OYSTER PO' BOYS WITH HORSERADISH BLUE CHEESE SAUCE + SWEET PEPPER SLAW

This is for all you fish sandwich aficionados. Let's try some oysters fried up to a golden crispy-crisp and topped by perky-puckery horseradish blue cheese sauce instead of the same old remoulade or boo-koo hot sauce. Make the slaw -- separate recipe below-- and the sauce first (stick in fridge) so you can concentrate on grilling the rolls and then frying the oysters. I’m fond of Air Fryer fries and ketchup with this; see Cook’s Notes for tips on those. Read through all before beginning and give yourself an hour plus from start to finish. Set the table before you start cooking and make sure the beer is good and cold.

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: oysters, po' boys, sandwiches

Servings: 4 servings +/-

Author: More Time at the Table/Alyce Morgan

Cost: $30.00

Equipment

Heavy cast iron Dutch oven for frying

Ingredients

SWEET PEPPER SLAW (recipe below)

HORSERADISH BLUE CHEESE SAUCE

1/4 cup each: crumbled blue cheese (approx. 1.5 ounces), mayonnaise, and sour cream
1 teaspoon prepared grated horseradish--or to taste
Pinch each: salt and pepper
2-3 drops hot sauce
2-3 tablespoons milk--to thin the sauce

OYSTERS:

16-20 shucked oysters
6 cups canola oil or peanut oil

WET MIXTURE:

2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
Pinch each: salt and pepper
Shake hot sauce

DRY MIXTURE (Cornmeal for dredging):

2 cups cornmeal
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon Fresh ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon each: ground thyme and ground cayenne pepper

TO MAKE SANDWICHES:

4 soft sub or hoagie rolls, split in half lengthwise
3 tablespoons softened butter
1 1/2 cups shredded lettuce
2 medium tomatoes, thinly sliced
2 large spicy or dill pickles, thinly sliced

Instructions

HORSERADISH BLUE CHEESE SAUCE

Place ingredients in a food processor and blend well by pulsing just a few times. Alternately, mash the blue cheese in a small bowl with a fork and then whisk in the rest of the ingredients. You should be able to drizzle this sauce instead of spoon it in dollops. Place in a small pitcher, cover, and refrigerate.

FRYING THE OYSTERS:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit and place a small baking pan lined with paper towels (or a rack) on the center rack.
Pour oil into a heavy Dutch oven and heat over high heat until a deep-fat thermometer reads 350 degrees F or bubbles form around the stick end of a wooden spoon.
Using tongs, dip an oyster into the wet mixture, shake a bit over that bowl, dredge in the cornmeal mixture (pull them through or lay them down and with fingers or a spoon bring the cornmeal over them), and carefully add to the hot oil. Repeat until you have 3 or 4 oysters in the pot, cooking until golden brown—2-3 minutes. Remove them to the warm tray in the oven. Grind a little black pepper over them. Repeat with remaining oysters.

MAKING THE SANDWICHES:

Layer the oysters, lettuce, tomatoes, red onions, and pickles on the grilled rolls. Drizzle the Horseradish Blue Cheese sauce over the oysters. Serve hot with a side of Sweet Pepper Slaw and the wedge fries, if you like. (See NOTES for info on making the fries.)

SWEET PEPPER SLAW -- recipe below

Notes

WANT FRIES, TOO?

I like this meal with Air Fryer fried potato wedges. To get both the sandwiches and the fries on the plate hot at the same time, make the air fryer fries when you make the slaw and the sauce but undercook them by 2 minutes or so. When you’re frying up the last batch of oysters, turn the air fryer on for two more minutes, et voila, hot fries.

Here’s how I make them: Heat air fryer to 400 degrees, spray the pan with cooking spray;set the time for 15 minutes. Cut 2 large unpeeled baking potatoes into wedges+ toss with 2 teaspoons canola oil. Season well with ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper, and 1/8 teaspoon ground paprika. Add seasoned potatoes evenly to pan and push START. Turn potatoes over after 7 minutes. After 15 minutes, turn off and just leave the potatoes sit there until the oysters are about done, then push bake (at 400 degrees) another 2 minutes or so. Enjoy with ketchup or some of the Horseradish-Blue Cheese Sauce. (Copyright Alyce Morgan, 2019. All rights reserved.)