41. Shrimp (Crab) Bisque

I had a request for Lobster Bisque. I decided to use a recipe that I had for Shrimp Bisque from the Better Homes and Gardens Soups and Stews Cook Book and substitute lobster for the shrimp. I wasn’t able to get lobster meat, so I used a lump crab meat instead.

Shrimp (Crab) Bisque

1 cup chopped celery
1 cup diced potato
½ cup chopped onion
2 cups milk
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 8 oz package frozen thawed precooked shrimp, thawed
2 tablespoons butter

In saucepan combine celery, potato, onion, 1 cup water, ½ teaspoon salt, and a dash of pepper. Bring to boiling. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 15 minutes or till potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally. Blend milk and flour; stir into potato mixture. Add shrimp and butter. Cook and stir till thickened and bubbly. Garnish with snipped parsley, if desired. Makes 4 servings.

Changes and Shortcuts: The only change I made was substituting an 8 oz container of lump crab meat for the shrimp. As I usually do, to save time I chopped the celery and onions in the morning before work. Since there was only one potato to be dealt with, I left that until I was ready to cook.

Results: For some reason, I never have much luck when the recipe says “cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.” That never happened with this soup. Instead of just mixing the flour and milk and adding the butter at the end, I think it might work better to make a roux, add the milk, then add that to the soup. Although it wasn’t as thick and bubbly as I had imagined, it was a good soup, quick to make, and I think I like this better with crab than I would with shrimp.

Keeper? YES!