This Vietnamese grilled oysters recipe with scallion oil, peanuts and crunchy shallots makes hau nuong mo hanh using a classic Vietnamese scallion oil recipe. In Vietnam the vivid green Vietnamese seafood dressing is doused on all kinds of molluscs, from razor clams to cockles. But the most popular way to use the sweet spring onion sauce is to spoon it over grilled oysters and sprinkle on some crunchy roasted peanuts and crispy fried shallots. It’s a fab starter to a Vietnamese food feast, seafood banquet or barbecue.
If you made the Vietnamese scallion oil recipe for mỡ hành I recently shared and have some of the deliciously-rich spring onion oil in the fridge, this recipe for Vietnamese grilled oysters with scallion oil, peanuts and crispy shallots for hàu nướng mỡ hành is the best way to put it to use. Don’t have any on hand? You can make it in ten minutes and have these oysters on the table in 20 minutes.
If you’re a seafood lover who shops daily like me (a habit from 15 years living in Southeast Asia shopping the morning markets that I don’t want to shake) and sometimes you find yourself with spontaneous purchases of oysters and mussels you’re not sure what to do with (sounds like you also time your shops to coincide with supermarket deli counters discounting their seafood), this scallion oil is your answer and these oysters your cue.
Not a fan of oysters? Use other molluscs, such as mussels, scallops, cockles, or clams (razor clams are especially scrummy), making sure to keep them in their shells. The delectable morsels make fantastic finger food for a barbecue or other alfresco gathering or an elegant appetiser for a sit-down meal. I made these for my mum last week for Mother’s Day.
Now before I tell you more about this Vietnamese grilled oysters with scallion oil, peanuts and crunchy shallots for hàu nướng mỡ hành, I have a favour to ask. Grantourismo is reader-supported. If you’ve enjoyed our recipes, please consider supporting Grantourismo. You could buy a handcrafted KROK, the best mortar and pestle ever; or book a cooking class or meal with locals on EatWith; or buy something on Amazon, such as these best new cookbooks or classic cookbook for serious cooks.
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Vietnamese Grilled Oysters Recipe with Scallion Oil, Peanuts and Crispy Shallots
We first came across the Vietnamese spring onion oil called mỡ hành way back in 2012, when we lived on ‘Food Street’ in Hanoi. The vivid green onion oil was spooned over all kinds of molluscs, from clams to scallops, at our favourite Hanoi bia hoi joints and boozy eateries on our street frequented by big boisterous groups of friends and work colleagues on Friday and Saturday nights.
But it wasn’t until we went to breathtaking Halong Bay to test out cruises to Halong Bay and Lan Ha Bay for a magazine story that we tasted and learnt to make these Vietnamese grilled oysters with scallion oil, peanuts and shallots called hàu nướng mỡ hành. I’m an oyster lover, so I was hooked. I put my gin and tonic down and took notes that were ridiculously detailed for such an easy dish to prepare.
I was so hooked on those oysters with spring onion oil, sprinkled with crunchy pan-roasted peanuts and crispy fried shallots, that I have to admit I looked forward to the buffet spreads that most Halong Bay cruise boats offer for lunch and sometimes for dinner. I’ve never been a fan, but I have to confess: I was so enamoured with the oysters I always went back for seconds, and often for thirds.
After we moved to Cambodia and I occasionally hosted Vietnam culinary tours that included a Halong Bay cruise I always chose cruises that featured a Vietnamese cooking lesson. Worth noting if you’re a Vietnamese food lover: not all cruises include a cooking class on itineraries, despite a Vietnamese cooking course being one of the most popular things to do on a Halong Bay cruise in the evening.
Which wouldn’t be hard when the alternative activities include things such as squid fishing, which is incredibly dull if you actually enjoy fishing — and just as boring if you don’t. And compared to Hanoi cooking courses, the classes on Halong Bay cruises are very relaxed affairs and more demo-style than hands-on (perhaps because most participants have a drink in one hand), but that seems to be what people like.
After busy days out, kayaking, cycling, swimming, and exploring caves, most Halong Bay cruise passengers don’t seem to mind that all they have to do is roll up some spring rolls or stir some scallions in a pot, quick and easy tasks that won’t take so long that the ice in their gin and tonics melts or their chilled glass of white wine gets warm ;)
Just a few tips to making this recipe for Vietnamese grilled oysters with scallion oil, peanuts and crispy shallots for hàu nướng mỡ hành.
Tips to Making this Vietnamese Grilled Oysters Recipe
I only have a few tips to making this Vietnamese grilled oysters recipes for hàu nướng mỡ hành, but first some tips on the key ingredients.
Ingredients
Our recipe for Vietnamese grilled oysters with scallion oil, peanuts and crispy shallots for hàu nướng mỡ hành calls for just a handful of ingredients, so let’s start with the key ingredient, the oysters.
Oysters
Use the best quality oysters you can source. Here in Australia, we get oysters year-round and Australian oysters are some of the finest oysters in the world. We love the sublime Sydney Rock Oysters, native to Australia. Australian Pacific Oysters are also excellent. Some of the best come from the pristine waters of Coffin Bay in South Australia.
I’ve been able to source both kinds of oysters locally in recent months and while the average price is A$21 a dozen (around US$15/£11/€12 a dozen at today’s exchange rate), if I shop in the evening I can often get them for half that price.
We can get Pacific Oysters in Southeast Asia, and while I’ve enjoyed the oysters in Vietnam and Thailand, Southeast Asia’s Pacific oysters don’t taste anywhere near as divine as they do in Australia and I’m convinced it’s because the water isn’t as pristine as it is Down Under.
My family always bought oysters in their shell from fish markets or we’d collect oysters from the lake where my parents lived and we’d shuck them ourselves. Mum was the expert oyster shucker in our family. These days, I buy freshly-shucked oysters in their shell.
And while our Vietnamese grilled oysters recipe calls for sliding a tray of oysters under a grill (a broiler for our American readers), before spooning on the scallion oil, peanuts and shallots, the oysters can also be steamed or cooked on a barbecue.
You could do the same with other kinds of molluscs, from cockles and razor clams to mussels and scallops. And of course you could leave the oysters raw if you prefer.
Scallion Oil
Use this Vietnamese scallion oil recipe for mỡ hành to make the deliciously-rich and sweet Vietnamese seafood dressing.
Pan-Roasted Peanuts
I’ve incorporated an instruction in the recipe for pan-roasting the plain unsalted peanuts in a small pan. It takes just a minute or two. Make sure to continually shake the pan so the peanuts colour evenly and don’t burn.
Fried Shallots
I recommend buying crispy fried shallots, rather than making them, but I will get around the sharing a recipe one of these days. In Cambodia, we buy them at the local markets as they’re fresher and crunchier, but here in Australia I buy them in one of the Asian supermarkets or big supermarkets such as Coles and Woolworths, whic both sell them in the Asian sections.
Lime or Lemon Wedges
Provide some lime or lemon wedges for squeezing onto the oysters for a little tang, which provides a nice contrast to the rich, sweet scallion oil, and the crisp and crunch of the pan-roasted peanuts and fried shallots.
Rock Salt
Don’t worry, you won’t be sprinkling salt on your oysters, which should taste of the salty sea, which is why rock salt is not on the recipe ingredients list. But I like to spread some rock salt on the platter to create a steady base to sit the oyster shells on so that they stay upright. Clean pebbles or small stones will also do the job.
Step-By-Step Process
Our Vietnamese grilled oysters with scallion oil, peanuts and crispy shallots for hàu nướng mỡ hành is a breeze to make, taking just ten minutes if you’ve already made the Vietnamese scallion oil and have some to hand or around 20 minutes if you don’t, but here’s a quick overview of the steps for those of you who like them, otherwise head directly to the recipe.
Prep the Oysters
Shuck your oysters and discard the top shell or if you’ve bought freshly-shucked oysters, give the shells a little scrub if needed, lay them on an oven tray, and transfer to the fridge while you do your prep.
Prep a Platter or Plates
Spread out some rock salt, tiny stones or little pebbles on a platter or plates to create a base to sit the oysters on so they stay upright.
Make the Scallion Oil
Use this Vietnamese scallion oil recipe to make the scallion oil (spring onion oil) if you don’t have any in the fridge, then transfer it to a small serving bowl.
Pan-roast the Peanuts
In a small pan over medium heat, dry-fry the unsalted peanuts, continually shaking the pan so they get colour but don’t burn, then transfer them to a small dish.
Grill the Oysters
Slide the tray of oysters under an oven grill (broiler) on medium-high heat for a couple of minutes. We use a small toaster oven grill, which heats up quickly. You could also do them on a barbecue or over a charcoal grill if you’re already cooking steaks and snags outside.
Cook the oysters to your liking. A couple of minutes is plenty of time for us as we like our oysters just cooked, so they’re warm and juicy. Of course you can also skip this step and serve your oysters raw if you can’t bare to cook your bivalves.
Lay out the Oysters
Slide the tray out of the oven and use tongs or an ovenmit to transfer the oysters to the platter or plates. Nestle the oysters into the rock salt so that they’re level and can’t tip over.
Dress the Oysters
In a small dish combine some scallion oil and roasted peanuts then spoon some onto each oyster, and sprinkle on some crispy fried shallots. I like to combine the scallion oil and peanuts at the last minute so that the peanuts are coated in oil but still crunchy.
Serve the Oysters
Set the platter at the centre of the table with dishes of scallion oil, peanuts and fried shallots for guests to add more if they like, or just provide a dish of lime or lemon wedges for squeezing on the oysters, and serve with chilled Vietnamese beers.
Vietnamese Grilled Oysters Recipe with Scallion Oil, Peanuts and Crispy Shallots
Equipment
Ingredients
- 12 oysters - cleaned and freshly shucked
- 3 tbsp scallion oil - recipe here, or more if you like
- 2 tbsp peanuts - unsalted, pan-roasted, or more if you like
- 1 tbsp fried shallots - or more to taste if you like
- 1 lime - cut into wedges, or lemons if you prefer
Instructions
- Prep the oysters: shuck your oysters and discard the top shell or if you’ve bought freshly-shucked oysters, give the shells a little scrub if needed, lay them on an oven tray, and transfer to the fridge while you do your prep.
- Prep a platter or plates, spread out some rock salt, tiny stones or little pebbles on a platter or plates to create a base to sit the oysters on so they stay upright.
- Make the scallion oil: use this recipe to make the scallion oil if you don’t have any to hand, then transfer it to a small serving bowl.
- Pan-roast the peanuts: in a small pan over medium heat, dry-fry the unsalted peanuts, continually shaking the pan so they get colour but don’t burn, then transfer them to a small dish.
- Grill the oysters: slide the tray of oysters under an oven grill (broiler) on medium-high heat for a couple of minutes — or do them on a barbecue or over a charcoal grill if you’re already cooking steaks — and cook the oysters to your liking. (Or skip this step and serve the oysters raw if you can’t bare to cook your bivalves).
- Lay out the oysters: slide the tray out of the oven and transfer the oysters to the platter or plates, nestle them into the rock salt so that they’re level and can’t tip over.
- Dress the oysters: in a small dish combine some scallion oil and roasted peanuts then spoon some onto each oyster, and sprinkle on some crunchy fried shallots.
- Serve the oysters: set the platter at the centre of the table with dishes of scallion oil, peanuts and fried shallots for guests to add more if they like, or just provide a dish of lime or lemon wedges for squeezing on the oysters, and serve with chilled Vietnamese beers.
Nutrition
Please do let us know if you make this Vietnamese grilled oysters with scallion oil, peanuts and crispy shallots for hàu nướng mỡ hành as we’d love to know how the dish turns out for you.
