Caribbean Stuffed Lobster
There’s a reason fine chefs tournee vegetables: they cook evenly and quickly. This elegant dish uses the lobster tail shells to hold seafood stuffing, topped with lobster medallions cooked in garlic butter. The mango and avocado in the stuffing add Caribbean flavor.
Ingredients
- Vegetables
- Baby Zucchini - 6
- Baby Potatoes - 6, peeled
- Baby Carrots - 6, peeled
- Maine or Caribbean lobsters - two, 1-1/2 - 2 pound, whole
- Dry white wine - 1 cup
- Red Wine - 1 cup
- Red Onions - 1 small, diced
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Stuffing
- Butter - 4 tablespoons
- Red Onions - 1/2, small, minced
- All-Purpose Flour - 2 tablespoons
- Light Cream - 1-1/2 cups
- Dry white wine - 1/2 cup
- Salt - 1/4 teaspoon
- Red Onion - 1/2, minced
- Butter - 4 tablespoons
- Scallops - 4 ounces, cut in large chunks
- Crab Meat - 4 ounces, cut in large chunks
- Shrimp - 6 large, deveined, and cut in large pieces
- Avocado - 4 ounces, cubed
- Mangos - 4 ounces, cubed
- Mushrooms - 2 ounce, cut in large pieces
- Garlic Butter - 2 tablespoons (see Basics)
- Salt - 2 teaspoons
- Freshly ground black pepper - 2 teaspoons
- Bread Crumbs - 8 tablespoons
Instructions
To make the vegetables: Peel and tournee the vegetables: Cut them into uniform 2-inch oblongs. In 2 small saute pans bring water to a boil and add the carrots and potatoes, one pan for each. Cook 5 - 7 minutes, until just tender. Remove from heat, drain, plunge into cold water, drain again, and set aside. Repeat with the zucchini, cooking only 2 - 3 minutes.
To prepare the lobster: Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil and add the wine, onion, and pepper. Hold lobster right-side up on a work surface. Quickly insert the point of a sharp knife into the lobster’s shell in the center of the cross mark behind the head to kill the lobster. Place in the boiling water and cook for 7 - 8 minutes. Remove with tongs and drain. Repeat with second lobster. With a sharp knife, split the lobster in half lengthwise. Remove the meat from the claws and set aside. Remove the meat from the tails, remove the black vein, and cut the tails into medallions. Clean the shell halves.
To make the stuffing: In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and saute the diced one-half onion until softened and translucent. Whisk in the flour, reduce the heat to low, and cook, whisking constantly, for 2 minutes. Do not allow it to brown. Whisk in the cream, white wine, and salt, and decrease the heat to medium-low. Cook for 7 - 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it thickens and coats the back of a spoon. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, saute second one-half onion in butter until softened and translucent. Stir in the scallops, crabmeat, and shrimp, and saute for 2 minutes. Add the avocado, mango, and mushrooms, and stir. Pour the sauce through a fine-meshed sieve into the seafood, and toss gently to coat.
To finish: In a small saute pan over medium heat melt 1 tablespoon of butter and add the tourneed vegetables, tossing to coat. Saute 2 minutes to warm through. Preheat the broiler on high. Stuff the seafood filling into the lobster shells. Melt the garlic butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat and saute the lobster medallions for 1 minute, until lightly browned. Place on top of the seafood stuffing. Sprinkle with bread crumbs, drizzle with the melted garlic butter, and broil until golden brown, about 1 minute.
To serve: Place two lobster halves on each serving plate. Garnish plates with the tourneed vegetables.
