the new year but it’s so painful getting your life back into gear after the holidays. I’m struggling hard! What are your tips to start the new year?
To kick things off on the blog for the new year, I’ve got this amazing oyster stew recipe inspired by, Voyager, the third book from the Outlander book series by Diana Gabaldon. As simple and amazing this recipe is, it took so long to really figure out what an oyster stew would be like in 18th century America.
With the help of a few book and websites like, British Food in America, Mid-Atlantic Cooking, and Recipes @ LMC, I think I’ve got a good idea of what it could have been like. This recipe does not have a lot of ingredients so make sure to use freshly shucked oysters. If the oysters you’re using is particularly large, I would cut it down to make it easier to eat.
To serve, you can give your guests some butter to add,,or some additional black pepper like how Jaime enjoys it. To make even more decadent, maybe substitute the milk for cream. I imagine that would be amazing! Please enjoy.
Outlander: Oyster Stew
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1 pint freshly shucked oysters with liquor
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 tbsp all purpose flour
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a saucepan over medium heat, add butter and heat just until melted. Add the shallots and cook for 3 minutes just until soft and translucent.
- Add the oysters and all of the liquor. Cook under medium low heat until it comes to a sight simmer. Add the milk and heat until warm. Take 2 tbsp of the warm milk and mix it into the flour. Add the mixture to the pot and bring to a simmer.
- You'll know the oysters are cooked once the edges begin to curl. Season with salt and pepper and serve.
