Enjoy Fresh Oysters in This Australian Recipe for Oysters Kilpatrick (2024)

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Australian Food
Australian Appetizers

Syrie Wongkaew

Sydney-based food writer, editor, photographer, and food stylist with a focus on Australian and Thai cuisine.

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Updated on 03/1/24

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Servings: 4 servings

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Enjoy oysters at home with this traditional Australian recipe for oysters Kilpatrick. Freshly shucked oysters are topped with crispy smoked bacon, Worcestershire sauce, balsamic vinegar, and butter for a sophisticated and delicious appetizer. Just remember that the oysters are only as good as your source, so make sure you are purchasing them from a reputable fishmonger. You can use the broiler or the grill to make oysters Kilpatrick, but no matter which cooking method, it's important to keep an eye on them as the cooking time is very quick.

This recipe calls for one to two dozen oysters and the number you choose will depend on how you plan to serve them. If the oysters Kilpatrick are an appetizer, you can generally plan on three to four oysters per person; for an individual course before the main dish, you might want to serve each person five or six. Keep in mind the sauce in this recipe can top up to 24 oysters.

Tips on How to Cook Oysters

What You'll Need to Make This Oysters Kilpatrick Recipe

A Handy Dandy Oyster Knife

A Nice Small Saucepan

A Good Skillet

Ingredients

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 to 2 dashes Tabasco sauce
2 slices bacon
12 to 24 oysters, shucked

Steps to Make It

Gather the ingredients.
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In a small pan, gently heat the Worcestershire sauce, balsamic vinegar, butter, and Tabasco sauce. Stir until combined.
Remove from the heat and set aside.
In a frying pan, cook the bacon slices until crispy.
Transfer to a paper towel to drain.
Once cooled, dice the bacon and set aside.
Place the oven shelf in the topmost position under the broiler and set the oven to broil. On a baking sheet, using aluminum foil, create pockets for the oyster shells to sit in without toppling over.
Arrange the shucked oysters in the foil pockets.
Top each oyster with a spoonful of sauce.
Scatter each with diced bacon.
Broil for 50 to 60 seconds, watching carefully.
Arrange on a serving platter and enjoy.

Glass Bakeware Warning

Do not use glass bakeware when broiling or when a recipe calls for adding liquid to a hot pan. Glass may explode under these conditions, even if it states it's oven-safe or heat resistant; tempered glass products can, and do, break occasionally.

Tips

There are a number of things you'll want to consider when selecting oysters, which begins with finding a reputable market. They are required to sell live oysters, which should be clamped tightly shut or immediately close when tapped.
For this recipe, you do need to know how to shuck oysters. It's not difficult when you get the hang of it, but if you are apprehensive, you can ask the fish market if they will do it for you.
You can cook oysters Kilpatrick on a very hot grill rather than using your oven's broiler. Place the foil nested-oysters on a grill-safe pan and top them with the sauce. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes.
Some people use a layer of rock salt on the pan rather than the foil to hold the oysters in place. With this method, make sure the salt is arranged in a thick layer that can stabilize the shells.
If your bacon is very lean, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in the frying pan before adding the bacon.

Recipe Variations

Top your oysters with cheese before broiling or during the last 1 to 2 minutes of grilling. Havarti, mozzarella, and Parmesan are favorites for this recipe.
You can vary the seasonings to suit your taste. Often, oysters Kilpatrick is prepared without Tabasco sauce and finished with chopped parsley and served with lemon wedges instead.
A little salt and freshly ground black pepper sprinkled on top before broiling can give the flavor a nice boost.
Add diced onion toward the end of frying the bacon and gently sauté, then add to the oyster topping.
Sliced jalapenos are another popular addition if you like things spicy.

Why Is It Named Kilpatrick?

In addition to the countless variations of this recipe, there are also a few versions of the derivation of the name of the dish. One story is that chef Ernest Arbogast of the Palm Court at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco created the dish and named it after the hotel manager, Colonel John C. Kirkpatrick; Kirkpatrick eventually changed to Kilpatrick. A more amusing tale involves an Irish fisherman whose daily catch of oysters caused a deadly heart attack when he tried to lift it into his boat. Thus, “Oysters Kill Patrick” appeared in the next day’s news headlines, and led to the name of the dish.

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Nutrition Facts (per serving)
343	Calories
15g	Fat
19g	Carbs
30g	Protein

Show Full Nutrition Label

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories	343
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 15g	19%
Saturated Fat 6g	29%
Cholesterol 171mg	57%
Sodium 610mg	27%
Total Carbohydrate 19g	7%
Dietary Fiber 0g	0%
Total Sugars 3g
Protein 30g
Vitamin C 22mg	110%
Calcium 40mg	3%
Iron 14mg	80%
Potassium 573mg	12%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

Recipe Tags:

seafood
appetizer
australian
new year's

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