oyster crackers
Small, round, unsweetened, oyster-shaped crackers, traditionally floated on soup or chowder or tossed with seasoning and baked into a snack mix. Their plain, faintly salty flavor and sturdy shape are what let them survive being ladled into hot broth without dissolving.
Buying guidance
Choose an unopened, uncrushed bag -- oyster crackers are delicate, and a package that's been handled roughly often arrives half crumbs. If making a seasoned snack mix, check the crackers' own salt content before adding more; most are lightly salted to start.
Substitutions
- Saltine crackers, broken into smaller pieces -- similar plain flavor and crunch, less traditional shape.
- Any small, plain cracker -- close enough for topping a bowl of soup.
- Croutons -- bigger and more seasoned, better for salads than floating in broth, but usable in a pinch.
Tips & common mistakes
They're meant to be added at the table or right before serving, not simmered in the pot -- floated in hot liquid for more than a few minutes, they go soft and start to fall apart.
Storage
Being thin and delicate, they go stale and lose their crunch faster than sturdier crackers once opened -- reseal the bag tightly or move them to an airtight container, and keep them away from steam or humidity, which softens them within a day or two if left open.