2014 may not have been the year that I opened up my own New Orleans food market stall, but I did perfect two of my own recipes in trying to do so: Oysters Rockafeller and Gumbo. And even though I’m not particularly a big oyster fan (I prefer mussels), I must confess this dish is absolutely divine.
I’ve tried this recipe a few times with cheese as it is tasty variation, but in the end I’ve stuck with the version below (without cheese) as it is more authentic and a better representation of the the New Orleans dish.
INGREDIENTS – Serves 4
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 small garlic minced
¼ cup bread crumbs, Panko preferred
1 shallot, chopped
1 cup fresh spinach (220 grams raw packet)
30 g celery
⅛ cup (20 ml) Pernod
salt (1/4 tsp)
dash red pepper sauce
1 ½ tsp chopped parsley
several shakes of Tabasco
¼ tsp freshly ground anise
1 dozen oysters, on the half shell
rock salt
lemon wedges, for garnish
1 tbsp olive oil
Melt butter in a pan. Sauté the garlic under low-medium heat for 2 minutes to infuse butter.
Place the bread crumbs and half the melted butter in a mixing bowl. Set aside.
With the remaining butter in the pan, add the shallots, spinach and celery. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the spinach wilts.
Deglaze the pan with Pernod.
Season with salt, Tabasco, ground anise and a dash of red pepper sauce.
Allow the mixture to cook for a few minutes, then blitz everything together in a food processor.
Finish off the bread crumbs by mixing in olive oil and parsley, season with salt and pepper.
Spoon 1 heaping teaspoon of the spinach mixture on each oyster followed by a spoonful of the bread crumb mixture. Sprinkle a baking pan amply with rock salt. Arrange the oysters in the salt to steady them. Bake in a preheated 220 degree oven for 10 to 15 minutes until golden. Serve with lemon wedges and red pepper sauce.