Regional U.S.
Bloody Mary Oysters
Sunday brunch's favorite cocktail, over a dozen oysters.
Prep15 min
Shuck15 min
Serves4
Everything a Bloody Mary brings to the table — tomato, horseradish, Tabasco, celery salt, lemon — also happens to be everything a raw oyster loves. Spoon the sauce over the shell, add a tiny celery leaf, and you have brunch and an appetizer in the same bite.
Ingredients
Set servings and the amounts update themselves. This is the only ingredient list on the page.
servings
Steps
- Stir the tomato juice, horseradish, Tabasco, lemon juice, Worcestershire, celery salt, and vodka (if using) together in a small bowl. Taste and add more Tabasco if you want it hotter — the sauce should be punchy, since each oyster only gets a spoonful.
- Shuck the oysters: nestle each one cup-side down in a folded kitchen towel, work an oyster knife into the hinge, and twist until it pops. Slide the knife along the top shell to sever it, then cut the bottom adductor muscle. Keep the liquor.
- Nestle the bottom shells into crushed ice so they sit level.
- Spoon about 1/2 teaspoon of Bloody Mary sauce over each oyster, top with a celery leaf, and serve immediately.
Tip: Make the sauce ahead and chill it — cold sauce on cold oysters is the whole point. The vodka is optional and mostly for flavor; leave it out and nobody will miss it.
Raw oysters — eat at your own risk: Raw oysters can carry Vibrio bacteria, which can cause serious illness — and a contaminated oyster looks, smells, and tastes no different from a safe one. What Vibrio is, from the CDC → Buy from a reputable fishmonger, keep oysters cold until you shuck them, and discard any that gape open and don't close when tapped. Anyone pregnant, immunocompromised, or with liver disease should skip raw oysters.
Gear for this recipe
Oyster shucking knifeAmazon →Cut-resistant oyster shucking gloveAmazon →Oyster serving trayAmazon →Tabasco original hot sauceAmazon →