New Orleans Barbecue Oysters are a twist on the city’s famous barbecue shrimp, featuring fresh oysters cooked in a spicy, buttery sauce. Despite the name, they are not prepared with traditional smoky BBQ sauce but rather a “New Orleans BBQ” style sauce—a decadent emulsion of butter, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, and plenty of black pepper or hot sauce.

Oysters are typically flash-fried or grilled on the half-shell until the edges curl. A rich “Barbecue” sauce made of melted butter, garlic, lemon juice, and a heavy dose of Crystal Hot Sauce or Creole seasonings. Often served as an appetizer with crusty French bread for dipping in the extra sauce, or occasionally served in a po-boy or topped with blue cheese crumbles.

The specific modern iteration of “BBQ Oysters” is largely credited to Red Fish Grill in the French Quarter.  The dish was developed as a creative adaptation of the classic New Orleans BBQ shrimp recipe (invented at Pascal’s Manale) applied to oysters.  It became a signature staple at the French Quarter Festival, where the combination of fried oysters tossed in spicy BBQ butter and served with blue cheese dressing became a local sensation.  This dish belongs to a wider family of New Orleans cooked oyster traditions, including the older Oysters Rockefeller (1889) and the more recent Drago’s Charbroiled Oysters (1993).

Servings: 12

INGREDIENTS

2 cups rock salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
1 clove garlic, minced
Juice of 1 lemon
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon hot sauce
2 teaspoons Creole seasoning
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup amber beer
12 fresh oysters on the half shell
Garnish: roughly chopped fresh rosemary

STEPS

1) Preheat oven to broil. Line a rimmed baking sheet with rock salt.

2) In a small saucepan, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium-high heat. Add garlic; cook until lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Add lemon juice, Worcestershire, hot sauce, Creole seasoning, pepper, and salt; cook for 2 minutes. Add beer; cook until reduced by half, 15 to 20 minutes. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter, stirring until combined.

3) Arrange oysters on prepared pan. Divide sauce among oysters. Bake until edges of oysters are curled, 5 to 10 minutes. Garnish with rosemary, if desired.

NOTES

Note: We used Loftin Oysters ceramic oyster shells, available at http://loftinoysters.com.