Oyster mignonette made with rice wine vinegar, shallot, fresh herbs, and pepper. It’s gorgeous and tastes fantastic with fresh raw oysters. Bonus, it’s even delicious spooned over grilled meats.

We shared our essential mignonette sauce a few weeks back, combining red wine vinegar, shallot, and pepper. Now we want to introduce you to this herby mignonette. It’s excellent with fresh raw oysters and doubles as a reverse marinade for grilled or baked meats. (A reverse marinade is soaking meat in a sauce after it’s cooked–a common practice when grilling.)

This sauce is all about balance. Unlike our basic mignonette, which is more acidic thanks to vinegar, this mignonette combines seasoned and unseasoned rice vinegar, which makes it ever so slightly sweet. It’s delicious!

Key Ingredients

• Rice Vinegar: We use unseasoned and seasoned rice vinegar. The unseasoned vinegar is more acidic (like red wine vinegar), while seasoned vinegar adds salt and sugar, adding a sweeter note to the sauce. This extra sweet note works beautifully for oysters, especially the slightly sweeter, less salty oysters we get here on the West Coast of the US. (Although, I’d wager this would be excellent with just about any oyster you can access.)
• Shallot: I mince my shallot finely. The vinegar cuts their sharpness and gently pickles them. We hand-mince our shallot instead of using a food processor. (A food processor creates a more mushy situation that tastes stronger in the sauce.)
• Herbs: For that striking green color, be generous with your herbs. I love parsley and tarragon. Just make sure you mince them finely.

How to Make Herb Mignonette

Making the sauce is simple. Finely mince shallot and herbs — take your time when mincing so that everything is tiny. Then mix in both kinds of vinegar (seasoned and unseasoned) and a pinch of pepper.

Like other mignonette recipes, this lasts for a while in the fridge. It gets better and better over time since the shallots have time to mellow and pickle. Keep in mind that the green herbs will lose some vibrancy over time. I’m not too concerned about it, but if you’d like a bright green pop of color (like in our photos), you can always add the herbs an hour or so before serving, but make the base mignonette a few days in advance.

I serve this sauce alongside freshly shucked oysters. You can serve this sauce alone or provide additional options for your friends and family, like fresh lemon wedges and this classic mignonette.

This mignonette recipe comes from Richard Hattaway, a renowned chef and friend. We already have a classic recipe on the blog, but we love how he incorporated rice wine vinegar and herbs for this version. It’s beautiful and tastes fantastic.

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If you love oysters, then you need this mignonette sauce recipe in your life. It’s shockingly easy and made with shallots, red wine vinegar, and pepper.

This is our family’s essential mignonette. Mignonette (French) is roughly translated to “cute” or “dainty,” which seems fitting since it’s always served with a tiny spoon in a tiny bowl (haha).

I love this sauce with fresh oysters and think you will, too! This one is super classic, but try our herb mignonette for a herby, sweeter twist!

Key Ingredients

• Shallots: I mince my shallots finely and use a lot. The vinegar cuts their sharpness and gently pickles them. We hand-mince our shallot instead of using a food processor. (A food processor creates a more mushy situation that tastes stronger in the sauce.)
• Pepper: You can use white or black peppercorns. I like both. White pepper tastes more mellow and less spicy than black pepper, but both work nicely in this sauce.
• Vinegar: We have used red wine vinegar in our photos, but white wine vinegar and champagne vinegar are also excellent choices. Use something you enjoy the taste of. My favorite widely available brand of red wine vinegar is Pompeian, but you can always look in specialty stores and online for more high-end options.

Find the full recipe with measurements below.

How to Make Mignonette Sauce

Tip 1: Make the sauce. To make a classic mignonette for oysters, combine the finely minced shallots with vinegar and pepper. I also add a small pinch of sea salt, but that’s optional!

Tip 2: Let it sit in the fridge for a bit. After making it, store the sauce in the fridge for at least two hours so the shallots can mellow and pickle before serving it. And, here’s a fun fact about mignonette: it lasts in the fridge for a month! I actually love it after it has sat for a while in the refrigerator.

More Sauce Recipes

Essential Mignonette Sauce

• PREP
  2 hr 10 mins
  
• TOTAL
  2 hr 10 mins
  

If you love oysters, then you need this essential sauce in your life. It’s shockingly easy and made with shallots, red wine vinegar, and pepper. We have used red wine vinegar in our photos, but white wine vinegar and champagne vinegar are also excellent choices. Use something you enjoy the taste of. My favorite widely available brand of red wine vinegar is Pompeian, but you can always look in specialty stores and online for more high-end options.

Makes 4 ounces or just over 1/3 cup

You Will Need

¼ cup finely diced shallots, 1 to 2 shallots (30g)

⅓ to ½ cup red wine vinegar, white wine vinegar, or champagne vinegar; use something you enjoy (80-120ml)

¼ to ½ teaspoon coarsely ground black or white peppercorns

Small pinch of fine sea salt, optional

Directions

1Make the sauce: Combine the shallots, vinegar, pepper, and a small pinch of salt in a non-reactive bowl or glass jar. Taste and adjust with more pepper. The vinegar will taste sharp at first, but it mellows as the shallots sit in the fridge. If the sauce tastes too abrasive, stir in a small pinch of sugar to balance it.

2Refrigerate: Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving so the shallots can soften and pickle.

3Serve: Shuck your oysters and spoon the sauce into a small ramekin. Serve on the side and add a spoonful to each oyster just before eating. I like to go heavy on the shallots. Then repeat.

Adam and Joanne’s Tips

• Storing: This keeps for up to 1 month in the refrigerator. It will continue to mellow over time (which I enjoy). If it loses some of its brightness, stir in a splash of fresh vinegar to perk it up.
• The nutrition facts provided below are estimates.

Nutrition Per Serving
Serving Size
1/4 of the recipe
/
Calories
13
/
Total Fat
0g
/
Saturated Fat
0g
/
Cholesterol
0mg
/
Sodium
42.2mg
/
Carbohydrate
1.9g
/
Dietary Fiber
0.4g
/
Total Sugars
0.8g
/
Protein
0.3g

AUTHOR:

Joanne Gallagher

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