Main Meals

Fire-and-ice oysters

4
Easy
20 minutes, plus 3–4 hours to freeze
15 minutes

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Ingredients

Method
    For the grenadilla granita

  • 4 T sugar
  • 4 T water
  • 2 cups chilled fresh grenadilla juice
  • ½ cup chilled champagne
  • For the chilli sambal

  • 4 Thai red chillies
  • 2 cloves of garlic, halved
  • 4 T sugar
  • 4 T water
  • ½ t salt
  • For the \\\\\\\\

  • 24 medium-sized wild Knysna oysters
  • 1 cup cup mixed herbs (coriander, mint, basil)
  • 6 spring onions, slivered
  • Coarse sea salt, for serving
  • Crushed ice, for serving
  • 2 limes, halved and grilled flesh-side down

To make the grenadilla granita: In a saucepan, bring the sugar and water to the boil, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Allow the syrup to cool, then combine with the grenadilla juice and the champagne.

Transfer the mixture to a shallow metal baking pan and freeze, stirring and crushing the icy lumps with a fork every hour until the mixture is firm but not frozen solid, about 3 to 4 hours.

Just before serving, scrape the granita with a fork to lighten the texture.

To make the chilli sambal: In a blender, blend all the ingredients until the onions are finely minced. Pour the mixture into a pan and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until reduced to about 125ml (½ cup), about 10 minutes.

To make the "fire" oysters: Spoon the sambal into a bowl and shuck 12 oysters, with their liquid, into the bowl. Stir to coat the oysters with the sambal and return them to their shells. Set aside. (Chill the other 12 oysters.)

Toss the mixed herbs and spring onions in the bowl with the remaining chilli sambal and oyster liquid. Heat the oysters under the grill until just warm and until the edges begin to curl slightly.

To serve: Make a bed of sea salt on each of four small platters and a bed of crushed ice another four. Place three grilled oysters on each sea-salt platter, top with a scoop of the herb and chilli mixture and garnish with half a grilled lime.

Arrange three chilled oysters on each of the four crushed-ice platters and spoon 15ml (1T) granita onto each oyster. Serve a platter of each – "fire" and "ice" oysters to each of your guests.

Geoffrey Murray

Recipe by: Geoffrey Murray

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