Randy's Style Fresh Oyster Batter My parents, bless them, left me with one obsession: (Well, probably a few more...) On the morning of their 25th wedding anniversary, my brothers and I, looked for and found one of Dads fishing buddies down at the Government dock in Ladysmith. His name was Randy. He invited us into his humble home and continued doing what he was doing, which was cooking his lunch -- Fresh picked and shucked oysters, battered and deep fried. He only had enough for his own lunch so he didn't share them. My memory went back to that day many years later. I thought of oysters, "Just the way Randy made them." (If you were from the Gulf Islands you'll remember Randy) So I searched out some fresh oysters and tried to reproduce that beautiful smell...I didn't do it that time or for many years after that, but many many many years later, my nose told me that I finally got the recipe right and to this day I still enjoy both the scent, the thought of sitting in Randy's double ender smelling his lunch as I now taste those oysters cooked to perfection. "Simplicity always works better for fresh seafood" 10 - 15 medium sized shucked oysters 3/4 cups flour 2 level tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp sugar 1 egg 3/4 cups milk (approx, may need a little more) fresh ground pepper to taste ~1/3 cup olive oil Mix dry goods together. Create a pocket in the center of the dry goods Beat egg in center of dry goods with a fork but do not mix with dry goods. Slowly add milk to egg and stir them together. Incorporate the dry goods into the liquids. When the mix puffs up with the baking powder reaction gauge how dry it is...you may need to add a little more milk to the batter...it needs to be the consistency of thick pancake batter. Heat cast iron pan to a hot temp, add at least 1/4 inch oil then turn down to medium heat. Using a fork, batter the first round of oysters one at a time placing each one in pre-heated cast iron pan (at least 5 for a large cast iron pan.) Cook battered oysters until dark golden brown, about 3 minutes on each side. Place them in covered plate until all are done. Serve immediately with rice, salad and drink of choice...