However long they "last", do not store them in water (neither salt nor fresh.) Oysters breathe and will draw all the oxygen from contained water and, basically, drown. As noted elsewhere here, put them in the fridge in a bowl, flat side up, and cover with a wet towel. That will keep them alive - and partially hibernating - for a longer time.
Get oysters that are 'pasteurized' in the pint containers. Those are raw and you can freeze them---in fact those go sale after Thanksgiving. Get a couple of pints and freeze them for New Years Eve.
I keep a big bag of cleaned oyster shells....just scrub and clean and bleach and if you have an ant hill...let the ants clean them a bit. Then clean and bleach and scrub and store them. But let them sun bleach a bit..and boil and scrub.....etc.
When done you have really nice reusable shells.
Use those for Oyster Rockefeller with the frozen, pasteurized and shucked oysters you bought for cheap a couple of days after Thanksgiving.
If they smell like the sea, they are probably fine. Not sure how well they were kept before you got them so that is the variable. If they sat out on an oyster bar and maybe sat on a counter for a while, I'd worry. If they were chilled and you snagged them from a walk-in, go for it.
they are shucked scored them at event when the were closing up raw bar, saturday night, they were going to ditch them, i finally have time to make chowda!
It's complicated! Properly handled, oysters can last longer than you'd think. But you sure don't want to eat a bad one. Here's some info from foodsafetynews.com
BUYING, STORAGE AND HANDLING
Live Oysters:
Remember to purchase seafood last and keep it cold during the trip home.
Live oysters should close tightly when tapped.
Discard any oysters that don’t close; this is an indication that the shellfish are dead.
They should have a mild odor, similar to the ocean.
Live oysters should be free of cracks
.
They will remain alive for up to seven days in the refrigerator when stored at a constant 41 degrees F in a container with the lid slightly open.
Drain excess liquid daily.
Shucked Oysters:
Remember to purchase seafood last and keep it cold during the trip home.
Oysters have a fresh odor when freshly shucked.
A clear, slightly milky or gray liquid should surround freshly shucked oysters.
Freshly shucked scallops should have very little liquid in the package
Refrigerate shellfish in a sealed container on ice or in the coldest part of the refrigerator.
Store shucked oysters up to five days.
The key here being, do not store them on or in ice, unless it's seawater ice--if they sink into freshwater, they'll die. But see my reply below, oysters, if properly stored will last longer than a day or two.
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I keep a big bag of cleaned oyster shells....just scrub and clean and bleach and if you have an ant hill...let the ants clean them a bit. Then clean and bleach and scrub and store them. But let them sun bleach a bit..and boil and scrub.....etc.
When done you have really nice reusable shells.
Use those for Oyster Rockefeller with the frozen, pasteurized and shucked oysters you bought for cheap a couple of days after Thanksgiving.
BUYING, STORAGE AND HANDLING
Live Oysters:
Remember to purchase seafood last and keep it cold during the trip home.
Live oysters should close tightly when tapped.
Discard any oysters that don’t close; this is an indication that the shellfish are dead.
They should have a mild odor, similar to the ocean.
Live oysters should be free of cracks
.
They will remain alive for up to seven days in the refrigerator when stored at a constant 41 degrees F in a container with the lid slightly open.
Drain excess liquid daily.
Shucked Oysters:
Remember to purchase seafood last and keep it cold during the trip home.
Oysters have a fresh odor when freshly shucked.
A clear, slightly milky or gray liquid should surround freshly shucked oysters.
Freshly shucked scallops should have very little liquid in the package
Refrigerate shellfish in a sealed container on ice or in the coldest part of the refrigerator.
Store shucked oysters up to five days.