Oyster stew is a stew made with oysters. it is popular in the united states and in the gambia. in new england cuisine, oyster stew is often associated with thanksgiving. in southern united states cuisine, oyster stew is often prepared on christmas eve.there have been a number of different explanations offered for oyster stew being traditionally consumed on christmas eve. bill neal suggests that before the acceptance of refrigerated food transport, sufficient cold weather for shipping was not guaranteed before december, and so "far from the coast, oysters became a symbol of the arrival of the winter holiday season, appearing in the markets by christmas eve and on tables that night as oyste...

Source: Wikipedia