Still new to saltwater so I'm not sure what these are. They don't look like the mussels we harvested in the Midwest. The look like the clamp we dug on Ocracoke Island either.
Are they oysters?
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Yes, those are oysters. Yummy yummy oysters. ;D
Good to know. The water dropped 18" and went to clean up debris along the shore. The oysters were everywhere.
Hard to tell the size of those, but they are what would be called "singles", maybe even "single selects" if say 4" across or larger. Singles as opposed to "clusters", which will be many smaller oysters all stuck together.
The best oysters are the ones living closest to the ocean, where the salinity and the fresh waters give them a great flavor, like tasting the ocean itself.
If you want to give those a try to see if they are any good, get your grill going, put down some aluminum foil or a pizza tin/baking sheet, place the oysters on top of that and cover them in a wet towel. When the towel starts steaming, the oysters should be done.
Some folks like to cook them just to opening and those are known as 'wet', some cook them longer so they dry out a bit - it's personal. :)
Melt some butter for dipping, and/or a bottle of hot sauce, for additional flavoring.
There is an oyster farm just north of town. Our sailing club's annual spring oyster roast is in 2 weeks and I volunteered to help prepare them. I've eaten them, but never cooked them before.
The ones in the picture were about 3", but there were larger ones farther out on the mud.