Best Lobster Thermidor With Creamy Tarragon Sauce Recipes

LOBSTER THERMIDOR WITH CREAMY TARRAGON SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat growler to high with rack 6 inches from element.
• Prepare tails by cutting down both sides of the belly (not the meat) to the fan and discard the flap. Remove lobster meat, devein if necessary, and cut into chunks; reserve the shells.
• Melt 2 Tbsp butter in a saute pan over medium heat. Add shallots and cook until fragrant, 2 minutes. Stir in flour and cook 1-2 minutes. Add wine, broth, and cream, increase heat to medium high and reduce sauce by half, about 2 minutes. Add lobster meat and cook until it starts to become firm, 2-3 minutes; season with a pinch of cayenne.
• Stir in lemon juice, tarragon (or chives), and Dijon, then divide lobster meat between reserved shells (or scallop shells), and set on a baking sheet.
• Toss panko and parmesan with 1 Tbsp melted butter, sprinkle over lobster, then broil tails until topping is browned and lobster is heated through, 2-3 minutes.

LOBSTER THERMIDOR

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and set aside.
• Bring a pot of salted water containing the lemons, quartered onion, and bouquet garni to a boil. Add the lobsters and cook until red and firm, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the lobsters to an ice bath to stop the cooking process.
• When the lobsters are cool enough to handle, cut in half lengthwise with a heavy sharp knife and carefully extract the tail meat. Remove the large claws from the body and gently crack with the back of a heavy knife to extract the meat. Gently pull the front legs from the shell and discard. Dice the tail meat and claw meat and set aside.
• Place the halved lobster shells on a baking sheet, cut sides down, and roast until dry, 5 to 6 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet.
• Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the shallots and garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the flour and whisk to combine. Cook, stirring constantly with a heavy wooden spoon to make a light roux, about 2 minutes. Add the cognac and cook, stirring, for 10 seconds. Add the milk slowly, stirring constantly to incorporate. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, 2 to 3 minutes. Slowly add the cream, stirring constantly, until all is incorporated. Cook, stirring, over medium heat for 1 minute. (The mixture will be very thick.) Add the salt and pepper and stir well.
• Remove from the heat and stir in 1/2 cup of the cheese, the mustard, tarragon, and parsley. Fold in the lobster meat. Divide the mixture among the lobster shells and place stuffed side up on a clean baking sheet. Sprinkle the top of each lobster with a portion of the remaining cheese and broil until the top is golden brown, 5 minutes.
• Place 1 lobster half on each of 4 large plates, garnish with additional parsley, and serve immediately.
• Place the bay leaf, thyme, parsley sprigs, and peppercorns in the center of a 6-inch square piece of cheesecloth or a large paper coffee filter. Draw up the sides to form a pouch and tie with kitchen twine or unflavored dental floss.

CHEF JOHN'S LOBSTER THERMIDOR

Steps:

• Cut bottom shell of lobster tails using kitchen shears along each side where it meets the top shell; do not remove the shell at this point.
• Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Place lobster tails cut side down in the butter. Cook, covered, about 3 minutes. Turn lobster tails over (they are curved so will lean to 1 side); cover and cook 1 minute. Lean them to the other side; cover and cook 1 minute more.
• Remove from heat. Transfer lobster tails to a bowl. Remove any shell pieces from the skillet.
• Place 1 tablespoon butter in the skillet over medium heat; add shallots and pinch of salt. Cook and stir until pan starts to deglaze and shallots soften, 3 to 4 minutes. Add mushrooms; cook stir until golden brown, 5 to 6 minutes. Add flour; stir until mushrooms are coated and cook for 2 minutes. Pour in cognac; use a kitchen torch to flame cognac to burn off alcohol. This will take just a few seconds. Add milk; cook and stir until pan is completely deglazed and milk begins to thicken and turn bubbly, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in creme fraiche. Let cool.
• Remove lobster meat from the shell, leaving top shell intact. Remove any bits of bottom shell from the meat.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Line a baking pan with crinkled up foil. Make 4 channel-like indentations in the foil to hold and stabilize the lobster tails as they bake.
• Slice lobster meat down the middle and check for and remove any dark veins. Chop into 1/2-inch pieces. Transfer meat to a mixing bowl. Add cooled sauce, tarragon, pinch of salt, and cayenne pepper. Stir gently until well blended.
• Divide mixture among the lobster tail shells; place in prepared foil-lined pan. Sprinkle each lobster tail with about 1/2 teaspoon bread crumbs and 1/2 teaspoon grated cheese. Drizzle melted butter on the stuffed shells.
• Bake in preheated oven until nicely browned and heated through, about 10 minutes. If you like, you can turn on the broiler and broil 1 minute until tops are golden and crispy.

LOBSTER THERMIDOR

Steps:

• Set the lobsters back-side up on a cutting board. Remove the claws, then cut each lobster in half beginning at the top of the head and cutting all the way to the tail. Remove the tail meat gently and clear and discard the innards from the head, taking care to keep the head and legs intact. Crack each claw and remove the meat. Cut the reserved lobster meat into 1/2-inch pieces.
• Heat the cream in a small saucepan over low heat until warm; keep warm.
• Position an oven rack 6 inches from the broiler and preheat the broiler.
• Heat the butter in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat until the butter melts and any foam disappears. Add the lobster pieces, mustard powder, paprika, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper and reduce the heat to low. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add 1 tablespoon of the sherry and 1/4 cup of the warm cream and simmer until the cream is reduced by about half, about 5 minutes.
• Whisk together the egg yolks and remaining tablespoon of sherry in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in the remaining 1/2 cup warm cream to the bowl with the yolk mixture, then transfer the mixture to the same saucepan that held the cream. Cook over very low heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens slightly like loose pudding and coats the back of a spoon, 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 minutes. Stir in the tarragon, then add this mixture to the lobster mixture. Stir to combine.
• Arrange the lobster shells with their cut sides up on a baking sheet. Spoon the lobster mixture into the shells. Top with the Gruyere. Broil the lobsters until the filling is golden brown, about 5 minutes. Serve with any extra sauce on the side.

LOBSTER THERMIDOR

Steps:

• Cut the lobster in half lengthwise, and remove the meat from the claws and tail. Leave to one side. Remove any meat from the head and set aside. Cut the meat up into pieces and place back into the shell.
• Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot; cook and stir until tender. Mix in the fish stock, white wine and double cream. Bring to a boil, and cook until reduced by half. Mix in the mustard, lemon juice, parsley, salt and pepper.
• Preheat your oven's broiler.
• Place the lobster halves on a broiling pan or baking sheet, and spoon the sauce over the lobster meat in the shell. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the top.
• Broil for 3 to 4 minutes, just until golden brown. Serve immediately.

LOBSTER THERMIDOR

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients. Preheat the oven to 400 F.
• With a sharp chef's knife, split each live lobster in half lengthwise, starting with the head and working the knife back toward the tail. When you begin at the head end, the process kills the lobster instantly .
• Brush the lobster with the olive oil and bake for 15 minutes.
• Remove the lobster from the oven and let it cool.
• Gather the ingredients.
• In a small skillet or saucepan, make a roux by melting the butter over medium heat and adding the flour, 1 spoonful at a time, mixing vigorously.
• Continue cooking and whisking until the roux is blonde or caramel in color, about 3 to 4 minutes.
• Add the stock and whisk well to combine.
• Let the mixture come to a simmer, about 2 minutes, then slowly add the milk, whisking continuously.
• After the mixture has simmered again-about 2 more minutes-add some salt and pepper to taste and then the nutmeg. Be mindful of not letting the béchamel boil. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• Gather the ingredients.
• With the help of a fork, remove the meat from all parts of the cooled lobster. Reserve the empty lobster shells (just the main body) for the dish.
• Chop the lobster meat coarsely.
• In a small frying pan over medium-high heat, add the wine, sherry, lobster stock, shallot, and tarragon. Boil it down until it is thick in consistency, almost like a glaze-about 10 minutes.
• Add the béchamel sauce to the glaze, and stir well to combine.
• In a separate bowl, mix the heavy cream with the egg yolk.
• Slowly add about 1/2 cup of the béchamel-glaze mixture into the egg yolk and cream, stirring constantly. (By tempering the cream-egg mixture, you won't get scrambled eggs in your sauce.)
• Pour the egg mixture into the pan with the rest of the béchamel-glaze.
• Bring the sauce to a simmer over medium heat, but don't let boil. Add the dry mustard and some salt to taste.
• Cook until the sauce is thickened-about 3 minutes- then remove from the heat.
• Preheat the oven to 375 F. Add the lobster meat to the sauce and mix well.
• Fill the empty lobster shells with the lobster Thermidor mixture, then place on a baking sheet (lined with parchment paper if you like) and bake for 5 to 8 minutes.
• Sprinkle the top with a little paprika as a garnish. Serve and enjoy.

CREAMY LOBSTER SAUCE

Steps:

• In a large, microwave-safe plastic bag, arrange lobsters head to tail. Twist the top of the bag shut. Cook in a 650- to 700-watt oven at 100 percent power for 8 minutes. Carefully remove from oven. Drain any liquid that has collected in the bag into a bowl. Remove lobsters from bag and allow to cool while proceeding with the recipe.
• In a 2-quart souffle dish, melt butter, uncovered, at 100 percent power for 2 minutes. Stir in onion and cook, uncovered, at 100 percent power for 3 minutes. Remove from oven. Whisk in Worcestershire, mustard and Tabasco. Set aside.
• Holding the lobster over the bowl, separate the head from the body. Using a spoon, scrape out tomalley and roe into the bowl, being careful to avoid the brain sac. Holding the feelers, squeeze the head to extract juices. Remove meat from tail and claws. Dice the tails. Reserve claws whole for garnishing.
• Add cream and chicken broth to onion/butter mixture. Heat, uncovered, at 100 percent power for 4 minutes. Whisk tomalley, roe and reserved juices into cream mixture. Cook, uncovered, at 100 percent power for 4 minutes. Add tarragon and reserved lobster tail meat and cook 2 minutes longer. Remove from oven. Season to taste with lemon juice, salt and pepper. Toss with hot fettucine. Garnish with reserved claws. Serve immediately.

BAKED LOBSTERS WITH TARRAGON-CREAM SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.
• Remove and discard the rubber or wood claw holders from lobsters.
• Bring the water to a vigorous boil in a large kettle and drop the lobsters into it. When the water returns to the boil cook the lobsters for exactly 2 minutes and drain. Arrange the lobsters shell side up in one layer in a baking pan. Place in the oven and bake exactly 12 minutes.
• Break off the lobsters' claws. Crack the claws in several places. Place the lobster carcasses shell side down on a flat surface and crack each lengthwise to cut them in half. Pull away and discard the tough sac at the beak end of each lobster. Scoop out the soft mass (the tomalley, coral, liver and so on) from the inside of each lobster. Spoon and scrape this into a saucepan. Save any juices and add these to the saucepan.
• Add the shallots to the saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring.
• Arrange the lobster halves shell side down in one layer on a baking pan. Pull and discard the upper half of each claw shell. Add the remaining claws to the baking pan.
• Add the cream to the mixture in the saucepan. Add salt and pepper and bring to the boil. Add the lemon juice. Cook about 2 minutes.
• Line a saucepan with a sieve and pour the mixture into the sieve. Rub with a rubber spatula to extract as much liquid as possible. There should be about 1 cup. Discard the solids.
• Put the sauce on the stove and bring to the simmer. Swirl in the butter and tarragon.
• Spoon the sauce over the cut portions of each lobster and serve.