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Lobster Bisque Recipe

This Classic Lobster Bisque Recipe (Easy) is perfect for special occasions. Classic lobster bisque recipe highlights fresh lobster meat, heavy cream, white wine, bay leaf, and aromatic vegetables to create a traditional lobster bisque you will crave time and time again.

Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
15 mins
Total Time
1 hr 5 mins
Servings: 4 -6 servings
Calories: 750 kcal
Course: Main Course , Soup
Cuisine: French

Ingredients

  • 1 pound cold water lobster tails freshly thawed
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 onion diced
  • 2 medium carrots diced
  • 2 stalks celery diced
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon pepper
  • 3 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 1 teaspoon fresh thyme chopped, plus more for garnish
  • 1 teaspoon fresh tarragon chopped, plus more for garnish
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 4 cups lobster stock recipe as follows, OR seafood or fish stock (store-bought)
  • 2 ½ cups heavy cream
  • 1 cup white wine or sherry wine

Instructions

LOBSTER STOCK
    Cup of Yum
  1. Fill a large pot with 5 cups of water. Stir in 1 teaspoon of sea salt and bring to a boil.
  2. Add the lobster tails and bay leaves, cover with a lid and let boil for 5 minutes or until bright red. Do not cook all the way. The lobster meat is cooked in butter at a later time. 
  3. Using kitchen tongs, remove the lobster tails, and save the stock in the pot. Let the lobster tails cool slightly, and remove the meat from the shells using kitchen shears (save the shells)* see notes.
  4.  Reserve the meat and any liquid from the shells. Chop the lobster meat into large bite-sized chunks. Place in a small bowl, cover, and refrigerate until later.
  5. Return the lobster shells to the water in the pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low and let simmer for 15 minutes to get as much flavor out of the shells as possible.
  6. Add stock contents to a colander (not a fine mesh sieve) over a large bowl. Pick out noticeable shells. Discard lobster shells. Set lobster stock aside. 
BISQUE
  1. Heat butter and oil in a large, heavy-based pot over medium heat. Cook the onions, carrots, celery, and fresh herbs until soft, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and paprika. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
  2. Stir in tomato paste, and cook for another minute to coat vegetables. Sprinkle vegetables with cornstarch and cook while occasionally stirring for 2 minutes.
  3. Pour in the wine, simmer, and let reduce to about half. Stir in lobster stock, reduce heat and gently simmer while occasionally stirring until the liquid has thickened slightly and the flavors have blended for about 30 minutes.
  4. Take off the heat, transfer the mixture to a blender (or immersion blender), and blend until completely smooth. Return to medium-low heat and stir in the heavy cream.
HEAT LOBSTER IN BUTTER
  1. When ready to serve, melt 1 tablespoon of salted butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add lobster meat and season with freshly cracked salt and pepper. Cook while stirring, just until coated in butter and cooked through 1 to 2 minutes. Do not over cook lobster. 
SERVE LOBSTER BISQUE
  1. Stir lobster meat into the bisque. Serve immediately—top with a swirl of heavy cream, a touch of fresh herbs, and a couple of lobster pieces. Serve with artisan crusty bread. 

Notes

  • *How to remove lobster meat from lobster tails:
  • Place the lobster tail on your counter with the back of the tail facing up. Using sharp kitchen shears, cut down through the center to the end of the tail. Carefully use your thumbs and fingers to open the shell to loosen it from the meat, opening the meat away from the shell side walls. Pull the meat up from the bottom of the shell to separate the shell from the meat underneath it.
  • Top Tips: 
  • Use cold-water lobster. The taste is superior and worth it for this incredible crab bisque recipe.
  • Don’t overcook lobster.  When par-boiling the lobster, cook the lobster just enough so it easily pries away from the shell – we are not trying to cook the lobster all the way through. The lobster is cooked later with butter.
  • Sauté in butter just until opaque.  The goal of sautéing the lobster in butter is to infuse it with flavor.  If the lobster cooks too much from the boiling process, toss it in the butter and gently warm but don’t continue to cook, or it will become rubbery and stiff.
  • Time-saving tip: the most time-consuming part is chopping the vegetables for the soffritto. You can chop them the day before and store them in the fridge, or even buy pre-diced onion, carrots, celery, and garlic.

Nutrition Information

Calories 750kcal (38%) Carbohydrates 16g (5%) Protein 16g (32%) Fat 71g (109%) Saturated Fat 42g (210%) Polyunsaturated Fat 4g Monounsaturated Fat 19g Trans Fat 0.5g Cholesterol 239mg (80%) Sodium 1610mg (67%) Potassium 761mg (22%) Fiber 2g (8%) Sugar 9g (18%) Vitamin A 8085IU (162%) Vitamin C 9mg (10%) Calcium 242mg (24%) Iron 2mg (11%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 4-6 servings

Amount Per Serving

Calories 750

% Daily Value*

Calories 750kcal 38%
Carbohydrates 16g 5%
Protein 16g 32%
Fat 71g 109%
Saturated Fat 42g 210%
Polyunsaturated Fat 4g 24%
Monounsaturated Fat 19g 95%
Trans Fat 0.5g 25%
Cholesterol 239mg 80%
Sodium 1610mg 67%
Potassium 761mg 16%
Fiber 2g 8%
Sugar 9g 18%
Vitamin A 8085IU 162%
Vitamin C 9mg 10%
Calcium 242mg 24%
Iron 2mg 11%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.