The Major Issue With TikTok's Poor Man's Oysters Rockefeller Recipes

Properly prepared, Oysters Rockefeller is an elegant start to a meal. But recently, a viral TikTok shared by Good Vibes Cooking of a recipe called Poor Man's Oysters Rockefeller caused concern. The person in the video drains the oil from two cans of smoked oysters and tops them with Cajun seasoning, approximately 4 tablespoons of butter, lemon, jarred garlic ("jarlic"), hot sauce, and parmesan. Then they cook the cans in an air fryer until the contents are bubbly. But before you go try this at home — you should know that canned food should never be cooked in a can.

Typically, beverages are canned in aluminum, and food is canned in steel. Tin is no longer used for food preservation, and so-called tin cans are now steel cans plated with 1 to 2% tin. When food cans are heated, chromium and nickel may leach into the food. While both are necessary for bodily functions and the amount leached is minimal to nil, these chemicals can accumulate in the body when consumed daily and lead to allergies or other health issues.

In addition, food and beverage cans may be lined with a food-safe epoxy resin, which contains bisphenol A (BPA) and has been shown to be harmful to fetuses, infants, and children. The FDA banned BPA-based resins from infant formula packaging, but it has not ruled on banning food-safe epoxy from other packaging. When a can is heated, the BPA-based epoxy lining can also seep into the canned food. To date, can manufacturers have mostly phased out BPA-resin lining, but unless it's labeled "BPA Free," you can't be sure.

There are certainly other uses for canned oysters, like oyster stew, but Oysters Rockefeller was never meant to be served out of a can. Named for oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller, Oysters Rockefeller was created by chef Jules Alciatore in 1899 at his fabled New Orleans restaurant, Antoine's. In the early 19th century, oysters were plentiful and cheap. They were mostly eaten by the working class, who would substitute oysters for expensive cuts of meat. By the turn of the 20th century, however, oysters were overfished, and their prices increased, so by 1899, they were considered a delicacy for the rich.  

To this day, no one, except the current chefs at Antoine's, knows Alciatore's original recipe.  He was going to make a dish with baked snails, but the particular French snails he wanted were in short supply. So he substituted the snails for the more accessible Louisiana Gulf oysters. He served the freshly shucked oysters on the half shell with a green sauce and bread crumbs, but the components of the dish's rich sauce and its exact proportions are one of the most closely held secrets in culinary history. 

Alciatore made employees swear on his deathbed that they would never reveal the recipe. Even ex-employees keep their lips sealed. There are many recipes that attempt to recreate the original Oysters Rockefeller. But it's safe to say that the TikTok Poor Man's version doesn't come close to the real thing.