12 Sexiest Shellfish Recipes For Valentine's Day

You know the fancy Valentine's dinner you're cooking has to involve shellfish somehow — it's tradition, it's sexy, it's the right thing to do. Rather than learn how to shuck oysters the day of (or as we like to call it, self-sabotage), allow us to make a few suggestions ahead of time. There are many fish in the sea, and we know how to cook the ones with shells in a particularly arousing manner. Just check out these recipes. One will speak to you. 

12 Sexiest Shellfish Recipes For Valentine's Day

Golden Mussel Chowder Recipe

An elegant shellfish chowder via the Middle East

A Middle Eastern take on a New England classic, Golden Mussel Chowder is a great first course for any special occasion dinner. Using ground turmeric in the spice blend as well as roasting saffron threads briefly and crushing them before adding them to the soup contribute to the dish's golden color and exotic flavor palette.

Continue reading »

Smoked Clams With Tequila Sauce Recipe

Spiked shellfish, now with fewer actual spikes!

The inspiration for these smoked clams came from the region in Mexico where La Paz is located, Baja California. Their popular regional dishes are not only coastal, but they are super-light and fresh for summer.

Continue reading »

Spicy Scallop Tartare In Cucumber Cups Recipe

Asian-style scallops in an edible mini-bowl

I've been putting off publishing my scallop tartare recipe for at least five years. It's so delicious and user-friendly that I've been hoarding it, mine all mine, but let that be a testiment to how much I love Food Republic. Run, little signature proprietary recipe, be free!

Continue reading »

Fried Wellfleet Oysters with Tartar Sauce

An oyster recipe worthy of Cape Cod

Wellfleet, MA, located on the hook of Cape Cod, is a town rich in history, summer vacationers and, yes, tasty mollusks like fat-bellied clams and plump, briny oysters. Get your hands on a few of these, and experience the true meaning of simple pleasures.

Continue reading »

Oysters With Calvados Recipe

Oysters and apples pair perfectly in this dish

While many prefer their oysters au naturel or very simply fried, there's nothing wrong with adding a little booze to the party and heating things up. The fruity flavor of Calvados, an apple brandy from France, is the perfect light enhancement.

Continue reading »

Spicy Rock Shrimp & Grits Recipe

Singapore-inspired shrimp and grits get hot

This spicy rock shrimp is served at Masak with locally produced stoneground polenta. The curry sauce is based on Singaporean prawn curry, and together, the whole thing is my take on shrimp and grits. One of my favorite lunchtime dishes at home is a sambal udang (shrimp), often served with sambal quail eggs.

Continue reading »

Scallops With Carrot Cream And Marjoram Recipe

Use marjoram to liven up a savory scallop dish

The author of Good Fish: Sustainable Seafood Recipes From The Pacific Coast shares her delicious-sounding scallops dish, which leans heavily on the under-appreciated marjoram. Check it out, after the jump.

Continue reading »

How to Make Lobster Steak

Surf 'n turf that's all surf, from Chef David Burke

This unique preparation is the brainchild of Chef David Burke, an American chef, restaurateur and cookbook author who's garnered awards and critical acclaim worldwide. Highly inventive, as is his signature, this dish tranforms the meat from a whole lobster into a juicy filet that retains lobster's texture and flavor.

Continue reading »

Spaghetti with Lobster, Chiles, and Mint

Lots of love, little cooking time

People like lobster in the summer, but it’s actually better during the winter, when colder water and harder shells mean more meat for your money. Like all peasant-style cooking, this dish ekes the most out of every expensive ingredient and will get you a lot of love for very little cooking time.

Continue reading »

Mussels "BLT" Recipe

Bacon-infused broth adds a twist to these mussels

Mussels have become one of the more versatile items in the chef's repertoire, a sort of base to throw all sorts of intriguing flavors against. For this Food Republic recipe, we've gone down a different path, using bacon and arugula to channel our old friend the BLT. Whatever the resemblance to an actual BLT, hold the mayo!

Continue reading »

Drunken Shrimp Recipe

Head-on drunken shrimp cooked up with sake

Why are these drunken shrimp cooked with the head on? Well in part so you can see their eyes get all wobbly from slurping up the sake that's used, along with honey, to give these shrimps some flavor. But it's also in keeping with the way shrimp is served in most of the world and it helps preserve the succulence of the shrimp during the cooking process.

Continue reading »

Simple Bouillabaisse Recipe

An easier French fish stew for a healthy dinner

During our last Test Kitchen at the W Austin's TRACE restaurant, I decided to try my hand at a simplified, milder and less overtly-fishy rendition of bouillabaisse. Rather than explore the six varieties of sea creature that traditionally distinguishes French bouillabaisse from mere shellfish stew, I stuck with two tried and true light and flavorful beasts: shrimp and mussels.

Continue reading »

More Galleries

Check Out These 8 Realistic-Looking Photos Of Food Chopped In Half

17 Burger Recipes For This Big Grilling Weekend

25 Killer Side Dishes For Memorial Day Weekend

11 Extreme Diets That Will Help You Lose Weight, Possibly Kill You

10 German Sausages to Know and Love

Our 15 Favorite Lobster Stories Ever