Crab Topped Oysters With a Bearnaise Sauce

Please Note: My prep time includes for opening the oysters, prep time will be less is buying oysters already on the half shell. I went to my fish market last weekend and bought some king crab legs, to make crab stuffed ostrich, the legs were huge and when I removed all the meat I realized there was far too much meat for just the ostrich I had. I had also bought some oysters as my niece loves them and she was coming over, I had planned on making oysters kilpatrick and mornay to start, when I realized I had so much crab I changed my mind and made crab topped oyster instead.

• Ready In: 55 mins
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 16  large  oysters
• 1⁄4 cup  dry breadcrumbs
•  paprika
•  rock salt
•  bearnaise sauce
• 450  g fresh lump crabmeat

• Easy Bearnaise Sauce

• 2  large shallots, minced
• 3  teaspoons tarragon, chopped finely
• 2  teaspoons parsley, chopped finely
• 1⁄4 cup dry white wine
•  pepper
• 1  cup  hollandaise sauce, kept warm

Directions

1. Scrub oyster shells and open Oysters discard top shell, drain liquid, rinse under cold running water to remove any sand or grit.
2. Place oysters on a bed of rock salt (this helps to keep them stable.) in a large flat pan.
3. Put 1-2 teaspoons of béarnaise over each oyster and top with 1 tablespoon of crab meat. Add another 1-2 teaspoons of sauce over crab.
4. Sprinkle oysters with bread crumbs and paprika. Bake at 190°C for 15 minutes or until sauce starts to brown.
5. Béarnaise Method.
6. Combine shallots, tarragon, parsley, white wine and pepper in a small saucepan and boil over a high heat until liquid has been reduced by half.
7. Remove from heat you can either leave as is or strain through a fine sieve if desired.
8. Cool slightly and beat the mixture into the warm hollandaise. If desired add a few extra chopped fresh herbs.
9. Yields about 1 cup.