Southern Oyster Dressing
Oyster dressing is a Southern-style side with briny Gulf oysters, savory mushrooms, and crusty bread.
Serves4
Prep25 minutes
Cook50 minutes
Oyster dressing is a en elegant holiday side dish that includes briny oysters in lieu of turkey. This tasty Southern take on holiday stuffing (or dressing), made with the holy trinity vegetables (green bell peppers, onion, and celery), savory mushrooms, crusty bread, and the star ingredient — succulent oysters. It’s a classic reserved for celebrations, especially along the coast where oysters are plentiful and fresh, but now you can add this to your holiday traditions no matter where you reside.
What Is Oyster Dressing?
Adding oysters to stuffing may seem extravagant today, but it wasn’t so at the height of the dish’s popularity back in the mid-19th-century. At that time, oysters were plentiful and affordable, while turkey was a luxury for many Americans. While oysters are a specialty ingredient today, the dish is still a tradition on many holiday tables, especially along the Southern coast.
Ingredients in Oyster Dressing
- Oysters: With all of the prep required for a holiday meal, go ahead and buy shucked oysters. Gulf oysters are ideal for this Southern dish, but any oysters from a reputable source will work.
- Onion, green bell pepper, celery: This “holy trinity” of vegetables forms the foundation of flavor for this stuffing.
- White button or cremini mushrooms: Adds substance and absorbs the flavors of the dressing, while adding its own savory note.
- Bread: Use a French baguette or skillet cornbread to give the dressing its structure. Make sure the bread is at least a day old, and staled or else you’ll end up with a soggy stuffing.
- Cajun seasoning: Make sure your jar of seasoning is salt-free, or make your own Cajun seasoning blend, making sure to omit the salt.
How Do You Make Oyster Dressing?
- Sauté aromatics. Cook celery, onion, and bell pepper with unsalted butter in a skillet until tender. Then add the seasonings (garlic, salt-free Cajun seasoning, kosher salt, and black pepper).
- Add oysters, and chicken stock. Bring oysters and chicken stock to a simmer.
- Fold in bread and herbs. Stir the bread and herbs into the oyster mixture until the bread absorbs most of the liquid and the mixture is combined.
- Bake. Bake covered until warm, then uncover and continue baking until the top of the dressing is crispy and browned.
What to Serve with Oyster Dressing?
Oyster Dressing Recipe
Oyster dressing is a Southern-style side with briny Gulf oysters, savory mushrooms, and crusty bread.
Prep time 25 minutes
Cook time 50 minutes
Serves 4
Nutritional Info
Ingredients
- 1/2
medium yellow onion
- 1/2
medium green bell pepper
- 3 medium stalks
celery
- 8 ounces
white button or cremini mushrooms
- 4 cloves
garlic
- 3
medium scallions
- 1/2 medium bunch
fresh parsley
- 5 ounces
crusty day-old bread, such as 1/2 French baguette
- 3 tablespoons
unsalted butter
- 1 pint
(16 ounces) shucked oysters, preferably Gulf
- 2 teaspoons
salt-free Cajun seasoning
- 1 cup
low-sodium chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons
kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon
freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 400º F.
Prepare the following, adding each to the same large bowl as you complete it: Dice 1/2 medium yellow onion, 1/2 medium green bell pepper, and 3 medium celery stalks (about 2 cups total). Dice 8 ounces white button or cremini mushrooms.
Mince 4 garlic cloves. Thinly slice 3 medium scallions. Finely chop the leaves from 1/2 medium bunch fresh parsley until you have 1/4 cup; reserve 1 tablespoon for garnish. Cut 5 ounces day-old crusty bread into 1-inch pieces (about 4 cups).
Pour off 1/2 cup of the oysters juices from 1 pint shucked oysters and pour the juice through a fine-mesh strainer into a small bowl. Drain the remaining juices from the oysters (about 1 1/2 cups drained).
Melt 3 tablespoons unsalted butter in a large cast iron or regular skillet over medium heat. Add the onion mixture and cook, stirring frequently, until tender and softened, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic, 2 teaspoons salt-free Cajun seasoning, 2 teaspoons kosher salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper. Stir to combine and cook for 2 minutes. Add the oysters, strained oyster juices, and 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth and stir to combine. Bring to a simmer.
Taste and season with more kosher salt as needed. Add the bread, scallions, and parsley. Stir and simmer until the bread is fully soaked in liquid, about 4 minutes. Keep the dressing in the cast iron skillet, or transfer to a greased baking dish if the skillet is not oven safe. Cover loosely with aluminum foil.
Bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake until golden-brown and crispy on top, about 15 minutes more. Let cool for 10 minutes. Garnish with the reserved parsley.
Recipe Notes
Salt-free Cajun seasoning substitute: If you can only find Cajun seasoning with salt, reduce the amount of kosher salt in the recipe to 1 teaspoon.
Make ahead: The dressing can be baked up to 1 day ahead. Let cool, cover, and refrigerate. Bake uncovered in a 400º F oven until warmed through, 10 to 15 minutes. Garnish with the parsley right before serving.
Storage: Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 2 days.