How to Grill Oysters

METHOD: Direct grilling

Long before I lit my first charcoal, grill jockeys on Tomales Bay in central California were grilling oysters with barbecue sauce. And long before that, oystermen on the East Coast were staging oyster roasts on the barrier islands of the Carolinas. The fact is that something mystical takes place when you cook shellfish directly over a live fire—the searing heat makes oysters taste even more briny and more succulent than when cooked by other methods. And the shells burn ever so slightly, imparting a haunting smoke flavor.