Beer Steamed Oysters with Spicy Cocktail Sauce

Donna's Recipe

Oysters have always been associated with love.  Aphrodite, the Greek Goddess of  love, gave birth on an oyster shell thus the word aphrodisiac was born. Oysters were also Casanova's favorite appetizer.  I don't know about your libido but I do know they are delicious and healthy.  A dozen oysters contains only 110 calories and they are packed with vitamins and minerals. You can eat them smoked, baked, broiled or fried, but I prefer mine steamed in a good beer.  Serve it with some lemon wedges and cocktail sauce and you may just "get lucky"....



Ingredients:

24 Oysters
3 cups of beer
2 lemons, cut into wedges

For cocktail sauce:

1 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons Horseradish or MORE to taste
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire
1 tablespoon lemon juice


First you have to make sure your oysters are fresh.  It is best to buy the oysters the same day that you plan to eat them.  They should smell briny like the sea.  Oysters should be tightly closed but there will inevitably be a few in the pile that are slightly open -- for these, do the "tap test": upon tapping, any open shells should close. Throw out any oysters that fail the tap test. Keep the oysters on ice until right before you cook them. Do not  submerge them in water because they still require oxygen.


 

Add 2 cups of beer to a large pot and boil on high heat about 5 minutes or until the steam rolls out when the lid is opened slightly.

Add oysters and an additional cup of beer and cover, turn down to medium heat.

Steam oysters about 5-10 minutes, or all the oysters are open. Do not overcook. Some oysters may take longer than others.  Remove the opened oysters and continue to steam the others until they open as well.

Serve hot, with the lemon wedges and cocktail sauce and your favorite wine or beer .