Uncharted: Shucking in Seattle with Brian Dumoulin 

Welcome to UNCHARTED. Developed in partnership with Filson, this is a series of profiles showcasing the natural beauty and unique experiences found in the Pacific Northwest while getting to know more about our Kraken players. You can find previous installments HERE.

Kraken defender Brian Dumoulin has been a foodie for most of his life. His passion for all things culinary first took hold when he was growing up and saw how much his mom loved cooking and preparing meals. Later on, while he was in college, he and a friend bonded over their shared enjoyment of cooking and venturing out to try new restaurants.  

Today, Dumoulin can be frequently found in the kitchen preparing meals for his family. So it was only fitting that we should connect him with two long-time fixtures of the Seattle food scene: oysters and Renee Erickson. 

Erickson, a local chef, author and restauranteur, invited us to spend an afternoon at one of her nine restaurants, Westward, located right on the north shore of Lake Union, and as we arrived out on the small dock, she was already at work.  

Laid out before us was a platter of oysters, towels, and some shucking knives and off to the side Erickson, who hails from Woodinville, was tending to an outdoor grill.

Dumoulin’s excitement was palpable. Experiences centered around food are some of his favorite activities. He and his wife have planned trips to Europe to experience different cities and their cuisines, and he greatly enjoys getting to try the culinary offerings the 31 other NHL cities have in store. The food scene in Seattle was also one of the many attractive things about joining a new organization. 

“I knew the Seattle food scene was going to be good,” Dumoulin said. “That was one thing I was really excited about. I feel like (Seattle) is such a unique place like there's no other place like it. We’ve really enjoyed our time here so far.” 

And so, tempted by the shellfish in front of us, we put ourselves in Chef Renee’s capable hands. 

The process begins by first “unlocking” the oyster. Erickson explains that we must find the end, carefully insert the shucking knife, and gently wiggle the knife from left to right (she emphasizes the importance of not shoving the knife into the oyster). 

As we wiggle the knife, Dumoulin and I are on alert for a “popping” sensation that occurs when the muscle responsible for opening and closing an oyster’s shell releases. The final step is to cut the meat free so it’s ready to eat.

Our work is slow going at first. “I didn’t say I was good at this, I said I’ve done it,” Dumoulin laughs. But there’s a very specific and intense satisfaction to successfully shucking an oyster. Once you get one open, you want to do it again (plus, there will be more to eat as a result!)

As we continue shucking, our education continues. This time, Erickson walks us through the proper way to eat our oysters. 

“It's important too, a lot of people think that when you eat an oyster, you just kind of slurp it down,” Erickson says. “To really taste them, you really have to chew them. There's a lot of flavor in this outer part of the oyster.”

As the platter slowly fills up with the fruits of our labor, we’re finally ready to eat.

After trying a few, our resident foodie weighs in.

“I’d describe them as plump, medium size, very salty,” Dumoulin says. “I'd say it's like medium to medium-high salt content. Not too briny. And there’s a bit of melon on the end, but just a touch.”

Erickson is impressed. She tells us how the melon flavor (as well as cucumber) is a very common characteristic of the Hama Hama estuaries where these tumbled oysters were grown. 

With that, we’re ready to begin another challenge. 

Tumbled oysters, like what we began working on, are grown in bags that hang on floats. Their shells are smoother and easier to open. Erickson says it’s time to try our hand at natural oysters that grow on their own, sometimes connecting into bundles and they are rough with ridges and frilly layers of shell protruding out. 

As we try our hand at shucking a more difficult oyster, we share stories, talk about favorite places, our favorite knives, and Dumo’s favorite piece of cooking equipment (“a good ol’ frying pan – it’s very versatile”). We also discuss Erickson’s path to becoming a James Beard award-winning chef.

We also laugh over Dumoulin’s stories of celebrating two Stanley Cup wins.

“I didn't really eat anything (out of the Cup), but we drank red wine out of it,” Dumoulin chuckles. “(The keepers of the Cup) weren't happy because they say that it can stain in the Cup.”

With our shucking work now done, it’s time to cook. We’re going to grill the oysters and top them either with a chimichurri or a butter mixed with fermented chilis – both made at Westward.

Chef Renee places them on top of a fire now fueled by wood and as they cook for about five minutes, she tells us we can make these in an oven too.

We chat more about the house Dumoulin and his wife are building back on the east coast, the upcoming birth of their second child and the fun fact that he was the first person in his family to play hockey.

“Me and my brother started playing,” Dumoulin says. “My parents said when I was a kid, I had a lot of energy. So, they had to get me into something, and sports was the only organized option. They put me out there and I liked it.”

As a misty drizzle rolls in (shout out to Filson for all of our rain gear!), the oysters come off the grill and we can’t wait to try them. Cooked through and with sauces, the flavor profile is completely different but still amazing. 

“There's no telling how many of these I could eat,” Dumoulin says happily.

And Erickson has one more surprise in store for us.

Right on cue, Westward’s Chef Mike brings out a two-tiered seafood tower stocked with oysters, salmon rillette, smoked scallops, bay shrimp, whitefish caviar, pickles, olives, and anchovies along with a variety of sauces. We devour it all.

With our cooking lesson done and our bellies full, as three people who love food are likely to do, we wrap up by discussing the next meal: “what’s for dinner?”

“I’ll probably just stop somewhere and pick something up,” Dumoulin laughs.

Spoken like a true chef.