Oysters With Ginger & Lime Dressing - Easy

Recipe: Oysters with Ginger & Lime Dressing Recipe »

These fresh oysters are topped with a simple but delicious ginger and lime dressing that takes just minutes to make. This light, sweet dressing brings out the natural brininess of the oysters and makes for a lovely change from a classic mignonette. Ideal for entertaining, New Year's eve or a cocktail party. Plus I'll share a tip for serving them too!

About These Oysters with Ginger & Lime Dressing

Love oysters? This ginger and lime dressing is a delicious alternative to the traditional mignonette dressing. It is made with just 4 ingredients requiring 2 minutes prep! Make your oysters pop with this delicious oyster dressing.

Every year I try and make a New Year's recipe from a different country and this year it's a french new year's tradition of oysters for New Year's Eve celebrations or Réveillon de la Saint-Sylvestre. In fact, according to myfrenchcountryhomemagazine, "A typical French household buys an average of 9 pounds (4 kg) of oysters per year – and half of that quantity is enjoyed between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Day. That is because oysters are said to be their best in France during this time.

For Australians, the season for oysters depends on the type of oyster and the region in which it is grown. Sydney Rock oysters are available all year round but are at their peak in spring and summer. However Sydney rock oysters grown on the North coast are best summer and the South Coast peaks in Winter. Pacific oysters are also available all year round but peak from April to September. Angasi oysters are best from May to August but avoid them from November to March.

This sauce is a sweet ginger and lime dressing that really brings out the brineyness of oysters. You can also add a dab of caviar to the oyster and that brings an appealing saltiness too. If you try the dressing by itself then it will seem very sweet but try it with the oysters it really pops.

I also love this Tetsuya's dressing for oysters and a classic mignonette. Or just a wedge of lemon will do!

My tip for serving oysters is to serve them on frozen pebbles or clean river rocks. You can buy pebbles at Kmart or craft stores and when frozen they keep the oysters cold like ice does. The major advantage to using frozen pebbles is that unlike ice, the rocks don't melt which really helps on really hot days when crushed ice turns to water quickly!

Video How To Make Oysters with Ginger & Lime Dressing

Video: How to Make Ginger and Lime Dressing for Oysters

Ingredients For Oysters with Ginger & Lime Dressing

Oysters - Of course! ;) Go with the oyster that is in season in your area.

Sugar - Caster or superfine sugar so that the sugar dissolves easily.

Lime juice - Fresh or bottled lime juice will work.

Sherry vinegar - This is a mild vinegar with sweet undertones. It is similar to red wine vinegar or white wine vinegar but sweeter and more complex. It is available at supermarkets.

Ginger - Use freshly grated ginger for this dressing. I find jarred crushed ginger has a slightly different flavour to it.

Tips For Making Oysters with Ginger & Lime Dressing

1 - This is such a simple recipe it really doesn't need many tips. But I will say to rest the sauce for 10 minutes to allow the ginger to infuse before straining it out. It will still be spicy and strong enough.

2 - This recipe can be easily doubled or tripled.

3 - This sauce can keep for up to 1 week in the fridge.

Oysters with Ginger & Lime Dressing Recipe

An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott

Recipe Overview

Preparation time: 2 minutes plus 10 minutes resting time

Cooking time: 0 minutes

Makes: 1/4 cup or 60ml/2flozs oyster dressing (enough for 1-2 dozen oysters)

Ingredients Needed

• 1-2 dozen oysters
• 2 tablespoons/30g/1oz caster or superfine sugar
• 1 tablespoon/15ml/0.5floz lime juice
• 1 teaspoon/5ml/0.17flozs sherry vinegar
• 5g/0.17oz freshly grated, peeled ginger
• 2 teaspoons/10ml/0.35flozs water

Step-By-Step Instructions

Step 1 MIX - Mix the sugar, lime juice, sherry vinegar, ginger and water together. Stir well to dissolve the sugar and let sit for 10 minutes while sugar dissolves.

Step 2 STRAIN - Strain the grated ginger out and serve the dressing.

Personal Note

I cannot tell you how much I've been enjoying the void aka the period between Christmas and New Year's. I've still been cooking because I enjoy it but I've also been relaxing too. It has been a crazy busy year and I really felt like I needed it.

A couple of weeks ago my mother in law Tuulikki sent us all a picture of a family tree she had painted. She wanted to do it so that she could see us every day. It was really lovely although we did have some trouble figuring out who was who because while the women were obvious, a lot of the men weren't apart from Mr NQN as they were not all standing next to their partners.

The one that confused us was the person on the top. I showed it to Monica who thought it might be someone that had passed because they had doves on their head. It turned out that it was my brother in law Laporello and his kids.

I appreciated that she added Mochi and Milo in my arms while Mr NQN is holding Teddy and his childhood dog is there too. In fact a lot of the animals that they've had over the years make an appearance from the geese to the goats. The monkey in it was never a family pet but Tuulikki always wanted monkeys as a child.

Anyway, I also just want to wish you all a very Happy New Year! Thank you for being here and for reading, supporting and sharing this space with me. You make this all possible and I am so thankful for that. I hope that 2026 brings health, happiness and lots of little (and big!) moments worth celebrating!

Love,

Lorraine

xxx