It’s that time of year again! The holiday season is approaching us quickly as it does every year. Whether you’re excited about presents, food (as I am), or spending quality family time, one thing stays the same, traditions. We all know that the holidays will look a little different this year due to Covid, but hopefully you and your family are able to still hold true to some of your traditions or put a new spin on them.
I moved to Ohio back in May from South Florida, and have spent all my holidays down there. We, of course, have our own traditions but one thing I started to hear about (for the first time) was the tradition of having Oyster Dressing for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Now, I’m a huge fan of oysters, however, when I heard Oyster Dressing, it had me quite baffled. What is that? Who thought of doing such a thing? Is it really that good? Well to my dismay, it’s excellent and very popular for the holidays.
Working at Foremost Seafood, also gave me the opportunity to talk to our customers about their holiday traditions and again, Oyster Dressing kept coming up. Luckily we do provide shucked oysters here for your holiday needs. Before we dive into the recipe, let’s talk about oysters.
All About Oysters
As Jonathan Swift once wrote, “He was a bold man that first ate an oyster.” And boy was he right. With its hard, rough shell, the oyster produces a meat that can vary in color from beige to pale gray and can have a texture from tender to firm. The oyster is definitely an acquired taste and I have noticed that you either love it or hate it. The taste, just like the texture and color, can change from salty to bland.
The best season to get oysters is during the fall and winter, which makes it great for the holiday season! Another popular dish for oysters is Oysters Rockefeller, reportedly named for John D. Rockefeller because it’s so rich.
Foremost Seafood Oyster Options
At Foremost Seafood, we carry a couple of different options for your oyster needs. You can either get oysters in the shell for $10.00 dozen or $5.00 for half a dozen (prices subject to change). Or if you’d like to skip the hassle of shucking the oysters, we have shucked oysters available for $36.00 a quart, $18.00 for a pint, $9.00 for half a pint, or we have options for a gallon of oysters (prices subject to change). Our oysters come from the Chesapeake Bay Area.
Oyster Dressing Recipe
Oyster Dressing is a dish that is known to be carried down from generation to generation. The recipe that I am going to provide to you is known as the New Orleans style. There is no one way to make the dressing, so please feel free to add or take away any item that you may feel.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: About 1 ½ Hours
Servings: 6
Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup chopped onion
½ cup chopped green bell pepper
½ cup chopped celery
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
3 cups cubed day-old bread
2 cups oysters with their liquor
1 cup chicken broth
¼ cup chopped green onions
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 tablespoon Creole seasoning
½ tablespoon hot pepper sauce
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously oil a medium baking dish.
In a large skillet, heat oil over medium- heat and add onion, green pepper, and celery. Saute, stirring frequently for about 2 minutes.
Add garlic and cook 2 minutes longer. Lower the heat and fold in bread cubes, oysters and their liquor, and broth until moistened. Add green onions, parsley, Creole Seasoning, and hot pepper sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Pour dressing into a baking dish, cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.
Remove foil and bake 20 minutes longer, until golden brown and crispy on top.
Enjoy!
Pro Tip: If your dressing comes out a little too soupy (like mine did), crush up some saltine crackers and sprinkle into the mix. Make sure to not put too many crackers in as you don’t want it to end up too dry.
At Foremost Seafood
We are currently taking holiday orders now, so please give us a call at (937) 298-1986 to place your orders. At Foremost Seafood, we pride ourselves on carrying the freshest seafood around, not only for wholesale, but to every individual customer as well. We are currently still offering curbside pickup but you are allowed to come into our store if you have a mask. We’d love to hear about your holiday traditions if you decide to visit with us. Hope you enjoy this recipe and have a joyous & healthy holiday season!