Name: Chutney Mary’s Spicy Lobster Bisque
Yield: Serves 12
Ingredients: 2 cm (¾ in) ginger, minced; 1 Tbsp almond flakes, toasted; 1 Tbsp ground coriander seeds; 1 Tbsp ground cumin; 1 Tbsp cayenne or red chilli powder; 5-6 cloves garlic, minced; 1 pinch saffron; 3 Tbsp neutral-flavoured oil; 1 medium carrot, finely chopped; 100 g (3½ oz, just under 1 stick) butter; 200 g (7 oz, approx. 1 large) tomato, peeled, seeded and diced; 2 sticks celery, finely chopped; 1 kg (2¼ lbs) live lobster (you can use 2 small ones); 50 g (2 oz, ½ cup) chopped mushrooms; 1 leek, white part only, finely minced; 2.5 cm (1 in) stick cinnamon; 100 g (3½ oz, ½ cup) rice; 1 large onion, sliced thinly; 6 cardamom pods, crushed; 300 g (10 fl oz, 1¼ cups) single (light) cream; 5 litres (8 pints, 5 quarts) fish stock; 4 bay leaves; ½ tsp anise seed

Preparation info

Serves
12

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

The Feast of Christmas

By Paul Levy

Published 1992

About

This madly luxurious soup is given a thrilling new twist in this recipe created for their Christmas menu by Chutney Mary, London’s Anglo-Indian restaurant. This tongue-tingling, palate-teasing version of a classic recipe is a good example of how Anglo-Indian cuisine was created in the first place and is a very economical use of lobster.

Ingredients

1 kg (2¼ lbs) live lobster (you can use 2 small ones)
2 sticks

Method

Kill the lobster(s) by plunging them into boiling water or stab them in the back with a sharp heavy knife just where the head seems to meet the tail. Put it into a very large (more than 5-litre) saucepan and add the celery, carrot, leek, mushrooms, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, anise, bay leaves and fish stock. Bring to the boil and simmer for about 8–10 minutes, or until the lobster is cooked. R

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