Don’t you just love Oscar Night? It’s all about the stars, the clothes, the performances, and, of course, your Oscar Night Menu! Heck, even if you’re watching by yourself, which technically I am since my husband is just pretending, you have to make it something of a celebration. And how do we celebrate? Two things – lobster and champagne…
Thankfully frozen lobster tails abound and are usually reasonably priced somewhere in town. This hasn’t always been the case. After college, I rented an apartment the size of most people’s bathrooms. Feeling tres chic in my new digs, I decided to make Lobster Bisque for a very select group of friends (actually four people could barely fit in the apartment) to show how thoroughly sophisticated I was. The only way to rustle up a lobster in those days was to go to an actual seafood market, which I did. Somehow it hadn’t occurred to me that the lobsters would be alive. I was the person who took a pet guinea pig to the vet when it seemed slightly off. Murdering cruestations hadn’t been high on my bucket list, so I asked the seafood guy to do something about it. He made the obnoxiously valid point that if he cooked them for me it would still be my fault, and then he softened up and told me how to deal with live lobsters. He explained all this stuff about how it didn’t hurt, they were pretty brainless, and Julia Child did it all the time. The lobsters lived in my bathtub for 24 hours. I tried to “return” them, but apparently once a lobster goes home with you it is considered “used” thus nonreturnable. The seafood guy did finally agree to cook them for me and I did make Lobster Bisque. I guess that sort of makes me not only a total wimp, but also a hypocrite to boot! Still the bisque was marvelous.
The recipe has evolved over the years and now my husband will tell you with no hesitation that it is his very favorite dish. I’ve adapted the recipe to use lobster tails, which might horrify a classically trained chef, and to serve two, which is perfect for us. You will absolutely love Lobster Bisque for Oscar Night, date night, it’s cold and rainy night… whatever excuse you can come up with to enjoy this wonderful treat. Don’t forget the champagne!
Ingredients
2 lobster tails (4 to 6 oz each)
5 cups water
1 carrot
1 onion
1 celery stalk
1 heaping Tbsp seafood stock base (I use Better than Bouillon Fish Base – you could probably substitute vegetable bouillon cubes in a pinch)
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 sprig fresh thyme or ½ tsp dried
1 very small pinch of saffron (that stuff is expensive, a little goes a long way)
1 ¼ cup cream
¼ cup sherry, plus a couple of tablespoons more to serve)
¼ tsp pepper
1 Tbsp cornstarch mixed with 2 Tbsp cold water
Directions
Bring 5 cups of water to boil in a medium sized saucepan.
Add lobster tails and cook until done (firm and very red) about 3 to 5 minutes depending on the size.
Remove lobster tails leaving the water in the saucepan.
Rough chop carrot, onion, and celery and add to the same saucepan.
Reduce heat to a simmer.
Add seafood base, tomato paste, thyme and saffron.
Remove lobster meat from shells and add shells to the saucepan.
Chop lobster meat into bite sized pieces, and set aside.
Let the stock simmer for 30 minutes stirring occasionally.
Strain stock through a sieve or a colander with small holes, pressing to make sure you get all the good flavor.
Return strained stock to sauce pan, and whisk in cream, sherry, and pepper.
Simmer another 15 minutes and taste for salt and pepper. (Seafood base may provide enough salt)
Stir in cornstarch and simmer 5 minutes.
Add lobster meat to heat through, about 1 minute.
Serve with a dash of sherry on top!
The rest of the menu for Oscar Night at our house is:
Popcorn of course!
A spinach salad with raspberry vinaigrette, and dessert, undecided as yet, will definitely be chocolate – it is Oscar Night!!
