Broil

Grilled (or Broiled) Oysters with a Sriracha Lime Butter

by:
January 26, 2010
4.4
5 Ratings
Photo by Rocky Luten
  • Serves At least 2 dozen oysters
Author Notes

Although I love my oysters raw, sometimes a grilled oyster is a nice change. The oysters are topped with a yummy spicy citrus butter that still allows the flavor of the oysters to come through. The butter is also great as a dipping sauce for crab legs and lobster. - melissav —melissav

Test Kitchen Notes

We wish more people would grill or broil oysters -- it's so easy and the quick blast of heat concentrates the oysters' brine and browns their tips without drying them out. Here you mash up butter with Sriracha, shallots, lime juice and cilantro and as the oysters cook -- we broiled them -- the flavorful butter melts and poaches the plump little bivalves. We think the butter would also be pretty great on clams, fish, shrimp, crab and even corn. One detail to keep in mind: the lime juice just will not mash into the butter, so just spoon the juices over the oysters after dabbing them with the butter. - A&M —The Editors

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Ingredients
  • 1/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1 teaspoon Sriracha
  • 2 teaspoons shallots, finely minced
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoons cilantro, minced
  • oysters on the half shell
Directions
  1. Mix the butter with the shallots, sriracha, lime, salt, and cilantro. Let set up in the fridge. It doesn't have to set up completely but it should be more solid than liquid
  2. Meanwhile, heat the grill (or broiler) until very hot.
  3. Toss each oyster with a dollop of butter.
  4. Grill (or broil) for 3-4 minutes.
  5. Enjoy! But be careful as the shells will be very hot.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

41 Reviews

AlwaysHungry December 24, 2022
Super tasty!! Great balance of acidity and just a tinge of heat. The broiler worked great!
T-bone T. October 2, 2020
Ya'll do know that there is a product called Key Lime Pepper from The Spice Hunter and others that mixes in with the butter very nicely. If you want it a little more spicy ad the lime juice at the table but I don't think you're going to need to.
skenny89 January 7, 2018
just a heads up, this website :
https://www.giovannisfishmarket.com/seafood-recipes/blue-point-oysters-grilled-or-broiled.aspx

is using your recipe and photo without crediting you.
cookingwithamy March 17, 2017
Toss each oyster? I'm guessing "top" is what the author meant.
AniaSweets March 2, 2017
These are soooooooo good. Am eating them now and wanna make them for everyone I know!
Meredith G. July 3, 2015
Made this last night with my 8 yr old. Delicious! My son who swore he hated oysters ate four and liked it. Simple..easy to make and doesn't overwhelm the oysters. I will make again.
Dixie June 21, 2015
Just made this recipe for about the 10th time. Delicious as always. Then, we took whole squid bodies, stuffed the butter inside, lightly oiled the outside and added a dash of pepper. Then we threw them on the grill for a hot minute. Whoa! This butter could be our new secret seafood weapon!
alygator July 28, 2014
This is one of those recipes I have been waiting so long to try. As I am on vacation in Wellfleet it seemed like the perfect time! Absolutely delicious! Wonderful recipe. We are already talking about how many oysters we need to buy for tomorrow. This is so easy and so delicious. I know the butter would be so delicious on grilled fish or pasta as well. A+!
Linda D. May 28, 2014
Check out bbqoystergrill.com for a great oyster grilling rack-makes it so easy to cook them on the grill. Your sauce was delicious.
bgebbqfanatic March 11, 2014
This was simple and delicious, just the way I like it. I saw gordon ramsay crumple some tinfoil on a baking sheet and then sink the half shelled oysters into the tinfoil to keep the juices from spilling out, worked a treat.
diannabryan February 12, 2014
This looks amazing and I'm definitely starting off the valetine's day menu with it. Does anyone have a go to lobster risotto recipe?
KarenNB January 26, 2014
Fantastic! Served this fireside with roasted oysters. Big hit!
Seven S. December 30, 2012
When I think of cooked oysters I think of oysters kilpatrick, which is classic but tried and tested. This recipe sounds really refreshing, and the spicy herbed butter with lime looks great for a whole lot of other meats and seafood!
marie.killian.5 December 26, 2012
Oh my these look so good! Als so good is Carothers' Olive Oil! Spanish, extra virgin olive oil at it's best. http://www.carothesoliveoil.com.
Cristina S. May 29, 2012
I just returned from my first trip to San Francisco, where we drove up the coast to Hog Island Oysters. The picture here looks just like the BBQ oysters we tried (and fell in love with) there. They make theirs with two kinds of chili, bourbon and butter. If I ever locate a grill this summer, I might try my hand at both!
greenstate February 15, 2012
I made these for a dinner party and people who profess not to like oysters, loved these. I would suggest using rock salt on the pan as a bed to stabilize the oysters before cooking. You don't want to risk losing any of the delicious, buttery juice because the oysters have tipped over.
pidgeon92 February 14, 2012
Today was my first time shucking an oyster, and it's a PITA. But it was well worth it. These were amazing! I crumpled up some aluminum foil and put it under each oyster on the cookie sheet, so they wouldn't tip over. Some were more done than others (some were much bigger), but they were all delicious.
chop C. February 3, 2012
Pardon my ignorance but I have never grilled an oysters. I was thinking you would grill them closed and then open them up. When I read the instructions then I was thinking you open it and cook it in the half shell? But then it says "toss" each oyster in a dollop of butter. When it says be careful the shells are hot I get lost. You open the shell, take out the oyster, toss it, then put it back in a half shell and grill?
Help.
melissav February 3, 2012
It should say "top" not toss. Sorry for the confusion. You open hte oysters, discard the top shell, put a dab of butter on each and then grill.
Jennifer T. January 8, 2012
Made 2 dozen Blue Points this was on Christmas eve. I added Lime zest in the butter to boost the citrus and squeezed fresh lime juice, too. Will certainly make again. My 8 year old ate 7!
jennvill November 20, 2011
Oh Melly I am so doing this for the big game this weekend! YUM!