Lobster Bisque by Hawaiian Spearfisherman/Freediver Kim Werner
Growing up on a farm in Maui with her freediving father taught Kim Werner how to live a sustainable lifestyle. The family lived in small house where she following her dad out to the ocean while he hunted daily. Fast forward many years and she became a trained chef which brought her back to her family’s spearfishing roots and back into the water to hunt for seafood. She has a U.S. Spearfishing Championship metal and several other short films floating around the internet including a TED Talk.
Over the years, I have scoured the internet for awesome lobster recipes. I recently found this one because I was looking for a use for the leftover lobster heads…can’t bring myself to suck out the brains. I found this on Kim Werner’s blog and I am looking froward to trying it out this weekend for the lobster opener, which means my freediving/spearfishing husband is feeling the pressure.
This is by far the easiest recipe I have found for lobster bisque and you don’t have waste any part of your hard earned bug. After you have detached the tails, save all the rest for some delicious soup the next day.
Oh, and the TedTalk is a must watch for any waterman, watch it here.
Lobster Bisque
Ingredients:
4 nice lobster heads raw or previously cooked (leftovers)
water
1/4 cup butter
1 onion diced
3 cloves garlic minced
2 carrots diced
1 cup diced celery
1/4 cup flour
1 can diced tomatoes (or if you want to use fresh tomatoes, just squeeze out seeds, then dice)
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 generous splash of wine wine
salt and pepper
dash of nutmeg
1 cup cream or half and half
Recipe:
Put lobster heads in a big pot and cover with water. Simmer for 45-1 hr. Remove heads, save broth.
In a large pot melt butter. Add onion, garlic, carrots, celery and cook until lightly browned. Add tomato paste and flour, stir with wooden spoon until it’s a doughy mess. Using a wire whisk, whisk in about 6 cups of lobster broth. Add tomatoes and wine. Simmer for 1 hour.
Let cool until it’s safe to put in a blender. In small batches, blend soup until its silky and creamy, or blend with immersion blender. Pour back into pot. Season with salt and pepper and a dash of nutmeg and finish with cream.
Serve with good french bread and garnish with fresh parsley.