This easy fried oysters recipe delivers a delightful crispy outside and a lot of flavor. Bonus – easy remoulade sauce you can whip up in minutes!
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Read on for relevant information and step-by-step pictures (2 mins)
About This Fried Oyster Recipe
Pan fried oysters are a delightful appetizer that can easily become a main course when served with a bit of coleslaw, a brightly flavored salad or, lets admit it – fries. Our recipe can be executed in two different ways – breaded fried oysters or battered fried oysters. We leave the choice to you.
Crispy, golden brown oysters pair with a variety of beer styles – especially West Coast IPAs and dry Irish stouts. Making some at home doesn’t require much effort, just a bit of organization.
The Ingredients You’ll Need for This Seafood Dish
- oysters
- cooking oil (peanut oil or vegetable oil work great)
- eggs
- beer (sub with soda water or milk)
- flour
- bread crumbs
- seasonings – salt and black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne (optional). You can also use paprika, creole seasoning, Old Bay, Cajun seasoning (all to taste).
Can You use already shucked oysters?
Absolutely. In fact pan frying oysters is a great way to eat store bought shucked oysters. If you live in a landlocked state like us frozen shucked oysters are much easier to find than live oysters in the shell.
Of course, fresh is best and if you live by the water and getting fresh oysters is not an issue – we raise a glass to your fortunate circumstances.
Shucked oysters in their own juice.
Organize Your Workflow
You need to serve the pan fried oysters right away which is why it is helpful to prepare a few things in advance.
Have a serving platter ready with several lemon wedges, dips, sauces, coleslaw (if serving). Perhaps a few side plates.
Also prepare a paper towel lined plate to drain the fried oysters for a minute before you transfer them to the serving platter.
How to Fry Oysters in a Pan
If using shucked oysters it is a good idea to quickly rinse and drain them. If using fresh oysters you just shucked, disregard.
Next you need to bread or batter them and then fry them.
As much as we love beer batters, when it comes to pan frying oysters we prefer to bread them. Chris usually makes us extra crispy Panko fried oysters and the contrast between the crunchy outside and the soft inside is just perfect.
- To start whisk together eggs, flavorful beer (our favorite way, but you can substitute with buttermilk or milk), salt and pepper, garlic and onion powder and cayenne pepper (optional).
- Mix flour and Panko bread crumbs (the southern style is to use a cornmeal mixture). Shake off excess.
- Heat oil in pan (about 1/2 inch deep) over medium-high heat.
- Dredge oysters in egg wash, coat in flour mixture and slide into the hot oil.
- Fry for about a minute per side (turn them over carefully using a spoon, tongs can be tricky here) then drain over paper towels lined plate.
At what temperature do you fry oysters?
When pan frying oysters make use of your food thermometer and maintain a cooking oil temperature of 370-375 F.
The frying time depends on the size of the oysters and how many you have in the pan at the same time.
Work in small batches to avoid lowering the oil temperature.
Up to five-six at a time if your oysters are smaller or two at a time if they are bigger like the ones you see in the pictures.
Smaller oysters will cook much faster so watch out for that golden brown color to appear and remove from the pan using a slotted spoon.
What Sauces, Dips and Sides go well with fried oysters?
The quintessential way to present fried oysters is with a small bowl of remoulade sauce. There are many delicious variations (spicy, smokey, more acidic), but this time around Chris made a classic remoulade – mayo, vinegar, mustard, shallots, capers, chopped pickles, fresh chives.
You can also make a quick lemon garlic aioli or serve with any kind of spicy dipping sauce, your favorite hot sauce or classic cocktail sauce. Lemon juice is a must and we like to include fresh garnishes like green onions and add crunch by way of a quick mayonnaise-less coleslaw.
If you want to turn your fried oysters into more of a meal than an appetizer you can always assemble a po boy sandwich or eat them with a salad (Caesar is our favorite choice).
Tips on Fried Oysters
How to make battered oysters?
If you would rather batter your oysters than bread them all you need to do is prepare a batter, carefully pat dry the oysters, coat each oyster in batter and then fry.
TIP: Make sure the oil in your frying pan is a tad deeper, about 1 inch. Same temperature of 370-375 F. For a quick batter right before frying mix 1 cup of flour, 1 tbsp corn starch, 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pepper and 12 oz of cold beer (or soda water). Mix and immediately coat oysters and fry until golden brown.
How to make firmer oysters?
Sometimes people have issues with the softer texture of the oysters underneath the crunchy casing or sometimes the oysters are simply too large to firm up entirely during pan frying.
TIP: If you’d like a bit firmer oysters simply blanch them before starting the breading process. To do that bring water to boil (no need to salt it for obvious reasons) and blanch the oysters for about 2 minutes. Remove, let cool off a bit and follow the recipe.
With Chris being from Florida every time we visit we love sitting by the water in a casual setting, sipping on cold session beers and munching on fried oysters, crab etc. It is about as idyllic as sitting under the shade of a walnut tree in a Bavarian beer garden. So Pan Fried Oysters are joining the other tasty members of our Beer Garden Menu.
Fried Oysters Recipe with Remoulade Sauce
Pan fried oysters encased in a crunchy, golden brown mantle. Best enjoyed right away. Serve with lemon wedges and remoulade.
Ingredients
- 1-1 1/2 pint shucked oysters
- cooking oil, as needed, must be about 1/2 inch deep in pan
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup beer (citrusy IPAs or malt forward lagers and ales work equally well), (sub with milk for non-alcoholic option)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp each pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne (optional)
- 2 cups flour
- 1 cup Panko bread crumbs
- 1 lemon, sliced in wedges for garnish
Instructions
- Heat the oil to 370-375 F.
- In the meantime beat eggs, beer, salt, pepper, garlic, onion powders and cayenne if using.
- Mix the flour and Panko bread crumbs in another bowl.
- Dip the oysters in the egg wash mixture and thoroughly roll them in the breading. Arrange them onto a pan sheet.
- Fry for about 1-2 minutes per side depending on the oysters size until they turn golden brown. Do not overcrowd the pan.
- Briefly drain on paper towels and serve while still hot. Garnish with lemon wedges.
Notes
HOW TO MAKE REMOULADE SAUCE
In a bowl mIx together:
- 1/4 cup finely chopped shallot (or red onion)
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp whole grain mustard
- 2 tbsp finely chopped pickles (optional, but very tasty)
- 1 tbsp capers
- 1-2 tbsp white vinegar (start with one, add to taste; you can also use lemon juice or a combination)
- 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh chives or parsley or tarragon or a mix
- 1 tsp kosher salt (or to taste)
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 4 ServingsAmount Per Serving: Calories: 785Saturated Fat: 6.8gCholesterol: 402mgSodium: 789mgFiber: 2.1gSugar: 1.9gProtein: 49.7g
Vickie says
This looks delicious – using your recipe this weekend!
I can’t seem to find the recipe for your remoulade sauce.
Milena Perrine says
Vickie, thank you! Our version of remoulade is added in under the notes for the recipe card. You can also flavor it (to taste) with paprika, cayenne, prepared horseradish – all compatible flavors.
Liz says
Brother in law is used to frying oysters up with prepackaged mixture. We didn’t have any mix but thank you to Google and this recipe. It was a perfect hit!!
Henry says
Love fried oysters, tried a lot of recipes. Hands down the best I have ever made. It is now my go to recipe.
Milena Perrine says
Thank you so much, Henry, for taking the time to share. May you enjoy fried oysters for many more years to come:)
Jan says
I’m very land locked in Missouri. May I use canned whole oysters to fry?
Milena Perrine says
Absolutely, just pat dry gently before you begin the steps of the recipe.
Kelsie | the itsy-bitsy kitchen says
Like Dawn, when I’ve eaten oysters in the past I just couldn’t get on board. But looking at that perfectly crispy coating makes me want to run out and buy some oysters so I can try your recipe. I’ve never met anything I didn’t like with a gorgeous crisp coat of bread crumbs 🙂
Dawn - Girl Heart Food says
I tried oysters before and could not get into them. Love all sorts of seafood, but these not so much. That was years ago. Looking at these perfectly fried and crispy oysters, I want to give ’em another go. With a squirt of lemon and cold beer, I’m pretty sure I would change my mind 😉
CraftBeering says
Yes, oysters are definitely not everyone’s cup of tea! But once you get hooked all kinds of pleasures open up! We used to fly out to Seattle for oysters eating weekends…We are huge fans of the West coast varieties and these were some of our best experiences as newly married:)