Geoje on Table

Half-Shell Gratin

There are some seasonal ingredients that you should eat when the time is right.
When the weather gets cold, Geojedo is one of the places to go to
because plump oysters in season are so good and so nutritious that you should eat some before the winter is over.

📝Text by. Editorial Team  /  🎨Illustrated . Jeong-ok Kim

The Elegance of a Winter Table

  • People say ingredients in season are as good as medicine. Oysters are a case in point. Oysters contain lots of healthy nutrients including zinc, iron, and calcium. Zinc strengthens your immune system, and iron can help prevent anemia. Rich in calcium, oysters are great for children and adolescents in their growing phase and for elderly people whose bone density is likely to decrease. All these health benefits aside, oysters that are most plump and juicy in winter simply taste great.
    The classic way of enjoying oysters is to put on plastic gloves, grab a shell from a large hot pot of steamed oysters, crack it open, and put the meat in your mouth. You can cook oysters with a new, less-known recipe. Half-shell gratin is a popular dish in New York. Finely chopped vegetables are dumped into a pot of fresh cream, which is then cooked down. Oysters are added and baked in an oven. It is topped with grated cheese and chopped parsley or dried parsley and served. Even people who are sensitive to the unique aroma of fresh oysters can certainly enjoy the dish as the possibly unpleasant aroma is completely disguised by the perfect, tasty combination of oysters soaked in fresh cream and rich flavor of cheese. It is even better when served with a glass of wine.

    • Ingredients
      1kg oysters (shells), 40g spinach, 1/2 onion, 1T minced garlic, 2T olive oil, 30ml fresh cream, bread crumbs, Parmigiano-Reggiano, dried parsley, 1/2 lemon
    • Directions
      1. Finely chop the spinach and onion.
      2. Put some olive oil in a pan and stir-fry the minced garlic until golden brown. Add the chopped spinach and onion.
      3. When the onion becomes translucent, add in fresh cream and cook it down.
      4. Place the oysters in a pan and pour a generous amount of the spinach cream sauce over the oysters.
      5. Add in bread crumbs and grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.
      6. Preheat the oven to 200℃ and bake it for 20 minutes.
      7. Remove the pan from the oven and top with dried parsley and squeeze the lemon over it right before serving.
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