CHICAGO - Oysters and Chicago are two words that don't sit comfortably together. After all, the oyster is all about the ocean, conjuring up visions of rocky coastlines, dark seas and a picturesque lighthouse or two. And Chicago? Lighthouses, yes, but on a lake. And the nearest ocean is nearly a thousand miles away.

Still, the oyster should be linked to Chicago, just as the hot dog, Italian beef and deep-dish pizza are, because oysters have played a vibrant role in Windy City life since almost the very beginning.

"Oysters appeared at the Lake House Hotel's menu in 1835 when Chicago was a muddy village," said Bruce Kraig, president of the Culinary Historians of Chicago. "They were brought in from the East Coast, Long Island most likely, by boat, along the Erie Canal and through the Great Lakes. The oysters were kept live, packed in sawdust, through the whole journey."

Chicagoans liked what they tasted. Seven oyster "depots" and four oyster "saloons" opened by 1857, Kraig said. The oyster, he added, became a staple of city restaurants and upper-class home cooking until around World War I. Pollution, Prohibition (oysters were big in saloons), overharvesting and health fears all took a toll on the oyster's popularity, but it began rebounding in the 1980s and hasn't stopped since.

Exact numbers are hard to come by, but John Novak of The Plitt Co., a seafood wholesaler in Chicago, said it "would be a fair statement to say (oyster consumption) is growing." The reason? More seafood-themed restaurants opening in the Chicago area, he said.

Dirk Fucik at Dirk's Fish & Gourmet Shop estimates his oyster sales, both in the shell and pre-shucked, are up 25 to 30 percent over the last few years.

"Oysters are on a lot of menus," he said. "People seem interested in eating the different varieties."

At Blue Water Grill, executive chef Joel Dennis reports that "oyster sales are going through the roof. In 2007, we have sold close to 47,000 oysters with 55 percent of those coming from the East Coast and 45 percent from the West Coast.

"We're here in what they like to call the Heartland and it (the oyster) is a very coastal product, obviously," he said. "But we can get a great selection from the East and the West."

While oysters-on-the-half shell remains the classic and most popular presentation, local chefs are serving oysters fried, stewed, poached, grilled and smoked. They're rethinking ways to present the oyster to make it both timeless and ever new.

"We try and do as much as we can to make the customer want to order them without sacrificing the oyster itself," said Bernie Laskowski, executive chef of Park Grill. He uses apple, cucumber and melon-flavored ices and seasoned salts with oysters.

At Blue Water Grill, Dennis turns to Japan for inspiration, garnishing with soy sauce, sudachi (a small green citrus fruit) or red pepper-spice blends.

IN THE MIDDLE

Just as 19th-century restaurateurs used boats, stagecoaches and railroads to rush oysters westward, today's savvy Chicago chefs and oyster mongers take advantage of the latest shipping methods to haul in the finest, freshest oysters from around the world.

Once seen as a challenge, Chicago's Midwest location is now considered a blessing by many oyster fans.

Rowan Jacobsen, the Vermont-based author of "A Geography of Oysters," said that there has long been a "good-natured" war over which coast has better oysters, the East - including the Gulf of Mexico, or the West.

"Everyone is loyal to what they grew up with," he said. "Chicago, being in the middle, is an easy shot from the coasts. It's not prejudiced either way."

Certainly, you can find many restaurants and shops selling varieties from both sides of the continent. Fucik recently offered the following: two East Coast varieties (Malpeques from Canada's Prince Edward Island and Delaware Bay oysters from New Jersey); two West Coast varieties (Kumamoto from Totten Inlet, Wash., and Chefs Creek from British Columbia); and one bi-coastal (an Eastern oyster reared by growers in Washington's North Bay).

"You've got East Coast snobs and West Coast snobs, but we in Chicago get everything," Fucik said. "We're the melting pot of the nation."

What's fun about Chicago's oyster bounty is the fact that no matter which coast an oyster comes from it will taste distinctive.

Steve LaHaie, managing partner of Shaw's Crab House, likes to call it "mer-oir." The word, using mer, the French word for "sea," is a pun on "terroir," the term that denotes a sense of the place that gives a wine distinctiveness.

That's why there may be only five oyster species cultivated commercially in North America, but they are identified and sold under hundreds of names, most of them geographically based.

Looking west

Restaurateurs like Dennis and LaHaie say East Coast oysters still edge out their western cousins in sales here, but the West Coast oysters are coming on strong.

"They have a different taste profile: creamier, a bit sweeter, more vegetal on the finish," Dennis said.

The big West Coast star is the Kumamoto oyster.

"They're all the rage. They just keep happening," Jacobsen said. "They're so sweet and melony, even people who don't think they like oysters can be swayed by Kumamotos."

But Joan Reardon, the Lake Forest-based author of "Oysters: A Culinary Celebration," finds something "very predictable" about Kumamotos.

"I would prefer the East Coast oyster and the colder the water, the better," she said.

Why colder water?

"The oyster is firmer, it is brinier, there's saltiness and a minerality to it," she replied. "For me, the West Coast oysters, whether the Pacific oyster or the Kumamoto, have a sweeter taste and they are a little softer in texture. I like the firmer oyster."

No matter your taste, expect to find the oyster you like out there somewhere. Being able to offer a variety is to the restaurateur and oyster monger's advantage. LaHaie, for example, offers six varieties in Shaw's dining room and 12 at the oyster bar.

And the best time to eat oysters? Right now while the ocean waters are still cold.

---

WARM OYSTERS WITH CELERY ROOT AND SPINACH

Preparation time: 25 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Chef Charlie Socher of Cafe Matou prefers Belon or Malpeque oysters from the East Coast or Kumamoto or Quilcene oysters from the West Coast for this recipe.

12 oysters in shell

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 celery root, peeled, quartered, cut into thin strips

¼ teaspoon salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 package (8 ounces) baby spinach

½ cup whipping cream

1 stick (½ cup) butter, cut into tablespoons

Juice of 1 lemon

1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper

1. Open oysters. Strain their liquor (liquid with oyster) into a saucepan. Reserve oyster shell bottoms.

2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add the celery root. Cook, stirring, until tender, about 6 minutes. Season with 1/8 teaspoon of the salt and black pepper to taste. Add spinach; stir until wilted, about 1 minute. Remove from heat; keep warm.

3. Heat the reserved oyster liquid in the saucepan to a boil over medium heat; cook until mixture reduces to 3 tablespoons, about 5 minutes. Add cream; cook until the mixture reduces to about ¼ cup. Whisk butter into the cream mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time. Add the lemon juice, remaining 1/8 teaspoon of the salt, ground red pepper and black pepper to taste. Transfer half of the sauce to a bowl; set aside.

4. Place oysters in the sauce; cook over low heat until just warm, 45 seconds. Spoon oysters into their reserved bottom shells; top each with the celery root-spinach mixture. Spoon a little of the remaining sauce over each.

Nutrition information per serving: 372 calories, 90 percent of calories from fat, 38 g fat, 22 g saturated fat, 124 mg cholesterol, 5 g carbohydrates, 4 g protein, 538 mg sodium, 1 g fiber

------

OYSTER-STUFFED AVOCADOS

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Marinating time: 24 hours

Yield: 2 appetizer servings

Joan Reardon of Lake Forest adapted this recipe from the original published in her "Oysters: A Culinary Celebration." "Small and saline Kumamoto oysters are ideal," she wrote, "especially when served with a high-quality Alsace riesling."

6 green onions, white part only

½ cup sour cream

1/8 teaspoon sugar

Freshly ground pepper

12 oysters, shucked, drained

1 avocado

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 leaves Boston or Bibb lettuce

¼ red bell pepper, cut into thin strips

1. Heat a small saucepan of water to a boil over high heat; fill a bowl with ice water. Cook the onions in the boiling water 1 minute; transfer to the ice water to stop the cooking. Drain; cut into paper-thin slices. Transfer to a large bowl. Mix in the sour cream, sugar and pepper to taste. Stir in the oysters; cover. Refrigerate at least 24 hours.

2. Cut the avocado in half. Remove pit; peel. Brush the cut surfaces of the avocado with lemon juice; season with salt. Arrange each half on a lettuce leaf on a small plate; fill with marinated oysters. Garnish with red peppers.

Nutrition information per serving: 365 calories, 69 percent of calories from fat, 30 g fat, 11 g saturated fat, 70 mg cholesterol, 19 g carbohydrates, 11 g protein, 371 mg sodium, 7 g fiber

------

BLUE CHEESE OYSTERS

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 12 minutes

Yield: 4 appetizer servings

This recipe comes from Shelley Young of The Chopping Block Cooking School. She prefers to use Maytag blue cheese in this recipe. Panko are Japanese bread crumbs sold in Asian markets, specialty stores and some supermarkets.

8 oysters, shucked, on the half shell

1 clove garlic, chopped

½ cup crumbled blue cheese

¼ cup panko bread crumbs

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1 teaspoon fresh tarragon leaves, minced

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Arrange oysters in their shells on a baking sheet. Set aside. Mix the garlic, blue cheese, bread crumbs, butter and tarragon in a small bowl; top oysters with the mixture. Bake until topping is bubbly and beginning to brown, about 12 minutes.

Nutrition information per serving: 157 calories, 66 percent of calories from fat, 12 g fat, 7 g saturated fat, 43 mg cholesterol, 7 g carbohydrates, 6 g protein, 354 mg sodium, 0 g fiber

---

HOW TO EAT A RAW OYSTER

There are surely people out there who, when confronted by a raw oyster, clench their eyes tightly shut and down it with one uncomprehending gulp.

Sensualists, however, delight in every aspect of oyster service, from opening to presentation to that final satisfactory slurp. Serve the opened oysters posed plumply in their deeper bottom shells bathed in their own juice.

The classic and easiest way to enjoy an oyster is to pick up the shell and down it. (Don't forget to give it some chew on the way.) If someone else opened the oyster for you, make sure it is completely severed from the shell; you don't want to be standing there with an oyster dangling over your open mouth. (Happened to me just last month. Twice.) Give the oyster a discreet poke first to make sure it's mobile.

Small two- or three-tined oyster forks often are served with oysters. They're functional, but leave the liquor behind when you lift out the oyster. Use a tablespoon or a soup spoon instead to capture all the liquor. Or, pick up the now-empty shell and drain the liquor into your mouth.

As with all raw seafood, use common sense in eating raw oysters. Buy oysters sourced from clean, cold waters and keep the live oysters refrigerated until ready to serve. A spoiled oyster will almost always let you know by smell. People with compromised immune systems should avoid eating raw oysters due to the possibility of their contamination from a bacterium common in warm waters called Vibrio vulnificus.

------

FRESHNESS AND THE OYSTER

Living smack in the middle of the United States with one of the world's largest air-shipping centers at the edge of town, Chicagoans can indulge their taste for oysters from both the East and West Coasts.

Jet transport and online ordering has shrunk the time from dock to table so profoundly that some oyster lovers, like Lake Forest's Joan Reardon, often prefer to order directly from a Cape Cod-based company.

How can you tell the oysters are fresh, other than choosing a top-notch vendor? Check the shell.

"They've got to be shut tight," Reardon said. "If the shell is shut tight, the oyster is still living and the oyster's control of the abductor muscle makes the shell tight. If the shell is gaping, just forget it."

Executive chef Bernie Laskowski of Park Grill wants oysters stored flat and with a harvest tag denoting where they're from. Otherwise, ask the fishmonger where the oysters were harvested. Try to determine if the oyster company is practicing eco-friendly, renewable methods in growing and harvesting.

"The oyster should look juicy, moist and opaque and smell like cucumbers. Anything else, throw away," he said. "Remember oysters are filters of the sea."

While oysters are tastiest when freshest, the mollusk can endure refrigerated storage for up to a week. Reardon recommends lining a large plastic container with a layer of oysters and covering the shells with a damp paper towel. Make sure the oyster's deeper or cup shell is on the bottom. Repeat until the container is filled. Put one final layer of damp paper towel on top; leave the container uncovered.

------

HOW TO SHUCK AN OYSTER

Wondering how to open an oyster without stabbing yourself? Here's some expert advice.

Rowan Jacobsen, author of "A Geography of Oysters," recommends that newbies place a towel on the shucking counter or table. "It will protect the table, soak up juice, and give you a wide canvas to wipe your knife clean," he writes.

Then, fold a second kitchen towel until it's thick enough to stop the knife when it slips and comes toward you. And it will, Jacobsen promises.

Wrap the towel around the oyster with the hinge end exposed toward you. Press the oyster firmly to the table with your free hand; try to keep this hand behind the folded towel in case the knife slips. With the knife hand, begin working the tip of the knife into the hinge along the line where the shells meet.

"Novice shuckers' biggest mistake is forcing the knife in, which causes shattered shells, mangled meats and bleeding hands," Jacobsen writes. "If you choose your spot well and are patient, you need to exert surprisingly little force. Try a few spots, pressing slightly, until you feel or see the knife make a little progress."

Jacobsen presses the heel of his knife hand against the butt of the knife, providing "gradual but steady pressure." He wiggles the handle with his fingers to try and wedge the knife blade into the shell.

"You need to penetrate only a quarter-inch or so before you can pry the shells apart by fully rotating the knife blade," he writes.

Shelley Young, owner of The Chopping Block Cooking Schools, recommends that novices practice their shucking skills on Pacific oysters.

"They're easier to shuck," she said. "Place the tip of the shucker in the socket between the upper and lower shell. It appears almost as a hinge in a Pacific oyster, so these are good for teaching as people seem to easily find the correct spot to place the shucker. Just rock the shucker up and down and it should pop open."

Once you have the oyster shells pried apart, run the knife blade along the inside of the top lid to sever the muscle holding the shells together, said Joan Reardon, the Lake Forest author of "Oysters: A Culinary Celebration." Then, run the knife under the oyster along the bottom shell to free it.

If all else fails and you grow faint of heart, remember there's always cheating. Freeze the oyster until it starts to open (which means the oyster is dead but still edible.) Or nuke in the microwave for a few seconds to warm the oyster up so it relaxes its grip. Be careful not to start cooking it unless you're using the oyster in a hot dish.

------

HOW MANY OYSTERS?

Size matters when it comes to counting out oysters for serving. Here are some tips from Joan Reardon, the Lake Forest-based writer, found in "Chicago Cooks: 25 Years of Food History with Menus, Recipes, and Tips from Les Dames d'Escoffier Chicago" (Surrey, $30).

"Six raw oysters per person are usually served as a first course," Reardon writes. "Because of their small size, however, an appropriate serving of Kumamoto oysters would be 8 or 10. If the oysters are larger than 3 inches and they are baked or broiled with a rich sauce or dressing, 3 or 4 per person are usually recommended."

------

TOP 5 WAYS TO PREPARE OYSTERS

Allrecipes.com, the online recipe Web site, has outlined the top five ways people are preparing oysters based on search terms associated with oysters:

1. Fried

2. Oysters Rockefeller

3. Grilled/barbecued

4. Raw

5. Smoked

---

OYSTER SAUCES

Note: There is no nutritional information with these recipes.

A trio of mignonettes: In his book, "A Geography of Oysters," Rowan Jacobsen provides these recipes for mignonettes, tart sauces that can coat a raw oyster without burying the flavor.

ICED CHAMPAGNE MIGNONETTE

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Freezing time: 4 hours

Yield: 2 cups

A recipe from Elliott's in Seattle. "By transforming a mignonette into a granita by carefully freezing it, you get a sauce that obediently stays atop its oyster," Jacobsen noted. "The ice crystals serve as tiny flavor capsules, bursting in your mouth with lemony tartness."

2 shallots, minced

1 ½ cups Champagne or other sparkling wine

2/3 cup each: red-wine vinegar, rice-wine vinegar

1 ½ teaspoons grated lemon zest

1 teaspoon each: freshly ground black pepper, ground mixed peppercorns

1. Whisk all ingredients together in a medium bowl; transfer to a shallow, freezer-safe pan. Place pan in the freezer. 2. Freeze, mixing with a fork to break up ice crystals every 30 minutes, until mixture is completely frozen and mixture looks like shaved ice, about 4 hours. Cover until ready to serve.

------

TARRAGON VINEGAR MIGNONETTE

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Yield: 1 cup

To cut the vinegar's harshness and boost complexity, Jacobsen adds sauvignon blanc, Chablis or muscadet wine.

½ cup each: tarragon vinegar, dry white wine

1 shallot, minced

2 teaspoons freshly ground pepper

Mix all ingredients in a non-reactive bowl.

------

MEYER LEMON MIGNONETTE

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Yield: ½ cup

Juice and zest of 2 Meyer or regular lemons

1 shallot, minced

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Mix all ingredients in a non-reactive bowl.