Oysters: calories, BJU count, taste and cooking tips

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Today, many products that were previously considered rare and exotic can be bought in almost any large supermarket. These include the inhabitants of the warm seas of the Mediterranean - oysters. Shellfish are able to give an unforgettable taste experience and enrich the body with many useful substances. How to cook, eat and choose them, as well as the calorie content of oysters and all their benefits will be described in the article.

Product Description

Oysters are bivalves. They are often confused with mussels, but in fact there is a huge gap between them. Oysters can be eaten raw, but mussels cannot, besides, the former have an irregularly shaped asymmetrical shell, and can only be caught in the warm waters of certain seas.

Calorie content of 1 oyster depends on the origin of the product and its size. Those individuals that are served raw usually do not exceed 12 cm in size. Larger mollusks are cooked by heat treatment.

Chemical composition

Ponutritional value and the amount of various nutrients mollusks are superior to any kind of fish. They are the main source of fatty acids, vitamins and minerals. The calorie content of oysters per 100 grams is approximately 60-80 Kcal, depending on growing conditions, time of harvest and age. At the same time, proteins occupy more than 50% of the mass of the product, carbohydrates 31%, and fats account for only 12%, most of which are unsaturated fatty acids.

The product contains vitamins B, A, C, D, calcium, magnesium, zinc, manganese, phosphorus, iodine, cob alt, chromium and fluorine. All of them make up the full daily norm of nutrients for the human body in one serving.

By the way, it is not difficult to determine the calorie content of 1 oyster. Most often, 100 g of the product contains just one serving served in a restaurant - it must contain 6 shells with clams.

Benefits of seafood

Vitamins in oysters have a beneficial effect on vision, accelerate wound healing, normalize metabolism, kidney, nervous and cardiovascular systems. The product also strengthens the protective functions of the body, the endocrine system, has an antioxidant effect, accelerates the treatment of skin diseases and cleanses the body of cholesterol.

Calcium and vitamin D strengthen bones and increase testosterone production. Zinc stimulates reproductive function, improves the condition of hair, skin and nails, helps to increase muscle mass and strengthens the immune system. Iodine normalizes the functioning of the thyroid gland and enriches the tissues with oxygen.

Other minerals in the composition promote the absorption of iron, increase the activity of leukocytes, and prevent the development of diabetes and cancer.

Regular consumption of shellfish improves overall he alth, performance and endurance, eliminates irritability. The low calorie content of oysters, combined with their benefits, helps girls get rid of cellulite and lose extra pounds.

Clam treatment

In medicine, many useful properties of the composition of the product have long been used by specialists as additional means in the treatment of various diseases. So, in the presence of cancerous tumors, oyster meat helps to stop the growth of harmful cells. A high concentration of zinc is considered an excellent prevention of anemia.

After eating shellfish, a person calms down, his sleep normalizes, the work of internal organs becomes full, vision improves. A large number of amino acids in the composition of oysters is useful not only for men's he alth, but also for women. Their use facilitates menopause and increases libido.

If you have an allergy to seafood, diseases of the intestines, stomach, spleen, during pregnancy and when feeding a child, it is not recommended to eat shellfish.

Use in cosmetology

The low calorie content of oysters and all their beneficial properties help to improve the appearance of each person even with normal consumption of the product. In addition, specialists use clam shell powder in thalassotherapy, and the proteins of the body itself - in various rejuvenating serums and masks.

Product harm

Severe allergic reactions of any kind can be caused by oysters in people with seafood sensitivities. In addition, before eating, you should make sure that the product is fresh. Oysters must be still alive. A half-open shell indicates that the mollusk is stale, and there is a high risk of food poisoning. Also, it must be complete. If there are even small chips, there is a chance that sharp solid particles will enter the digestive tract and damage its mucous membranes.

It is undesirable to use the product in the summer. As a rule, the catch is generally prohibited during this period, since the molluscs begin breeding. Oysters caught at this time will be fatter and less palatable.

Usage rules

Only fresh clams bring maximum benefit to the body. The cooked product loses some of its nutrients and changes its calorie content. Oysters in expensive restaurants are served on an ice pillow, open or still closed. The serving is 6 pieces, and depending on the number of guests, up to 24 shells can lie on one dish.

Clam meat should be sprinkled with lemon juice or a special sour sauce before eating. At the same time, his body must wrinkle, which indicates the freshness of the product.

You can eat oystersusing a special fork or just from the sink.

How to open the sink

If the restaurant serves still closed clams to the table or they need to be opened at home, then you will need to prepare a special oyster knife. The device has a short blade sharpened on both sides and a handle with protection for the hand. You can also use a regular knife. From how many calories in oysters or what their size, the opening technology does not change.

First, you need to rinse the sink from the remnants of sand and algae, then wrap it in a towel and leave only the gap between the doors open. The flat sash should be on top. The oyster in this position should be placed on the table and pressed firmly. The tip of the knife is inserted between the flaps and rotated slightly until a characteristic click.

After that, with the blade, you need to open the entire shell and cut through the muscle that holds the lid without injuring the body of the oyster. The knife for this is pressed against the upper sash from the inside. After that, the lid is carefully removed, the lower muscle is trimmed - and the product is ready for use. Frozen oysters are first boiled directly in the sink for a minute, and then opened and eaten.

Sauces

The calorie content of an oyster per 100 grams does not differ at all from the calorie content of a boiled product when consumed raw with sauce. The classic version is prepared as follows:

• a glass of shallots or red shallots finely chopped;
• crushed product is poured with 100 ml of wine vinegar;
• add 2 tbsp to the mixture. l. sherry vinegar, some white pepper and sugar.

Infuse the product in a cool place for 60-90 minutes before use.

The second option for a seafood supplement consists of:

• 100 ml lime juice;
• 100 ml wine vinegar;
• 2 tsp soy sauce;
• 50ml white wine.

Mixed products are infused for 30-40 minutes and optionally can be supplemented with various seasonings and spices.

Cooking Tips

Today, about 50 types of oysters are known, and not all of them are edible.

To protect your body from infection with various bacteria, many people prefer to eat shellfish only after heat treatment. The calories of an oyster may increase with the addition of additional foods, or remain the same if the clams are boiled in their own liquid.

To cook, the shells can be left unopened and thrown into boiling water for 60 seconds, or the bodies of the clams can be removed from them and boiled in oyster liquid with lemon juice (also just a minute).

You can cook the product in the microwave. To do this, their meat is left on the lower sink, sprinkled with sauce and cooked at medium power for 5 minutes. In a double boiler, oysters are brought to the desired state for 7-10 minutes, and in a slow cooker - only two.

You can also cook oysters in a frying pan by placing the bodies of clams in a liquid. Keep them on fire until the sauce is almost completely evaporated.

You can cook clams with vegetables in the oven, but this will increase the calorie content of one piece. Oysters for this should already be without shells. How to extract them is described above. For one onion, 2 bell peppers and 0.5 celery root, you will need a glass of clams. Vegetables are pre-fried in butter for a couple of minutes, after which they add a little garlic, spices to taste and half a glass of water. When the liquid boils, parsley is added, and the dish is stewed for 5-7 minutes. After that, oysters, grated cheese and chopped loaf are added to the pan. Everything is baked for exactly an hour until a crust forms at a temperature of 150 degrees.

Storage

At a temperature of 1-4 degrees, clams in the shell can be stored for up to a week. After their death, the product cannot be eaten, it should only be disposed of. Frozen clams (without shells) can be stored for up to four months, the product in an open jar - 2 days. To preserve the juiciness of the shells in the refrigerator, they are covered with a damp towel, sprinkled with ice and have only a flat lid up. The finished dish with oysters remains usable for three days.