Creamy Lobster Bisque
One of my FAVORITE soups – light(ish) but creamy and buttery and just BOMB! Yum, yum, YUM!
Ingredients
- 3 small lobster tails
- 2 Tbsp Milanese Gremolata Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, sliced
- 1/2 cup celery, sliced
- 1/2 cup carrots, sliced
- 1 head garlic, peeled and cut in half crosswise
- 3/4 cup large red tomato, chopped
- 2 tsp tarragon
- 6 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 large bay leaves
- 1/4 tsp Jacobsen’s Tellicherry Peppercorns
- 1/2 cup Central Standard North WI Brandy
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 2 cups bottled clam juice
- 2 cups cooking liquid (the water reserved after boiling lobster tails)
- Lobster juices (reserved after chopping lobster meat and shells)
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1/2 cup whipping cream, room temperature
- 1 Tbsp cornstarch
- 1 Tbsp cold water
- Jacobsen’s Italian Sea Salt, to taste
- Jacobsen’s freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- Fresh chives, chopped, for garnish
- Popped popcorn, for garnish
Directions
Fill large, heavy-bottomed pot with 8 cups water and place pot on stovetop over high heat. Bring water to rolling boil. When water begins to boil, carefully add 3 small lobster tails to pot and submerge completely. Boil lobster tails 5 minutes or until cooked through (and bright red).
When lobster tails are fully cooked, carefully transfer tails to large bowl. Immediately add cool water to bowl, then set lobster tails aside until cool enough to handle. While lobster tails cool, transfer 2 cups cooking liquid from pot to medium bowl, saving as much loose lobster meat with liquid as possible (you can discard any remaining lobster water). Once lobster tails are cool enough to handle, CAREFULLY crack the lobster tails open and remove the meat (DO NOT discard lobster shells). Coarsely chop all lobster meat into bite size pieces and transfer to a small bowl, cover, and place in refrigerator.
Place shells from lobster tails on the cutting board, chop into large pieces, then carefully transfer shell pieces to a second small bowl; set aside. Transfer any liquid or juices left on cutting board to large measuring cup; set aside.
Heat Stock Market Milanese Gremolata Extra Virgin Olive Oil in a large stock pot over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add lobster shell pieces to pot. Sauté shells, stirring occasionally, until shells have darkened (be careful not to burn). Once shells have darkened, add onion, celery, carrots, head of garlic, chopped red tomato, dried tarragon, 6 sprigs of fresh thyme, 2 large bay leaves, and the 1/4 tsp of Jacobsen’s Tellicherry Peppercorns to pot; stir to combine; add Central Standard North WI Brandy and dry white wine to pot and stir to combine again. Bring mixture to gentle boil; allow mixture to boil for about 5 minutes or until majority of liquid has evaporated. Add the clam juice, 2 cups cooking liquid (water from the boiled lobster tails), and reserved lobster juices to pot; stir to combine, then reduce heat to medium. Allow mixture to come to a strong simmer; simmer for about 15 minutes or so.
After 15 minutes, remove pot from heat and replace with large saucepan. Strain the contents of the pot over the saucepan. Firmly press on the solid ingredients with back of wooden spoon to express as much liquid from ingredients as possible; once strained, discard leftover solid ingredients.
Add the tomato paste to the saucepan and whisk until tomato paste is fully combined. Simmer soup over medium-heat for about 15 minutes or until soup has reduced to approximately 3 cups. Once soup has reduced, remove saucepan from the stovetop and let cool slightly. Add the whipping cream to the soup and whisk to combine, then return saucepan to stovetop; simmer mixture for 5 minutes.
While mixture simmers, add 1 Tbsp cornstarch and 1 Tbsp cold water to small mixing bowl. Whisk until ingredients are fully combined. Add prepared cornstarch mixture to saucepan and stir to combine. Increase heat under the saucepan to medium-high and bring mixture to a boil, allow mixture to boil for approximately 2 minutes (or until slightly thickened). Once soup has thickened, taste bisque and add Jacobsen’s Italian Sea Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
Remove saucepan from heat and let cool slightly, then add chopped lobster meat to soup. Stir to incorporate, then return saucepan to heat. Simmer mixture, stirring constantly, until lobster meat is just warmed through. Ladle prepared bisque into serving bowls. Garnish with freshly chopped chives and serve immediately.
