This vinaigrette is more like a chunky sauce, and is also great as a topping for bread toasts. Don’t refrigerate the vinaigrette—the fat from the bacon turns from liquid to solid.

　　

Ingredients

makes 24 pieces, makes 2 1/2 cups vinaigrette

　　2 tomatoes

　　4 bacon slices

　　2 leeks, white part only, trimmed, washed, and minced

　　2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

　　Pinch of sugar

　　2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

　　Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

　　24 oysters

　　

Step 1

Bring a small pot of lightly salted water to a boil. With a sharp paring knife, cut out the tough cores from each tomato. Make a small X in the bottom of each to make peeling easier. Drop the tomatoes in the boiling water and count to 20. Remove the tomatoes with a slotted spoon and run them under cool water. Peel off the skins with the paring knife. Cut the tomatoes in half and gently squeeze out the seeds. Dice the tomatoes and set aside.

　　

Step 2

Fry the bacon in a skillet over medium-low heat until crisp. Remove to a paper towel to drain. Sauté the leeks in the bacon fat until tender. Put the leeks into a bowl and fold in the tomatoes, vinegar, sugar, and parsley; season with salt and pepper. Shuck the oysters according to the sidebar on page 220. Spoon some of the vinaigrette onto each oyster, crumble the bacon on top, and serve.

　　Reprinted with permission from Tyler Florence's Real Kitchen by Tyler Florence. © 2003 Clarkson Potter