Tomorrow they are forecasting our coolest day of the last few months...lows in the high 40s for the first time in months. I thought with the coming fall chill i’d diary about soups.
It does not hurt that I was taken to a Detroit area institution the other day (Joe Muers) which,,,is expensive as all heck but if any food was worth the price, they are. Anyway I had some lobster bisque and I fell in love.
I do not need a partner for the rest of my life, if I were to be able to have bisque instead.
OY.
I usually am not much of a soup person unless it is cream-based, and then I cannot get enough. Sure I grew up on Matzoh Ball soup...but, psst, don’t tell anyone I could take or leave it.
But lobster bisque?
Oy.
How about you? What is your favorite soup?
I am no chef… so I found this on the Interwebz.
INGREDIENTS
- Kosher salt
- 2 live lobsters, weighing around 3 pounds total
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 carrot, chopped
- 2 ribs celery, chopped
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 sprigs fresh tarragon
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 cup medium sherry
- 2 cups fish stock or clam broth
- ½ cup long-grain white rice
- 1 cup heavy cream
- Cayenne pepper, to taste
PREPARATION
- Fill a large pot with 1/2 inch of water. Stir in 2 teaspoons kosher salt and bring the water to a boil. Add the lobsters, cover with a tight-fitting lid and return the water to a boil. Once boiling, lower the heat to a gentle boil and cook the lobsters until they are bright red, about 12 minutes. Remove the lobsters, reserving the liquid. When the lobsters have cooled slightly, place them in a bowl and remove the meat from the claws and tail, again reserving any liquid that comes out of the shells. Chop the meat and refrigerate. Roughly chop the shells into small pieces and reserve, along with all the lobster remains.
- Swirl the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat, then add the vegetables and herbs. Sweat until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes, then increase the heat to medium-high and add the lobster shells and remains. Sauté for 5 to 6 minutes, then add the tomato paste and cook for an additional 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add the sherry, then ignite or cook until the alcohol has evaporated. Add fish stock and 1 cup of the lobster-cooking liquid. Bring to a simmer and cook, covered, for 1 hour.
- Strain the broth through a colander, pressing down hard on the solids to extrude as much liquid as possible. Wipe out the pot and pour in the broth. Add the rice and cook for at least 30 minutes, or until the grains are cooked to extreme softness.
- Blend the bisque in a food processor or blender, then pass through a fine sieve, again pressing down hard on what solids remain. Add the cream and bring to a low simmer. Add the chopped lobster meat, let it heat through, then season to taste with salt and cayenne.