Information about the extraction of oysters takes us away from time immemorial - in Neolithic settlements of a man who settled along the coasts of the oceans, shells of these mollusks are found in huge quantities. In Korea, South Primorye, and also in Japan, the length of ancient oyster heaps sometimes reaches hundreds of meters. In this article, we will consider the most common types of oysters, a list of which is given below.
Varieties
In nature, almost 50 species of these mollusks are known, the bulk of which can be eaten. For living, they most often choose tropical seas, but there are several species living in the waters of the cold northern seas.
Oysters can be divided into 2 groups depending on the shape of their shell: flat, deep and round. Flat, which are most appreciated by lovers of this seafood, live on the numerous shallows of the shores of the Mediterranean and Atlantic. This species is represented by 4 varieties, each of which has its own unique taste, its own price category, and also external features.
Maren Oleron
These types of oysters in France have the same name with their habitat - the Maren Oleron district, Charente province. They are the most prominent representatives of the mollusks of this group and have long been recognized by gourmets from around the planet due to their surprisingly gentle taste. The main characteristics are the presence of shells of almost round shape, as well as the greenish color of meat.
Gravette
These oysters grow in the Arcachon basin. They are quite meaty, despite their small size, and also unsalted in taste. Their carapace has a greenish-yellow hue.
Belon
We continue to consider the types of oysters. The list will be incomplete, not to mention Belon. They also got their name due to their habitat - a small coastal village located in the north of the Brittany province. To date, almost all the oysters that are grown in Brittany have received this name. Their distinguishing feature is a grayish-white color, as well as the presence of a sharp iodine smell.
Types of Oysters: Fin de Claire
Their name is given in honor of the cages where they are grown. The duration of this process is one month, while up to twenty individuals can be located on one meter at once. Special varieties of algae are used as their additional nutrition.
Special
These types of oysters differ from the previous variety in meatiness and higher density. Such qualities are obtained due to two-month aging of mollusks in special cages. 10 animals live on one meter of the area.
Croesus
These types of oysters are bred off the coast of Ireland and Normandy. Cold Atlantic waters have an interesting effect on the development of these mollusks, contributing to an increase in the density and fat content of meat.
Blue shell
These oysters are bred and grown in an interesting way. They are transplanted into special pools filled with blue clay in the 2nd and 3rd year of life. This is done to enrich them with an additional amount of trace elements (phosphorus, iron, copper, zinc) and vitamins.
Brittany
These types of oysters are grown on the southern coast of the province of the same name in France. Their unique feature is a rich pungent taste with a slight metallic taste.
Oysters White Pearls
Considering the types of oysters for pearls, it is worth highlighting this. They have an elegant shell shape in which this mineral grows. Seafood connoisseurs also recognize them immediately by the pungent smell of iodine and a pleasant sweetish taste.
Hasan
These oysters have a longitudinally wavy structure. The color scheme of shells - from snow-white to dark olive or burgundy. This mollusk is the most labor-intensive in prey - it is caught on underwater rocks, in great depths, in places with fast currents. It has a unique ratio of total weight to body weight. We can say that this is the most beautiful oyster from all existing.
Oyster Aniva
This oyster can be called fine nature with a strong character. She lives on the island of Sakhalin, near the village of Solovyovka, in the Aniva Bay, due to which it got its name. This mollusk is so popular that neighboring Japanese periodically visit Sakhalin specially behind it. A deep, elongated, narrow shell shape resembling a boat, an interesting salty taste and a soft greenish color distinguish it from the rest of the oysters.
Porcelain oyster
Considering the various types of oysters, it is worth highlighting this. It is very exotic because it lives on bioherms (underwater hills), the lower part of which is buried 10 meters deep in the silt. Interestingly, when studying the leaflets of the lower layers of extinct oysters, they were about 8000 years old. This period coincides with global warming, as well as rising sea levels, and this as a result led to an increase in the growth of hills.
This oyster has the most unusual look. To be more precise, it is shapeless, so sometimes you won’t understand what it is. The weight of the mollusk reaches 1.5 kg. With an average weight of 600 grams, it reaches 25 cm in length. Airy light oyster has very tender meat, and also has a sweet taste and an unusually fresh smell. This gives her the right to be the standard of oysters.
Japanese
Queen of the Busse Lagoon on Sakhalin Island. The giant oyster lives at a depth of 7 m, sometimes forming continuous settlements (oyster banks). The body of the mollusk is enclosed in a shell of an oval-wedge-shaped or irregularly-rounded shape, white. The left (lower) shell wing - with them the oysters grow together - a more convex shape. Both wings have radial wide folds and are also covered with concentric thin plates.
The main habitat of mollusks are warm subtropical and tropical seas. Although in temperate latitudes, in which the water temperature reaches 16 ° C in summer, oysters are able to breed and live.
The main danger for these mollusks is represented by starfish, some representatives of gastropods, sponge-clones.