The flesh of the small Ston oyster is of a fatty texture, soft and juicy, with a unique sweet-salty balanced taste. The flavor is therefore a combination of sweetness and fullness from the visceral part, along with a pleasant sea mineral taste dominated by a lingering iodine aroma on the palate. This is how the European Commission described the small Ston oyster \u2013 Ostrea edulis \u2013 in the Official Journal of the European Union and in all languages of the member states.<\/p>\n
The European Commission appreciates the fact that shellfish farming tradition in the Mali Ston Bay dates back to the times of the Roman Empire (Pliny the Elder - Historiae naturalis) and the Dubrovnik Republic (Decree of the Prince of Ston from 1641). The first available archival record of the method of collecting oysters from natural beds and semi-cultivation in the Mali Ston Bay dates back to 1573.<\/p>\n
By the 16th century, cultivation was already established and in the hands of representatives of the Dubrovnik Republic in Ston. In the Sutvid Bay near Dra\u010de, Captain Stijepo Bjelovu\u010di\u0107 founded the \"First Dalmatian Rational Oyster and Clam Farm\" in 1889 and significantly improved the oyster farming technology in that area.<\/p>\n
Kamenice se mogu pripremati na stotinu na\u010dina, ali stonski ugostitelji preporu\u010duju sljede\u0107e: svje\u017eu kamenica na ledu, krem juhu od kamenica, pe\u010denu, zape\u010denu ili pohanu kamenicu, kao i kamenice u \u0161est umaka; i to od motara, kopra, mente, bosioka, po\u0161i\u0161a ili dinga\u010da.Oysters can be prepared in a hundred ways, but local Ston hosts recommend the following: fresh oysters on ice, creamy oyster soup, roasted, gratin, or fried oysters, as well as oysters in six sauces; made from mussels, dill, mint, fennel, rosemary, or dinga\u010d wine. Oysters can be wrapped in bacon or prosciutto. Oyster soup is the queen of soups, refreshing and invigorating. There are also oysters with various types of pasta. However, when it comes to consuming this seafood delicacy, renowned Ston host and owner of Solana, Svetin Peji\u0107, emphasizes that processing diminishes the qualities of the Ston oyster. Therefore, according to Peji\u0107, it should be eaten raw, sprinkled with a few drops of lemon juice.<\/span><\/p>\n \"With oysters, connoisseurs serve champagne or light white wine, however, black Pelje\u0161ac wines of the Plavac Mali variety, Postup, Dinga\u010d, and especially Stagnum go very well with Ston oysters. Flavored wines of any kind (!) are not suitable, because in that case, the shell loses its sweetness, so in the end, you don't know what you've eaten,\" asserts Sveto Peji\u0107, revealing that oysters refresh, soothe, and inspire love, as confirmed by those who have consumed them.<\/p>\n