Photos and food by Mark Tagal
Bisque has come to mean a smooth and creamy soup, but the origins of bisque go back to a classical French seafood soup, made with a hearty stock and crustacean shells.
To make this soup, you will need:
- Lobster: whole lobsters will give you a richer stock, but shells on tails will work fine
- Shrimp, same as the lobster
- Onions
- Celery
- Red peppers
- Tomato paste
- Butter
- Heavy cream
- Chives
- Parsley
- Garlic
- Salt
- Pepper
- Annatto and coriander powder
- Vanilla extract
Prep time for this soup is a little long, but you are doing very little. The roasting and simmering take place by themselves. You can go off and do other things.
The Roasted Part. . .
- Take red peppers, coat them in olive oil and salt, and put them into a roasting pan.
- Put it in the oven at 350 degrees and cook until the peppers get soft. This will take about 1 hour.
The Stock Part. . .
- Remove lobster and shrimp from their shells.
- Set the meat to the side.
- If you have them, take the shells and heads and put them in a big stock pot.
- Add onions, celery, and garlic, then cover with water and set to simmer. The longer it simmers and the more water that steams off, the more flavorful the stock will be.
- After about 1 hour, add some tomato paste and Annatto powder and give it a stir.
The peppers will be done by this time and the bisque can be assembled.
- Strain the stock through a cheesecloth into a new pot.
- Add the roasted peppers, heavy cream, and butter.
- Stir everything together with an immersion mixer or even in a blender.
- Mix it until smooth.
Now that you have a creamy, rich soup, let’s add the seafood. I like to cook the lobster and shrimp separately. It adds an extra element of flavor and texture.
Season lobster/shrimp with salt and pepper and a splash of vanilla extract. Sauté in olive oil and butter on very high heat. You only need to cook it for a few seconds. Add it to the soup and enjoy it right away.
