ALL YEAR ROUND // Recipe for four

Wood-smoked oysters in pine oil

I love a smoked oyster, if the smoking is gentle and the oyster is fresh. I would serve this with dark rye bread and some soured cream.

SMOKED OYSTERS

12 unopened Sydney rock oysters

1 kg (2 lb 4 oz) peach timber or apple timber

Shuck all the oysters and put on a fine metal rack. To build a smoker, take a deep oven tray and build a small fire in it with the timber. Smother the fire by putting a flat tray on top of the deep tray, locking in all the smoke. Lift off the flat tray and put the wire rack with the oysters on the smothered fire. Replace the flat tray to lock in the smoke. Leave for 20 minutes and then remove the rack and oysters and build another small fire in your deep tray. Repeat the process twice more, until the oysters are smoked to your taste. Put the smoked oysters in the fridge to chill.

PINE OIL

400 ml (14 fl oz) vegetable oil

10 g (¼ oz) native pepper berries

200 g (7 oz) young, green pine needles, fresh from the tree

10 g (¼ oz) salt

Put the oil in a saucepan and add the native pepper, pine needles and salt. Cover the pan and place over low heat, keeping the oil at about 58°C (136°F) for 3 hours. Leave to cool, then pour the unstrained oil over the chilled smoked oysters.

Keep the oysters in the oil in the fridge for up to 1 week to allow them to take on the pine flavour before serving.