Sohla El-Waylly's Broiler-Popped Oysters with Tomato Butter are the perfect party appetizer
The method she calls 'oyster shucking with training wheels on,' plus the recipe from her cookbook, Start Here
This party-perfect recipe comes to us from Sohla El-Waylly’s new cookbook, Start Here: Instructions for Becoming a Better Cook. Read on to learn how to prep oysters for a crowd using a broiler, making shucking so much simpler.
For more about her cookbook, check out this interview where we asked El-Waylly for her best advice on hosting a holiday dinner party.
Broiler-Popped Oysters with Tomato Butter
By Sohla El-Waylly
When Ham and I lived in a studio apartment, my dream was to one day have a big enough place to throw an oyster party. You know, when you get a bunch of oysters and people pop ’em themselves. Well, I finally got that apartment, and threw that party, and it sucked. We invited over a group of professional chefs (who should know their way around an oyster), but maybe the party pressure got to them, because most were too shy to crack in on their own. After that, we had broiled oyster parties. So much easier and with no risk of accidental stabbing. Under the high heat of the broiler, oysters give up their tight grip and easily open right up. You still go through the motions of shucking, but all you need is a butter knife, so think of this like oyster shucking with training wheels on. After opening them up, if any of the oysters smell foul, are filled with grit, or have a small crab inside them, do not eat and do discard.
Ingredients
- 18 fresh oysters in the shell
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 garlic cloves, finely grated
- 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley
- ¼ to ½ tsp chili flakes
- ½ tsp dried oregano
Preparation
Under cold running water and with a clean scrubby, scrub the oysters of any dirt, paying extra attention to the hinge.
Position an oven rack 6 inches below the broiler element and set the broiler to high.
In a medium bowl, with a stiff silicone spatula, mix together the butter, tomato paste, garlic, parsley, chili flakes, and oregano until evenly combined.
Place the oysters on a sheet pan in one layer, flat-side up. (If they are wobbling a lot, place them on a bed of salt or crinkled up foil.)
Set under the broiler and cook until they’ve opened slightly, 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from the oven. Working with one oyster at a time on a cutting board, use a butter knife to slide into the hinge and turn to pop the oyster open. Wipe the blade clean, then run it along the top shell, scraping the oyster free. Scooch the butter knife under the bottom of the oyster to detach it from the shell but leave it in the shell (this makes them easier to eat).
Place a scant teaspoon of the butter mixture onto each oyster and return them to the sheet pan and back under the broiler. Cook until the butter is melted and the tops of the oysters are golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes.
Makes 18 oysters
From Start Here: Instructions for Becoming a Better Cook © 2023 by Sohla El-Waylly. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
