Lobster Bisque – Creamy soup made with homemade lobster stock and served with fresh lobster meat.
Today’s recipe is a result of wanting to try new things. Seafood is something I cook very seldom at home but still love to eat when I’m out at restaurants. Now that we’re home-bound for a while, I’m getting more adventurous with my cooking so I can still enjoy the foods I love.
Enter this lobster bisque. I first had lobster bisque in Boston and was floored – I didn’t think I liked lobster but man was I wrong. The flavor was sweet with a hint of spice and tons of depth. It felt like such a special dish that I never dared attempt to make it at home.
However, I recently stumbled upon this recipe from Cafe Delites which made lobster bisque seem super achievable and even easy. So I finally got the confidence to try this soup out for myself.
And I am sure glad I did! Even with the warmer weather outside, I was eating this bisque every chance I got. So much flavor and chunks of lobster meat that were a welcomed addition to this typically creamy soup.
Without further ado, here is the Lobster Bisque!
What is lobster bisque?
Bisque is a term used for a soup that is creamy and smooth. It’s different from a chowder since chowder is loaded with chunks. Lobster bisque is a creamy, smooth soup that uses homemade lobster stock as the base with a hint of tomato flavor from the tomato paste that gives it the signature orange color.
How to make lobster bisque
Lobster bisque is a soup made by layering flavors in various stages. Here’s how it goes:
- Make the lobster stock with fresh lobster tails. Set it aside.
- Cook a collection of veggies and spices together until soft.
- Add wine, tomato paste, and flour to thicken up the base.
- Add the lobster stock and cook for 30 minutes to build the flavor.
- Blend the soup to get it super creamy.
- Finish off the bisque with heavy cream
Now that you see the stages of the bisque, doesn’t it seem easy to do yourself? That’s exactly how I felt. So what are you waiting for? Go out and get you some lobster tails and get to cooking!
Tips & Tricks
- To make sure the bisque is perfectly creamy, I recommend blending the soup in a blender instead of using an immersion blender. Also, you’ll want to make sure to dice the veggies extra small to make blending easier.
- Make sure to add the cream at the end. Otherwise, the cream could whip up in the blender and make the soup too thick.
- Seafood doesn’t keep for very long as leftovers so you can’t make this too far ahead of serving. The shelf life is about 2 days in the refrigerator.
Lobster Bisque
Ingredients
- 4 lobster tails
- 1½ teaspoon salt divided
- 4 tablespoons butter divided
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion finely diced
- 2 carrots peeled and finely diced
- 2 stalks celery finely diced
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon
- 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
- 6 cloves garlic minced, divided
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1¼ cup dry white wine
- 1 cup heavy cream
Instructions
Make the lobster stock:
- In a large pot, add 5 cups of water and 1 teaspoon of salt. Cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add lobster tails and cook for 5 minutes or until tails turn bright red. Remove from pot and drain on paper towels. Turn off pot and cover. Remove lobster meat from the shells but slicing down the back of the tail with kitchen shears. Pull the halves apart and gently release the meat from the shells.
- Add shells back to pot and cover again. Bring to a boil again and then simmer for 15 minutes. While it simmers, chop lobster meat into 1-inch pieces, place in a bowl and refrigerate until time to serve the bisque. Keep covered but remove from heat when done simmering. Set aside.
Make the lobster bisque:
- Once the lobster stock is ready, it's time to prepare the bisque. To start, add finely diced onion, carrots, and celery to a Dutch oven with 2 tablespoons butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Place over medium heat and cook until softened about 5-7 minutes. Sprinkle bouillon powder, salt, pepper, and cayenne over veggies. Add minced garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
- Add tomato paste and stir until all the vegetables are coated with the paste. Sprinkle flour over the mixture and cook for 2 more minutes. Pour wine and cook until the wine has reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Add lobster stock to the mixture and stir to combine. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove soup from heat. Add soup to a blender, filling only about halfway full to prevent heat from building up and causing a soup explosion. Cover the blender with the lid, but removing the center hole. Using a kitchen towel, cover the hole and blend soup until completely smooth. Pour blended soup into a large pot and repeat blending process until all the soup is smooth.
- Put pot over medium heat to warm up again. Once warm, remove from heat and add heavy cream. Stir to combine. Serve with warmed lobster meat (recipe below).
Making the garlic lobster meat:
- Heat butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook until fragrant but not browned. Add in lobster and cook until warmed through, about 1-2 minutes MAX. Season with salt and pepper.
- Serve bisque in a large bowl with a few pieces of lobster meat.
Notes
Pin for later:
More recipes you’ll love:
Poblano Corn Chowder
Beer Cheese Soup
Shrimp Scampi
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This has always been my go-to soup when dining out, and now I can enjoy it anytime with this amazing homemade version!
This looks so good right about now, especially because it’s snowing again!
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omggg these look so yum!!
Yumm this looks so tasty, soup is my fav. I make soup once a week.
Oh man, lobster anything is my favorite! But especially a lobster bisque soup!
This looks like the best soup ever. I’m allergic to shrimp, and I’ve always been afraid to try lobster. I might have to make some of this for the family and try a small bite and see what happens because this looks to good to pass up.
I could have a love affair with lobster! This bisque was perfect! I will be saving this recipe to make again soon!
Such a special soup… so creamy and easy to make. No need to spend that extra $$ at restaurants with this one. Make it at home, with THIS recipe. Amazing!
I really love how comforting this is!! My family was impressed!
If I am going to cook lobster, I will definitely follow your recipe! Looks so smooth, creamy and delicious. Thanks for sharing!
This is one of my favorite soups to order whenever we eat out, so thrilled that I can make it at home with this delicious recipe!