Decadent Lobster Bisque for the Price Conscious

So as stated before, we were able to get a two pound bag of pre-cooked lobster meat for $22 at Costco.  We recently used less than half that bag to make a great Lobster Fettuccine Alfredo.  We've still got 20 ounces left, so why not make one of the most decadent soups in the world, the Lobster Bisque.

Lobster bisque is a cream based soup flavored with pre-cooked lobster meat, a few select vegetables and a little bit of wine.  It's cooked low and slow so the flavors can penetrate every square inch of the bisque.

The keys to a great lobster bisque are great ingredients and heat management.  Now we're putting in lobster, which is the best seafood in world, in my humble opinion.  But the lobster is only one part of it.  We're adding sautedd onions, celery and carrots, a combination called a mire pois.  It's used in a ton of French cooking as a flavoring.  And though we're using it, we're going to blend the cooked bits down to a paste so we get the flavor, but it keeps our bisque nice and smooth.  Also, we're adding a very little bit of wine.  Just enough so we can add to the flavor pairings, but not enough to get you drunk.  If you're a tea-totaller, don't worry about it.  Just remember the cardinal rule of using alcohol when you cook:  Don't cook with anything you wouldn't drink. Finally, we're using lobster broth.  Now you could make your own by boiling down a pair of lobster carcasses for about 30 minutes to an hour, straining out the shells and then cooking the liquid for another hour or so to cook out some of the excess water.

That would be delicious, but I just don't have that kind of time.  So I use a Lobster Base.  A base is a paste that acts like buillon cubes, except it doesn't have nearly the amount of salt.  It's very condensed so a little goes a long way.  And it can store in the fridge for a long time. It was only $3.50, and I found it at Harmon's and a few specialty grocery stores.  Just add some of the paste to regular old water and you have instant broth.

Remember that heat management is key in this dish.  We want to have a warm and delicious soup, but we have to be VERY careful not to get it too hot.  With all the cream we're adding in, we can't let it boil without running the risk of the cream curdling or separating and the soup becoming gritty.  Smooth good!  Chunky bad!  So always cook it at medium or less and when you start seeing a simmer, drop the temperature.  Do this and you'll end up with a soup that you'd find at a fine restaurant at the low cost of about $3.00 per large bowl.  Pair it up with some great homemade rolls, fresh bread or even some Cheddar Biscuits (coming soon) and you'll have a meal that will happily sit in your stomach for hours.

Oh, and if you're keeping track at home, after the Alfredo and the Bisque, we still have 12 ounces of lobster in that bag, more than enough to make some lobster rolls in the future.  Three meals out of one bag of lobster meat...  that's a major bargain!

Lobster Bisque

2 1/2 tablespoons flour
2 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onions
1/4 cup finely sliced celery
1/4 cup finely diced carrots
3 cups lobster stock (or three cups water with 2 1/2 tablespoons lobster base)
2 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons of shrimp boil or bay seasoning
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup wine
2 1/2 cups half and half
2 bay leaves
8 ounces of cooked lobster meat, divided into two 4 ounce portions

Place the flour and oil in a large saucier, saucepan or dutch oven.  Stir and let cook over medium to medium high heat for about 5 minutes.  Add the onions, celery, carrots and stir for another five minutes until the onions begin to soften. Next, add the lobster stock, tomato paste, and seasonings (except for the bay leaves) and stir just until combined.

Pour the contents into a blender and puree that mixture back to the stone age.  Once thoroughly pulverized, add 4 ounces of the lobster meat and pulse 5-10 times, just enough to break the meat into small little bits.

Pour the contents of the blender back into the original pan and add the half and half, wine and the bay leaves.  Barely bring it to a simmer (do not let it boil) then back off the heat and let it warm for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Finally, add the remaining 4 ounces of cooked lobster and keep warm for another 5 minutes, just long enough to warm up the meat.  Serve quickly with any type of garnish on top, like green onions, parsley flakes, Parmesan cheese, etc.