This interesting story appeared the Caller Times.

Casterlines have storied seafood history in Fulton

FULTON - Driving up to Casterline’s Seafood, you will find the rolling shutter doors wide open, welcoming any curious visitor.

Piled several feet high are layers upon layers of recycled burlap coffee and chocolate bags, cleaned and ready to be stuffed with local oysters.

A forklift stands at the ready, waiting for the arrival of the oyster boats, and as usual I catch Bubba Casterline at the helm.

He sees me approach, turns off the engine and says with an earnest smile, “Hey girl, how’s it going today?” It’s good to see him.

Bubba’s family history is well-recorded and thought-provoking.

A third generation fisherman, his great-great-grandfather Jonas Casterline is credited with setting up roots on the Texas coast.

Born in Fayette, Seneca County, New York, on a Tuesday in the summer of 1810, Jonas grew up a long way from South Texas. In 1837, at 27 years old, he enlisted in the Army and fought under Zachary Taylor in Oklahoma, Florida and Texas.

Jonas was with Taylor during the annexation of the state of Texas and made his way down with his wife, Rebecca, to Rockport-Fulton, even living on St. Joseph’s Island as many settlers did during the late 1800s.

Jonas’ son Frank, the youngest of nine children, was 8 when his father died in 1869.

Frank went on to have a son, Frank Junior, who was Bubba’s grandfather. Bubba’s father, Leslie Eugene, or L.E. as he was known, was the first mayor of the town of Fulton and partners with his brother Cecil in the seafood business, which they started in the 1940s.

By the 1950s the Fulton harbor front was nearing its peak with numerous fish markets and boatyards for building commercial vessels.

On any given day, one could find rows of tables with 50 or more men and women (mostly women) heading shrimp from the day’s catch.

The Casterlines (Cecil, Frank and L.E.) had a warehouse where workers packed shrimp and oysters in barrels, paying wages in tokens that could be cashed or spent in town. Inside his office where the warehouse once stood, Bubba pulls out a drawer on an old desk loaded with fading family photos and cherished mementos. He holds out his hand and shows me a half dozen weathered coins, which upon closer inspection appear to be tokens.

“These were used by my family to pay oyster shuckers back then,” he says softly, the edges of his mouth lifting into a reminiscing grin. “It would have been good in our office for a few cents today. The boys could use them as money in Aransas County and were accepted by local businesses.”

Then he adds with a wink, “Also used quite a bit in games of chance.”

We go on to chat about the oyster business, how this season is predicted to do versus the drought-heavy couple of past years. Bubba pulls up the National Estuarine Research Reserve System’s local website, showing me the current salinity level readings for our waters.

“It’s interesting, you know? A lot of people don’t know about all of the hassle but also the benefit that goes into harvesting wild caught oysters. Our local customers complain that the farm-raised oysters are too bland or just not right.”

I nod in agreement and have noticed a difference when tasting products from oyster aquaculture.

“Shipping these local oysters can be a real headache,” he goes on to explain. “Some buyers refuse our oysters if they are too irregularly shaped or if their thin lips are cracked. They want them tidy and round.”

He pauses for a moment, and glances at the tokens still in his palm. In the brief silence, it occurs to me that while our oysters may not be attractive on the surface, they are essential relics filled with delicious character. And surely there is still value in that.

Karey Lynn Butterworth is chef and owner of Glow, a restaurant that celebrates local fish and shellfish on the Texas coast and author of the cookbook, “GLOW: Tastes from a Tiny Boathouse.” She lives in Rockport.

Creamy Stew 

with Copano 

Bay Oysters 

and Homemade 

Croutons

This decadent stew is easy to pull together on a weeknight with just a few ingredients. For special occasions you can jazz it up and pour into crispy puff pastry shells or throw in a few artichoke hearts and a splash of Pernod. Croutons are a tasty way to use our leftover baguettes at Glow and a worthy addition to your pantry staples.

Ingredients

2 pints (approximately 32 ounces) small to medium-sized raw shucked oysters with their liquor*

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot

1.5 cups milk

1.5 cups heavy whipping cream

2 teaspoons Sriracha hot sauce

Sea salt and cracked pepper to taste

Minced parsley, sliced chives, or sliced scallions for garnish

Unsalted butter

Homemade Croutons (see recipes)

* Quantity of oysters used may be adjusted according to your taste. I prefer my stew chock-full of them.

 

Directions

To make:

The most important factors in preparing this stew is to not boil the milk cream and not to cook the oysters too long. Oysters just need a few seconds cooking, otherwise they become tough and chewy.

1. Using a fine mesh strainer, drain the oysters, and reserve their liquor. Go ahead and strain the oyster liquor too, so that you remove any sand or grit.

2. In a large pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the shallots and sauté until soft. Add oysters and simmer very gently for about 2 to 4 minutes or until the edges of the oysters curl.

3. While the oysters are simmering, in a separate saucepan over low heat, slowly heat the milk, cream and oyster liquor (do not boil).

4. When the oysters are cooked, slowly add the hot cream mixture to the oysters, stirring gently. Season with Sriracha, salt and pepper.

5. Remove from heat. Serve in warm soup bowls and top each stew with parsley, chives  or green onion garnish and a generous pat of butter.

Makes four to six servings.

 

Homemade 

Croutons

Ingredients

15 slices bread or a large baguette

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

Sea salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove crusts from stale bread slices or if using baguette tear bread into pieces. 

2. Cut bread slices up into small cubes. Gently toss bread pieces with melted butter. Arrange cubes on an ungreased baking sheet. 

3. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden and browned, tossing midway through. Sprinkle with sea salt. 

4. Cool and store in a tightly covered container or plastic bag. Perfect on stews, soups, salads or crumbled onto macaroni and cheese.