There’s something about baked oysters. They are buttery, creamy, a little sweet, salty, and these are enhanced with lemony garlic butter and topped with cheese!
A batch of baked oysters with parmesan cheese is one of my favorite ways to start off a party or special dinner with friends and family. They are delicious and so fun to eat. Each one has that briny liquid inside that you have to slurp, the meat is tender with a satisfying chew, and each ingredient in the lemony garlic butter works together harmoniously for one incredible appetizer.
Why You’ll Love Baked Oysters
Lovely presentation – Oysters always manage to look beautiful on a platter. As soon as you present them to your guests (or household), they’ll know the food is going to be impressive.
Fresh flavor – Oysters themselves have a super fresh flavor, and when combined with the brightness of lemon zest and sweet garlic, the flavor profile comes across as even fresher.
Easy recipe – The most challenging part of this recipe is shucking the oysters, which I’ll explain in more depth below. All you need is a towel, a shucking knife, and a willingness to put in a little effort.
Staple ingredients – Oysters aside, this easy baked oyster recipe calls for staple ingredients that are probably sitting in your kitchen right now.
Baked Oysters Ingredients Notes
These baked oyster are prepared Ostriche All’Italiana, meaning “Italian-Style Oysters,” reflecting the variety of Italian ingredients such as savory garlic, fresh herbs and the addition of Parmesan cheese.
- Oysters: To buy oysters, first find a reputable retailer. This can be either a grocery store or a local seafood market. Next, the oysters should be on ice in the store. Additionally, they should have a fresh ocean smell, not an unpleasant fishy odor, with the shells tightly closed, as open shells mean the oysters are dead and not safe to eat. Lastly, if you can pick them up before purchasing, do so to ensure that they feel heavy for their size, as this means they’re full of liquid.
- Garlic: Use fresh cloves for the best flavor.
- Butter: It is important to use unsalted butter to prevent baked oysters from being overly salty.
- Lemon zest: A little zest brightens up the flavor profile without adding acidity. If you wish to add a bit of tartness, finish the baked oysters with fresh lemon juice.
- Chili flakes: This recipe calls for a small amount, but the little heat it adds is super satisfying. Feel free to add more if you wish.
- Parmesan cheese: Cheese is optional (some don’t like cheese with seafood), but baked oysters with cheese works here because freshly grated Parmesan is a little different than cheeses like provolone and cheddar. Rather than creating a gooey, thick cheese layer on top, Parmesan melts into the top, so all it really adds is salty nuttiness instead of actual cheesiness.
Find the complete list of ingredients with amounts in the recipe card below.
How To Make Baked Oysters on the Half Shell
- Prepare the butter: Start by melting the butter, then add the garlic to the butter. Once the garlic is cooked and the foam subsides, remove the butter from the heat and stir in the remaining ingredients. Afterward, chill it briefly to solidify.
- Shuck the oysters: First and foremost, get a shucking knife. You might think a paring knife will do, but it will not, and using one greatly increases your risk of injury. Then, after you clean the oysters to remove sand:
- Grab a shucking knife and a dish towel.
- Place the dish towel on your countertop and place an oyster on the towel, flat side up.
- Fold the towel over half of the shell and place your non-dominant hand on top of the towel.
- Holding the shucking knife in your dominant hand, insert the top of the knife into the hinge of the oyster at the narrow end where the shells meet.
- Twist the knife back and forth until it slides into the hinge of the oyster. Once it is in the hinge, apply a little force to pop it.
- Being careful not to spill any of the liquid, run the knife under the oyster meat to release it from the bottom shell.
- Place the oyster onto a baking sheet and repeat the process with the others.
- Bake: Spoon some of the butter into each oyster, sprinkle with cheese, then pop them into a 400-degree oven to bake.
This video from America’s Test Kitchen is great if you want a visual instructional guide on how to shuck oysters.
Variations, Substitutions, and Cooking Tips
Try shallot butter – If you’re not a fan of garlic or don’t have any on hand, make shallot butter instead.
Add spice – You can do this by adding more chili flakes or mincing a small chili and adding it to the butter.
Experiment with cheeses – Romano would also work well, as would cheddar for those who don’t mind a thicker cheese layer on top.
Add breadcrumbs for crunch – Lightly season and sprinkle them on top of the oysters for added texture and crunch. Panko breadcrumbs are a nice pairing.
Finish with fresh lemon juice – In addition to the lemon zest, squeeze a bit over the top as soon as the baked oysters are done for acidity and tangy flavor.
Nestle in salt – To keep the oysters upright and avoid any juice spillage, fill a baking dish with sea salt, then nestle the shucked oysters in the bed of salt and bake. It also makes for a nice presentation.
Use the broiler – If you’d like the tops to have get a deeper golden brown, pop them in the broiler for a few minutes.
Easy Baked Oysters Recipe
There’s something about baked oysters. They are buttery, creamy, a little sweet, salty, and these are enhanced with lemony garlic butter and topped with cheese!
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon fresh lemon zest
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- 12 fresh oysters
- ¼ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
- Add the garlic to the butter once it’s melted, and reduce the heat to low.
- Wait for the foam to subside and the garlic to soften, then remove the butter from the heat.
- Stir in the lemon zest, salt, onion powder, red pepper flakes, and black pepper.
- Cool the butter and place it in the fridge for 15 minutes or until semi-solid. Stir it halfway through to ensure that the garlic and lemon zest are evenly distributed. Otherwise, they would sink to the bottom.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Meanwhile, carefully clean and shuck the oysters and place them on a baking sheet. Do not discard the liquid from the oysters.
- Evenly divide the butter between the oysters (spoon it on) and then sprinkle them with parmesan cheese.
- Place them into the oven to bake for 15-20 minutes.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 359Total Fat: 28gSaturated Fat: 16gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 141mgSodium: 408mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 0gSugar: 0gProtein: 17g
This data was provided and calculated by Nutritionix.
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