Lobster Bisque
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Loading... - Amy DeRose
- 23 Feb 2023
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If you’re looking for a special meal to serve on an elegant occasion, lobster bisque answers the call. It’s a bit of work, but it's not hard and the payoff is a knockout. Lobster bisque is always on my festive Christmas Eve menu, and it would also be perfect for New Year's Eve or Valentine's Day.
It is light and luscious and doesn’t spoil your appetite for the feast that follows. The silky and creamy yet light bisque is the star of the show, while small chunks of lobster play a supporting role. It has a rich lobster flavor and a velvety, sumptuous texture.
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An Updated and Easier Lobster Bisque
I learned to make traditional lobster bisque from a mentor-chef while working at a restaurant. Lobster bisque used to be fancy French restaurant fare, not typically under the purview of home cooks. It was a recipe created to put lobster shells to good use.
Traditionally, the shells were ground up and strained to make a lobster stock thickened with rice or beurre manié (a softened butter and flour mixture) and cream. The mixture is then flavored with sherry. The lobster meat was reserved for dishes like lobster thermidor—none were added to the bisque.
This updated lobster bisque recipe is similar: the lobster shells, cream, and sherry are used to flavor the stock, which is thickened with beurre manié. In my version, I don’t grind the lobster shells—it's too much work and necessary to get lots of lobster flavor. Plus, I steam the lobsters, pull the meat, and add it back to the bisque with a little lemon juice to cut the richness and brighten the flavor.
What’s a Bisque Anyway?
A bisque is an intensely flavored, smooth, and creamy soup. It’s not chunky and doesn’t have large bits of meat or vegetables like chowder or other soups. It is often associated with crustaceans like lobster, shrimp, crayfish, and crab. Modern versions are made with vegetables like mushrooms, tomatoes, or red bell pepper.
The Best Lobster for Lobster Bisque
A live lobster is the best choice because the water used to cook the lobster becomes the stock for the bisque. You could buy a pre-cooked lobster and use fish stock or clam juice to flavor the bisque. This is also a good option if you can’t face cooking a live lobster.
Could you use frozen lobster tails? I do not recommend it because there aren’t enough shells—this is where all the flavor comes from—to make a good stock. You would also need to buy a lot of them (about 2 pounds), which gets pricey. Read More…
