Lobster Bisque is a classic creamy and smooth, highly seasoned soup made from lobster and aromatics that is a Valentine’s Day favorite entree or first course. A dreamy indulgent five-star dining experience just in time for a cozy, intimate dinner date at home!
Valentine’s Day is around the corner – yes, I know. You can’t miss it!
It’s already too late to book anything in my neck of the woods by now. But I’m not going to worry about that because I’m totally fine dining at home with this bisque here. ❤
This classic Lobster Bisque recipe is as good (or better) as those you pay a hefty amount for at a fancy-schmancy restaurant without the hefty price tag. 😉
Contents…Recipe Ingredients |
What is Lobster Bisque?
Lobster Bisque is a classic entree of French origin, and it’s a creamy, smooth, and flavorful soup based on a strained lobster broth. But you could also use the same method with crabs, shrimps, or crayfish. Oh yeah!
Bisque is actually a method of extracting flavor from crustaceans (hard-shelled sea creatures) by simmering with aromatics to create an intensely flavored stock, then strained, simmered again, and pureed. Talk about some intensely delicious flavor!
Recipe Ingredients
Restaurant-quality dining at home has never been this good with our scrumptious Lobster Bisque. Believe me; this will surely impress your boo! So let’s get started! ❤
- Lobster Tails – The best part about this recipe is that it’s affordable. Instead of buying a whole lobster, you can use fresh or frozen lobster tails.
- Garlic, Onion, and Celery – You’ll love the holy trinity not only for its wonderful fragrance and flavor but also for its exceptional health benefits. Please see How to Mince Garlic and How to Cut Onions for time-saving cutting techniques.
- Fresh Thyme – Our dish becomes fancier thanks to fresh thyme’s herby and minty notes. Check out these Thyme Substitutes that you can use.
- Dry White Wine – For best-tasting soup, use high-quality dry white wine, like Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, or Chardonnay. Any one of them is perfect for lobster recipes. But you can skip it if you’re not fond of wine.
- Worcestershire Sauce – This multipurpose sauce adds a layer of rich, robust flavor to our hearty soup, giving it more character.
- Creole Seasoning – This blend of herbs and spices will surely amp up the flavor of our lobster bisque. Make it more personalized with my Homemade Creole Seasoning. Feel free to omit or add more herbs and spices to suit your palate. 😉
- Lobster Stock – See the instructions below to make your own lobster stock, and it’ll give you richer and more flavorful brisque. Don’t feel bad if you decide to buy ready-made broth or replace it with chicken broth. 👌
- Heavy Cream – The velvety smooth and creamy luxuriant feel and taste in our fancy bisque is brought to you by heavy cream. Oh yes! And to make it paleo, simply replace heavy cream with full-fat coconut cream.
How to Make Lobster Bisque
Prepare the Lobster Stock
- Boil Lobster Tails – Start by boiling the lobster tails for about 3-4 minutes, long enough for the shells to turn slightly red. Let it cool. (Photo 1)
- Let it Cool and Set Aside – Once cool, remove lobster tails from the pot and reserve the stock.
- Crack the Shells and Remove Meat – Place the tail on its side on the counter and use both hands to press down the tail until the shell cracks. Then hold the tail, flippers facing you, and shell facing down, with your thumbs on opposite sides. Pull back on both sides to crack open the shell and remove meat. Alternatively, you can use a kitchen shear to cut down the center of the tail. Then remove the lobster meat. Either way, it works. (Photo 2)
- Boil and Simmer the Shells – Return the lobster shells to the pot, then add 4-5 cups water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to gently simmer another 20-25 minutes; if time permits, simmer for an additional 20 minutes. (Photo 3)
- Chop the Lobster Meat – Chop the lobster meat into bite-sized pieces while the stock is simmering. Chill until ready to be used. (Photo 4)
- Strain and Set Aside – When ready, strain the shells from the stock and reserve the lobster stock.
Saute and Simmer
- Saute – Add olive oil to a medium-sized saucepan over medium-high heat. Then saute onion, garlic, celery, and thyme, and cook for about 4-5 minutes. (Photo 5)
- Add Wine and Seasonings – Slowly add the wine, if using any, then stir in the Worcestershire, Creole Seasoning, paprika, and white pepper. Cook for about a minute. (Photo 6)
- Simmer – Then stir in the tomato paste, followed by the lobster stock. Simmer for about 8- 10 minutes. (Photo 7)
- Add Cream and Butter – Pour in the cream and butter and let the butter melt, then remove from stove. (Photos 8-10)
- Puree – Pour it into a blender and puree. Puree in batches to prevent pressure from building up inside. Alternatively, you may use a stick blender in the pot until your bisque is smooth.
- Adjust Seasoning – Season with salt and cayenne pepper to taste, if desired.
- Add Butter and Lobster Meat – Place a saucepan over medium heat, then add about a tablespoon butter to it followed by the chopped lobster meat, lightly season with Creole seasoning, and simmer for a minute or two until warmed through.
- Garnish and Serve – Top individual bisques with lobster and serve immediately.
Recipe Variations
- Seafood – Clams, shrimp, oyster, crayfish, and crab are popular bisque variations. Try my Shrimp Bisque if you can’t find lobster at the moment. 😉
- Vegetarian – And, of course, you can make yummy bisque with fresh veggies, too, like my hearty Tomato Bisque. Technically, tomatoes are a fruit, but I don’t put them in my fruit salad. (Pardon the nerdy explanation. 😜) Squash, corn, potatoes, carrots, and sweet potatoes also make an excellent base for bisque.
- Gluten-Free, Low-Carb, Keto – Believe it or not, this recipe is actually low-carb and keto-approved since we didn’t add flour or rice to thicken our soup. Oh yes! Another reason to enjoy this bisque recipe. Woohoo!
Tips and Tricks
- Lobster tails are usually in the frozen seafood section at most grocery stores. If you go for fresh lobsters, make sure they’re straight out of the sea and still alive. Then keep them alive until the very last second, which also means that you have to dim its lights yourself because it goes bad too quickly to take chances.
- You may swap white wine with brandy – it has a sweet aroma and subtler presence. Or just add more stock if you want to exclude alcohol.
- You can do the last round of straining through a fine-mesh strainer right from the blender.
- If you don’t mind waiting, you can save some dough by going on a lobster hunt a week after Valentine’s Day. That’s because frozen lobster usually goes on sale around that time.
Serving and Storage Instructions
Lobster Bisque is best enjoyed as soon as it’s done cooking and slurping it while it’s hot. Yum!
I don’t recommend making it ahead since both lobster and heavy cream don’t do well in the freezer. The taste will be the same, but the texture will be noticeably different. But in the case of leftovers:
- Store – Let it completely cool before transferring to an airtight container.
- Refrigerate – Leftovers can be safely refrigerated for up to two days maximum. This goes for most seafood dishes as well.
- Freeze – I do not recommend freezing leftovers because of the dairy content. The water and fat from the heavy cream will separate and result in grainy and curdled brisque once thawed, while the lobster meat may end up a little tough and rubbery.
- Reheat – Heat over low heat on the stovetop, covered, occasionally stirring until hot. If reheating a small serving, put it in the microwave on medium power for 30-second blasts until it’s heated up as you want. Again, the lobster may come out a little chewy and rubbery after reheating.
FAQs
A bisque is a soup of French origin that is thick, creamy, and primarily made with shellfish, seafood stock, and cream. The soup base is usually the broth from boiled seafood and shells. Nowadays, some chefs make their bisques with thickeners such as roux, slurry, and rice.
Red wine is for meat, while white wine is for seafood. White wine is just a tad more acidic than red wine, highlighting and enhancing the sea taste in seafood. I highly recommend Chardonnay, Riesling, and Sauvignon Blanc because of their exceptional fruity flavor profile without being overly sweet.
For my recipe, the lobster stock, tomato paste, and heavy cream are enough to thicken the soup. You just need to simmer it nice and slow over low heat. But if you still find it a little runny, you can quickly fix it by adding a flour or cornstarch slurry. However, a slurry may dilute the savory seafood flavor of our bisque.
What to Serve with Lobster Bisque
Make it a cozy dinner date with some good music in the background, good wine, and amazing side dishes like these recipes below.
More Soup Recipes to Try
Watch How to Make It
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This blog post was first published in February 2018 and has been updated with additional key information, and photos.
Lobster Bisque
Ingredients
- 2-3 lobster tails (fresh or frozen)
- 2 tablespoon (28.3 g) extra virgin olive oil
- ½ cup (75 g) onion, chopped
- 2 teaspoon (5.60 g) garlic minced
- ¼ cup celery, diced
- 1 teaspoon (0.80 g) fresh thyme
- ½ cup (119.50 g) dry white wine, or replace with stock
- 2 teaspoon (34 g) Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon (2.60 g) Creole seasoning
- ½ teaspoon (3.40 g) paprika
- ½ – 1 teaspoon (0.90- 1.80 g) white pepper
- 1 tablespoon (25 g) tomato paste
- 2-2 ½ cup (705-940 g) lobster stock, adjust to desired thickness
- 1 cup (240 g) heavy cream
- 2- 3 tablespoon (28.4 g) butter
- ¼ -½ teaspoon (0.90-1.8 g) cayenne pepper (optional)
Instructions
- Start by boiling the lobster tails for about 3-4 minutes, long enough for the shells to turn slightly red. Let it cool.
- Once cool, remove lobster tails from the pot and reserve the stock.
- Place the tail on its side on the counter and use both hands to press down the tail until the shell cracks. Then hold the tail, flippers facing you, and shell facing down, with your thumbs on opposite sides. Pull back on both sides to crack open the shell and remove meat.
- Alternatively, you can use a kitchen shear to cut down the center of the tail. Then remove the lobster meat. Either way, it works.
- Return the lobster shells to the pot, then add 4-5 cups water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to simmer another 20-25 minutes gently; if time permits, simmer for an additional 20 minutes.
- Chop the lobster meat into bite-sized pieces while the stock is simmering. Chill until ready to be used.
- When ready, strain the shells and reserve the lobster stock.
- Add olive oil to a medium-sized saucepan over medium-high heat. Then saute onion, garlic, celery, and thyme, and cook for about 4-5 minutes.
- Slowly add the wine, if using, then stir in the Worcestershire, Creole Seasoning, paprika, and white pepper. Cook for about a minute.
- Then stir in the tomato paste, followed by the lobster stock. Simmer for about 8-10 minutes.
- Pour in the cream and butter, let the butter melt, and then remove from the stove.
- Pour it into a blender and puree. Puree in batches to prevent pressure from building up inside. Alternatively, you may use a stick blender in the pot until your bisque is smooth.
- Season with salt and cayenne pepper to taste, if desired.
- Place a saucepan over medium heat, then add about a tablespoon butter to it followed by the chopped lobster meat, lightly season with Creole seasoning, and simmer for a minute or two until warmed through.
- Top individual bisques with lobster and serve immediately.
Tips & Notes:
- Lobster tails are usually in the frozen seafood section at most grocery stores. If you go for fresh lobsters, make sure they’re straight out of the sea and still alive. Then keep them alive until the very last second, which also means that you have to dim their lights yourself because they go bad too quickly to take chances.
- You may swap white wine with brandy – it has a sweet aroma and subtler presence. Or just add more stock if you want to exclude alcohol.
- You can do the last round of straining through a fine-mesh strainer right from the blender.
- If you don’t mind waiting, you can save some dough by going on a lobster hunt a week after Valentine’s Day. That’s because frozen lobster usually goes on sale around that time.
- Please be reminded that the Nutritional Information shown in the post is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on the products used in the recipe.
Tim says
Is it really only 1 tablespoon of tomato paste?
Chris says
Hi would it be possible to make this ahead of time through step 10?
ImmaculateBites says
Yes you sure can.
Julie Schwenka says
How do I make the stock with whole lobster?
ImmaculateBites says
Hi Julie. In order to make the stock boil the Lobster for about 3-4 minutes, long enough for the shells to turn slightly red. Once cool, remove the lobster from the pot and reserve stock. After taking the meat off the lobster shells, boil the shells again in the stock you reserved. This leads to a more intense flavor. Hope this helps!
David Brock says
Our new Christmases even tradition. This was amazing. I’ve had lobster bisque all over the new England coast and this is as good as any ive had. Thanks so much for sharing. Only change i made was to add some crab meat, 4 oz , at the same time as the lobster was added.
Great bisque!
Mary Lou says
I will be attending a dinner party and would like to make the Lobster Bisque.
After cooking, can I transport and reheat in a crockpot? I will add the lobster chunks right before serving. Should they be cooked in advance ?
Thanks!
Mary Lou
ImmaculateBites says
Yes , Cook it in advance and reheat in crockpot. Sounds like a plan.
Erich says
This was outstanding. We had lobster bisque at a restaurant in NYC last month and said it was the best we’d ever had. This was very close. As others suggested, I made a roux of butter, flour and a splash of milk before sauteing the onions and garlic. I also used brandy instead of wine as Imma suggested. After blending the mixture, I strained it into a sauce pan which I then put on a warming burner (bisque should be smooth, bot chunky). Will definitely make this again.
Donna says
I remembered using Brandy in the past as well… how much did you use? I am making this for Christmas Eve as part of the Italian Tradition of Seven Fishes
Ann says
How much Brandy would you recommend in lieu of the white wine?
Taylor J says
I’m about to make this tonight, do you sauté the onions and celery in with the roux? I love the idea of this
ImmaculateBites says
Yes you do.
Cheryl says
I’m just going to say – I made this for my husband for lunch today and when he took his first bite and I think it reminded him why he was happy he married me. Really good (“I’d pay for soup this good!”) and will definitely be making again! Thank you!
Amani says
I can’t wait to try this recipe! What can I replace the lobster stock with? I am going to buy lobster pieces from a local seafood store to save time so I won’t have any tails to make the stock. Can I use a different stock? Thanks !
ImmaculateBites says
You can vegetable or chicken stock would work as well.
MB says
I made this today for the first time. It was awesome. I made the creole seasoning from your recipe. It’s fantastic. Store bought always has so much salt. No salt problems for me. The bisque was thin and fixed it with a little bit of flour. I followed recipe up to the purée. . I put the puréed bisque through a sieve then finished with the rest of the recipe. Bisque was creamy, flavorful and absolutely delicious. (I did not purée any lobster.)
Ashley says
How do I ‘fix it with a little bit of flour’ if I run into this problem?
ImmaculateBites says
. Don’t add directly to the bisque ; it will clump. Melt about a tablespoon butter to a small pan ,Thea add a tablespoon flour, slowly stir for about a minute . Add some some liquid( chicken broth) about 2 tablespoons or more. Then slowly whisk in the bisque.
mary nardolillo says
restaurant quality soup I added green shrimp and 10 lobster tails doubled the receipe my family loved it little salty but really good
Lori Barr says
I made this for my family a few days ago. It was easy to make and was delicious. My sister thought it was a little salty as well. We added a sliced potato and let it simmer in the bisque to absorb the salt, then removed it before serving. I won’t add salt the next time. I think the brand of Cajon seasoning I used had a lot of salt in it.
MsJoanne says
I made this and it was great! I used the basic recipe but used lobster, scallops, shrimp and fish instead of just the lobster. Everything else was the same. Fabulous.
ImmaculateBites says
Thanks for taking time out to share this us . Have a great weekend.
Sally B. says
I like your thinking..make it a multi seafood soup..
kathryn mello says
Made this last night for dinner.. It was perfect! Exactly the taste I’ve been looking for. I used 2 cups of assorted lobster meat, immersion blended half into the broth (made it perfect thickness) and added in nice pieces after it was done.
imma africanbites says
Thanks for sharing, Kathryn. So happy to know it turned out perfect for you.
Ron says
I followed your directions and the Bisque is not orange
Why not
ImmaculateBites says
Hello,
I can’t say for sure without actually being there. What gives it it’s orange hue is creole seasoning, paprika and tomato paste
Lindsay Okumura says
Loved the flavor but it was very thin so I added cornstarch/water until it was bisque consistency. Perfect.
Monique says
Loved this! So much flavor! Will definitely make again! Thank you for the recipe!
John Nichter says
I just made this recipe last night! WHOA! I just kept smelling it tasted and smelled soooo good! One of if not the best bisque I have ever had! Thank you so much for this recipe!
I shared leftovers with my father and he loved it as well! We are going to make a much larger batch next week!
I do have a question, if I do not use the wine what do i substitute it with? more lobster broth ?
ImmaculateBites says
Thanks John. Yes substitute with more both. Glad to hear it worked out well for you.
Kathleen says
Made this bisque for the first time today for my 3rd Annual Pink Peony Ladies Luncheon. Everyone raved! Flavor was superb, I just wish it made more. Personally thought it was a little thin, but it still deserves 5+ Stars. I also added more tomato paste and have left over stock to make pasta sauce. Yummy!
imma africanbites says
Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts. I appreciate it.