Make Ahead

SMOKED OYSTER PATE

by:
February 28, 2012
4.3
3 Ratings
  • Serves 4-6
Author Notes

Oyster Pate is a simple combination of ingredients. It is a recipe to keep in your back pocket. Memorize it. When you have guests over, it makes a delicious little something to serve with cocktails. —Waverly

Test Kitchen Notes

This smoked oyster spread comes with an important lesson: cream cheese, which is used to hold the pâté together, takes on a certain sweetness when mixed with the salty and savory other ingredients. You can easily whip this up at the last minute, but I encourage you to make it ahead, if possible. Somehow, we managed not to devour this all at once, so I was able to test it again, a few hours later. I liked it even more then. Specifically, the spice notes in the Worcestershire sauce became more noticeable, but without overwhelming the other flavors. —AntoniaJames

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Ingredients
  • 1 8 oz tub cream cheese
  • 3 tablespoons milk
  • 4 tablespoons green onions, finely chopped white and some green parts
  • 3 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 teaspoons Tabasco sauce, or to taste
  • 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
  • 1 4 oz can smoked oysters, drained and chopped
  • sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • 1 baguette, sliced into thin rounds
  • butter, to taste
Directions
  1. COMBINE: In a medium bowl, pour the cream cheese, milk, green onions, Worcestershire, Tabasco, garlic, and parsley. Stir to combine. If the mixture seems too thick, thin it with a teaspoon or two more milk. ( It should be thick but everything should be evenly blended.) Fold in the oysters. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  2. TOAST: Spread butter, to taste, on one side of each round of baguette. Place in a 400 degree oven until lightly toasted.
  3. SERVE: Place the oyster pate and the toast on a serving tray. Each guest can place a dollop of the pate onto a round of toast.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

Waverly used to be a lawyer and is now a mother 24/7. She has made a commitment to cooking for her family and absolutely loves it even when her family does not. She is teaching them, one meal at a time, to enjoy wholesome homemade food. She abhors processed food but recognizes its insidious nature and accepts the fact that her children will occasionally get some Skittles, Doritos, or the like. Her philosophy and hope is that if she teaches them well at home, they will prefer wholesome healthy foods when they go out into the world without her.

12 Reviews

Yvonne December 3, 2021
This is a truly delicious pantry appetizer! What I like the most about it is that the ingredients are chopped and not processed. Leaves some texture which is lovely on the bread rounds. Also added a tsp of lemon juice…
myob December 20, 2019
Does the "tub" of cream cheese refer to whipped cream cheese? Where I live, only whipped cream cheese is sold in tubs. Regular density cream cheese comes in bricks. Wondering if I should use an 8 oz brick of regular, or a tub of whipped.
myob December 20, 2019
Oops, I now see in the photo that the tub contains regular cream cheese.
Waverly March 18, 2012
Antonia, thank you for your review. Letting it "rest" a bit to let the flavors develop is good advice. I am especially fond of the flavors of Worcestershire sauce and bringing that out over time is a great idea. So glad you liked it.
chairmanhu March 11, 2012
I just made this and I'm about to bring it over to a friend's for a party. It's delicious! He doesn't like oysters, but I'm curious to see how he feels about it. Hehe =P
Waverly March 11, 2012
Please let me know!!
chairmanhu March 11, 2012
Success! He loved it. Another guest who doesn't generally like seafood loved it, too. This recipe is a keeper.
Waverly March 18, 2012
I am so happy that it was a success. Thanks for letting me know!
aargersi February 28, 2012
Love! Fast easy and delicious!!!!
Beautiful, M. February 28, 2012
Great party food!
Waverly February 28, 2012
Thanks, AJ!
AntoniaJames February 28, 2012
Love it! Absolutely love it. ;o)