Do what feels good + oyster condiments

Valentine's Day special.

Hi!

As you must know by now, the Little Fish newsletter team is all about *special* meals, whether that’s a grilled cheese with American or lobster with drawn butter. We’ll take any excuse to make something special — because food is special: It’s the gift we can give ourselves.

Luckily, we have an extra special day coming up: Valentine’s Day! What if instead of Valentine’s Day being gross, obligatory, awful, and embarrassing, it was super fun and delightful? What if we focused on sexiness in non-romantic ways, namely: eating?

Oysters are as sexy shared with a partner as they are eaten alone as they are eaten with friends. Oysters are a whole sexy dance: the shucking, the gently scraping with the spoon, the CONDIMENTS. Salt water in waves! Make out with the ocean!

Oysters are fun because they’re a big fat sappy romantic cliche. You think you’re too good for a cliched Valentine’s Day? WRONG. Doing something cool and different is a luxury right now. Buy your friends heart-shaped junk, order two dozen dorky ass oysters, and make out or watch a movie or something. Everything is upside down right now. Let the cliches hold you tight, whisper it’s okay, and keep you safe and warm until the world is back up and running. 

There are so many options for oysters: cocktail sauce, mignonettes of all varieties, flavored ices, or even just a squeeze of lemon and a drip of hot sauce. This week, we’re walking you through two sauces to add to your oyster order if you’re looking for a food adventure. (Home shucking is the BEST — here’s a vid on how to do it! Any oyster knife will work, and here are a few to get started: 1, 2, 3.)

We hope that you join us in an oyster party next weekend — a celebration of love, for sure, but also just feeling good. WE LOVE YOU!

Apple and yuzu kosho mignonette 

This mignonette is super easy to prepare. Yuzu kosho is a spicy, citrusy condiment available at any Japanese grocery store and usually at any Asian market or specialty grocers (we always buy ours at either Nijiya location if you’re in LA — they carry this one!) It’s vinegary and sweet with a tiny spicy kick. 

Makes enough for 24 oysters 

Ingredients
1½ tablespoons shallot, minced
1 tablespoon unpeeled apple, minced (a crispy variety, like Pink Lady or Honeycrisp)
½ cup chardonnay vinegar
½ teaspoon yuzu kosho

Directions
Mince the shallot and apple (you want them really tiny so they fit on an oyster) and add to a bowl with vinegar and yuzu kosho. Serve!

Cocktail sauce

Cocktail sauce is often maligned for essentially just being ketchup on oysters — which can definitely be true. However, enough horseradish really combats the sweetness and brings the sauce to life. It’s tough to reinvent, but a fun spin we’ve been trying lately is using Keepwell Vinegar’s Black Walnut Bay Sauce in place of Worcestershire. We highly recommend it if you have the chance. Tabasco is the traditional choice here, but we like using Paul Prudhomme’s Magic Pepper Sauce, which includes habaneros that add more depth of flavor.

Makes enough for 24 oysters 

Ingredients
½ cup ketchup
½ tablespoon prepared horseradish
1½ teaspoons lemon juice
1½ teaspoons hot sauce
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Directions
Combine all ingredients and serve!

If you make a recipe from our newsletter, please tag us in pictures! You can find us on instagram at @littlefish_echopark. If you’re in LA, our next fish fry is Saturday, 2/6. We’re doing a lunch special and you can learn more on our Instagram.

Love,
Little Fish