Crustacean Soup with Saffron and Morels

Name: Crustacean Soup with Saffron and Morels
Yield: Makes 4 Main-Course Servings
Cuisine: France
Ingredients: salt and pepper; 1 small bunch of chives, finely chopped; ¾ cup heavy cream; ¼ teaspoon saffron threads, soaked in 1 tablespoon water for 20 minutes; ¼ teaspoon saffron threads, soaked in 1 tablespoon water for 20 minutes; ¼ cup Madeira if you’re using dried morels; ¼ cup Madeira if you’re using dried morels; 20 fresh or dried morels; 20 fresh or dried morels; 4 medium-size tomatoes, cut in half crosswise and seeds squeezed out; 12 large shrimp, preferably with heads; 1 teaspoon Cognac if you have lobster coral; 1 teaspoon Cognac if you have lobster coral; 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar if you have lobster coral; 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar if you have lobster coral; 2 1-½-pound lobsters, preferably female; salt and pepper; 3 tablespoons olive oil; 1 garlic clove, crushed; 1 small onion, chopped; 1 small carrot, chopped; 2 cups fish or chicken broth or water; 2 cups fish or chicken broth or water; 2 cups fish or chicken broth or water; 20 live crayfish, about 1 pound

Preparation info

Makes
4
Main-Course Servings

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Splendid Soups

By James Peterson

Published 2000

About

When I first tasted this dish—actually it’s more like a stew than a soup—I was working in a 3-Star restaurant in the French countryside. As a lowly apprentice I’d spend the mornings preparing the lobsters and langoustes that arrived every morning from Brittany, the live Bulgarian crayfish, and morels from the local forests—all for this amazing dish. The result was astonishing.

Before you set out to make this soup, be aware that it requires a major shopping trip and that all your org

Ingredients

Europe
France
Fish course
Pescatarian
Gluten-free
Mediterranean

Ingredients

Method