are oysters safe in september
The idea of not eating oysters during months without an 'R' comes from the fact that the summer months are the prime breeding time for red tides, or large blooms of algae that grow along the coast and have the tendency to spread toxins that can be absorbed by shellfish, including oysters. Should You Really Not Eat Oysters in Months Without an 'R'? You've probably heard the food-world adage about how we shouldn’t consume oysters during months that don’t contain the letter 'R.' But does 'R' really stand for risk? However, molluscan shellfish (oysters, clams, mussels) are often consumed raw or partially cooked. Illnesses sometimes occur from eating shellfish, and although most illnesses are typically not life threatening, instances of serious illnesses and deaths have been reported (see Introduction to Vibrio vulnificus). Several fallacies about raw oysters include: 1  Raw oysters are safe to eat if you avoid them during months that don't have an R (May, June, July, August). 2  Eating raw oysters with hot sauce and/or alcoholic beverages will kill harmful bacteria. 3  Unsafe oysters can be detected by smell and/or appearance. Why Summer is in Question. Eating oysters or any other shellfish and mollusks that have hit a warm, but not cooked temperature can be toxic to your system. A warm oyster may be more likely to carry a foodborne pathogen. Summer months are also the time that oysters spawn. A spawning oyster doesn't make for good eating because its plump, briny body becomes thin and milky. Oysters are weaker when they spawn and are more susceptible to disease. The water in which the oysters reside are also less optimal during the summer months. High-risk patients should not eat raw oysters, regardless of their market form (live in shell, on the half-shell, or shucked). Raw oysters are safe to eat if you avoid them during months that don't have an R (May, June, July, August). Eating raw oysters with hot sauce and/or alcoholic beverages will kill harmful bacteria. Unsafe oysters can be detected by smell and/or appearance. State and federal officials say that Mississippi oysters are safe to eat. (CNN) -- Federal and state experts have declared Mississippi oysters safe to eat after the oil spill that gushed for months in the Gulf of Mexico. The state's oyster season is closed during the summer and reopens in September or October. [Photo: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt] Raw, fried, baked, stuffed or made into a sandwich, oysters are always satisfying. The bivalves are available all year, but they're best eaten in the colder months from September to April. While a long-standing myth says oysters should not be eaten during months that do not contain an R (May through August), oysters generally are thin in the summer because they devote their energy to reproducing. Wednesday 7 September 2011 15.00 EDT First published on Wednesday 7 September 2011 15.00 EDT. The R in September means one thing to gourmands: the start of the native oyster season. But oysters are no longer the preserve of tweedy gentlemen and flashy champagne bars. British chefs such as Mark Hix, Richard Corrigan and Ed Baines are now making them a star feature on their menus, listing oysters from different regions. Oyster eating is a year-round affair thanks to modern day food preservation. It's been codified since 1599 that you should only eat oysters in months that have an r in their name. This leaves out the months of May through August -- some of the hottest months of the year in oyster-rich regions.
Yes, Raw oysters are safe to eat in september.