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BBQ’d "Louisiana Style" Oysters In A Cast Iron Pan

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My love affair with oysters started at Luke Restaurant in New Orleans about two weeks ago. Jake wanted to go there after his graduation and while we waited at the bar for our table an order of “Baked P&J Oysters” was delivered to the people sitting next to us. 

Just one whiff and I had to have some. Checking the menu I saw they were made with herbsaint and a persillade crust. I had no idea what that meant but we ordered a dozen. 

All I can say is WOW! They were unbelievable. So of course I had to find out what made them so good. Herbsaint is an anise-flavored liquor made by the Sazerac Co. in New Orleans–a relative of absinthe. Persillade is a sauce made with parsley, garlic, herbs, oil and vinegar. 

I was obsessed. I’m sure my friends were sick of hearing me talk about the oysters at Luke. But luckily for me, Susan had the perfect solution.

Look at the great birthday present she gave me! I wasted no time putting it to use. I was so anxious to start cooking I didn’t even think to buy the ingredients that they used at Luke. I used a Sur La Table recipe and they were delicious! 

INGREDIENTS FOR BBQ’d OYSTERS IN A CAST IRON PAN
  • 6-12 Oysters
  • 1 stick melted butter
  • 2-3 chopped garlic cloves
  • freshly chopped parsley
  • Parmesan cheese
  • lemon wedges
  • salt and pepper to taste

I went to Bear Flag Fish Co. on my way home and bought a half-dozen of the biggest, freshest oysters they had. I even got a lesson on how to shuck them!

Like I said, Susan is a great friend and didn’t want me to end up in the ER getting stitches as I was shucking oysters so she even got me the easy oyster opener!

It was way easier than I thought. Notice, I still covered my hand with a towel…just in case.

I removed the tops and put them in the cast iron oyster pan.

I topped them with melted butter and garlic. Then added Parmesan cheese.  

I added the fresh parsley and put them on a really hot grill–600 degrees. But next time I would cook them a little on the grill then add the butter, cheese and parsley.

I cooked them until they were lightly browned and pulling away for the shell. It was about 8-10 minutes, but they were really big. I think smaller ones would cook faster. 

I grilled a little lemon to squeeze on them and seasoned with salt and pepper.  Considering I had no idea what I was doing…or how to cook them–I was pleasantly surprised– they weren’t as good as Luke, but they were still really good. 

Next time I’ll make sure to have some good crusty French bread for dipping in the garlic-lemon-butter. 

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