Neptune: Bounty of the Sea

The greatness of a city emanates from its maritime bounty. A landlocked city knows not the moderate climate brought by the sea, nor does it require the spacial efficiency of the water-bound metropolis; it is free to sprawl and meander like a slowly spreading oil spill. It is the vigor of the sea, its constant lashings and lappings, that creates the urban culture necessary to drive its people towards worldly cosmopolitanism and its food towards excellence.

To celebrate the summer weather now blanketing DC, we paid a long-awaited visit to Maine Avenue Fish Market. DG and I thoroughly gorged ourselves last summer on a bounty of oysters on the half shell, steamed shrimp, crabs, and crayfish. This time, however, after a quick and prerequisite dozen oysters, my roommate and I made purchases for cooking rather than immediate consumption. To participate in a race to the bottom with the Japanese, we bought one pound of yellow-fin tuna. Following that, we turned to the crustaceans. One pound of scallops and a dozen oysters joined the mix. The piece(s)-de-resistance? 3 enormous and fully alive soft shell crabs (tis the season) and 4 of the biggest fresh-water shrimp to ever ply the azure seas. Seriously. These things were the size of lobster tails.

To prep this bounty, we armed ourselves with butter, parsley, and lemons. Grilled oysters were the first order of business, which meant nothing more than a hot charcoal fire, the clank of calcium-carbonate on grill grate, and the patience to see the shells gradually open. Concurrent to the oyster grilling, I prepared two pans indoors by melting a gang of butter. Into the bigger pan went the three still-alive crabs. Unlike the usual preparation, I did not dredge these puppies in flour. I instead opted to pan fry for about 5 minutes on each side. The end result, once topped with a hit of truffle oil, was sublime.

On a pan next to these moulting wonders were 20 or so sea scallops. These were lightly sautéed in butter. My preparation was a bit imprecise and, as a result, they did not caramelize to a golden brown and instead remained a milky white. Hence, no picture. They were still alright, however scallops require more attention than I had at the time.

Doing work on the grill, my roommate began plucking one oyster after another from the heat. In their place went this beautiful tuna, lightly coated in soy, pickled ginger, and garlic. That's whats up.

                                          

Finally, we threw the mega shrimp onto the heat and let them do their thing. I stuffed them with a bit of parsley and garlic which was basically unnecessary, the shrimp being incredibly sweet and the butter adding a salty richness to the party. Indonesia sure does know how to manufacture sea-protein. In the end, we gathered our bounty and presented it to Yahweh.

And an up close: grilled tomatoes and seared tuna on a bed of arugula, flanked by grilled oyster, sautéed scallop, and half of an ill soft shell crab. This was some serious effete gourmet shit.