Creamy Crawfish Bisque

Directions

1. Melt 1/2 cup butter in a heavy-bottomed stock pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cook and stir the leek, carrot, and celery in the melted butter until tender, 5 to 7 minutes.
2. As the vegetables cook, melt 1/2 cup butter in a skillet over medium heat. Make a roux by cooking and stirring the flour into the butter until just a little golden, just enough to cook off the flour taste. This is not a heavy gumbo roux.
3. Stir the tarragon, thyme, bay leaf, tomato paste, and cayenne pepper to the vegetable mixture; stir to distribute evenly. Pour the brandy over the mixture; cook and stir until the heat cooks off most of the brandy, 2 to 3 minutes. Pour 1 cup of the fish stock over the mixture.
4. Pour the hot mixture into a blender, filling the pitcher no more than halfway. Hold the lid of the blender in place with a folded kitchen towel and carefully start the blender, using a few quick pulses to get the mixture moving before leaving it on to puree. Puree in batches until smooth and pour back into the stock pot. Alternately, you can use a stick blender and puree the mixture in the pot without using the blender.
5. Stir in the roux and 1 cup more of the fish stock to the pureed mixture; return to heat, stirring well.
6. Blend the diced tomatoes and about 3/4 of the crawfish tails together in a blender until smooth; stir into the stock pot. Add the remaining fish stock; stir. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer another 2 to 3 minutes. Stir the heavy cream through the liquid; return to a simmer, but do not allow to come to a boil. Season with the salt and white pepper. Serve hot in bowls garnished with the remaining crawfish tails and the paprika.

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Reviews (5)

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15

vicki

Oct. 4, 2010

"My husband and I love this bisque! We love to try new recipes and we had a great time with this one. Of course we added Good Wine and fresh baked bread. Had the perfect amount of spice. I thought the..." See more tarragon was a perfect complement to the taste. Thankyou for sharing."

6

Trust Me I'm a Foodie

Feb. 26, 2012

"This is excellent. We have full bellies from it now. I loved it. The only thing I did differently was not to blend the crawfish tails. I agree with the previous post that the tarragon really makes a..." See more difference, gives it that restaurant flair. We are Who Dat nation livin in Chicago, missing the NOLA and this really helped satisfy a craving. Delicious, I can't wait to make it again."

4

ConkyJoe

Dec. 6, 2012

"Very rich but outstanding in every way imaginable. I largely followed the recipe other than substituting 2 lbs. wild caught langostino lobster tails for the 1 lb. crawfish tails, and adding 2 tbsp fre..." See moresh oregano since it was either use or lose. Next time around, I would make a few minor adjustments: (i) in step 6, it calls for blending 3/4 of crawfish tails before adding to stock pot . . . would change to no more than 2/3 and probably 1/2 to give more texture & bite; add the remainder of these tails into soup during last simmer step rather than using them as a garnish, and (ii) just do a chop of leek, carrot, and celery rather than mincing them since these are going to be pureed in a blender anyhow. Skeeter, thank you for sharing this exceptional recipe."