This recipe is based on a bisque that I originally had in Halifax, NS, at Cafe Chianti, in 2008 while in town for a conference. I happened to go there the first night, and tried the lobster bisque, which took me back to the restaurant twice more during my 4 day stay.

It’s been a long time since I was there, so I’m not sure if this is quite as good as the original, but it’s satisfying to me and regularly complimented.

I normally make this recipe with lobster as per the original, but on the day that photos were shot was using crayfish.

Crayfish or Lobster Bisque with fennnel

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Servings:

Ingredients

2 tbsp Butter
1 Spanish Onion diced
1 small bulb fennel chopped
1 Cubanelle Pepper diced
1 Sheppard Pepper diced
4 roma tomatoes diced
4 cloves Garlic peeled and minced
4-6 oz crayfish shells removed, flesh chopped and reserved (or 2 4lobster tails)
4 cups Chicken Stock
1 oz pernod or sambucca
2 oz heavy cream or crème fraiche

Instructions

Melt butter in small stockpot
Saute onions until they are golden
Add fennel, tomatoes, garlic, and peppers and cook until they are soft
Add shells and cook until they are orange
Add stock and simmer for 10 minutes
Put into a blender and pulse until the shells are broken, then blend for 3 – 5 minutes until the shells are pulverized.
Strain through a sieve and heat to simmering
Add the reserved chopped crayfish or lobster flesh and cook for 3 minutes
Remove from heat and stir in the pernod (or other licorice liqueur)
Serve with a splash of cream