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Lucy Buffett’s Oyster Dressing

This Alabama stuffing recipe features oysters, cornbread and plenty of butter.
Photo credit: Amber Fouts for The New York Times
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Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Course: dressing, stuffing
Cuisine: American, Cajun
Keyword: cooked, cooked shellfish, dressing, oysters, stuffing
Servings: 10
Calories: 227

Ingredients

  • 12 Tbsp unsalted butter 1 ½ sticks, divided, plus more for baking dish
  • 1 8-inch-square baked and cooled cornbread, preferably on the sweet side
  • 15 slices white or wheat bread toasted and cooled
  • ½ large white onion finely chopped
  • 2 celery ribs finely chopped
  • ½ large green bell pepper finely chopped
  • ½ cup chicken broth plus more as needed
  • 24 freshly shucked or jarred oysters preferably Gulf oysters, drained and coarsely chopped (reserve the oyster liquor)
  • ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1 Tbsp hot sauce preferably Crystal
  • ¼ cup fresh flat-leaf parsley finely chopped
  • 1 Tbsp fresh sage finely chopped, or 1 teaspoon ground sage
  • 1 ½ tsp truffle salt or sea salt
  • ½ tsp ground white pepper

Instructions

  • Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-by 13-inch baking dish.
  • Crumble cornbread into a large bowl. Tear toasted white or wheat bread into very small pieces, add to cornbread, and toss to combine
  • Melt 8 tablespoons butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add onion, celery and bell pepper; sauté, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes. Cover pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are almost translucent, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove cover, add broth, and cook, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, for 2 to 3 minutes. Continue to cook mixture for 1 more minute, then remove from heat, add to bread mixture, and stir to combine.
  • In a medium bowl, stir together oysters, lemon juice, hot sauce, parsley, sage, salt and white pepper. Add to bread mixture and stir well to combine. If dressing seems too dry, add a little oyster liquor and up to 1/2 cup more chicken broth; mixture should be very moist.
  • Pour dressing into greased baking dish. Cut remaining 4 tablespoons butter into small pieces and scatter over top of dressing. Bake until top and sides are browned, 40 to 45 minutes.

Notes

This recipe appeared in a 2014 New York Times article entitled, The United States of Thanksgiving, which selected the most representative Thanksgiving recipes from all 50 states. Lucy Buffett, who is the sister of famous singer Jimmy Buffett, opened the original LuLu’s restaurant in Gulf Shores, Ala. and her recipe made the pick for Alabama.
Photo credit: Amber Fouts for The New York Times

Nutrition

Calories: 227kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 37mg | Sodium: 618mg | Potassium: 94mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 576IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 112mg | Iron: 2mg
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