A Lovely Lobster Stock Recipe

Lobster Stock

I've always thought it a shame and a waste to simply discard lobster shells after a lobster dinner as there is so much flavor and goodness locked inside.  If you have the time, this recipe will give you a beautiful lobster stock which you can add to a variety of seafood dishes or freeze for use at a later date.  It is a build on a lobster stock recipe from the Maine Lobster Marketing Collaborative website and based in part on the ingredients I had to hand at the time.

The key to creating a good lobster stock is to give it time, to taste it at different stages and to be creative.   As I've read, making stock is more of an art than a science, and there is no precise amount of aromatic to use (the basic French aromatics are celery, onion and carrot but as you can see I've used a much larger variety of ingredients to make this stock).

Maine Lobster Stock Recipe

• The shells of at least four lobsters (I removed the tomalley and the white interior of the bodies. Be sure to include all the lobster legs as there is a lot of flavor locked inside the legs)
• 2 cups white wine 
• enough water to cover the bodies
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 carrots, diced
• 4 stalks celery, diced
• 1 can of tomatoes 
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• 8 sprigs of thyme
• 6 sprigs Parsley 
• 1 can of clam juice 
• a quirt of tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• a small bit of flour
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Place the cooked shells of four to six lobsters (with the tomalley and the white interior of the bodies removed) into a large pot.  Add two cups of white wine then enough water to cover the shells and bring to a boil.  Once boiling, lower the heat and simmer for one hour.

After one hour, add in the additional ingredients and continue to simmer for at least another one or two hours, tasting frequently and adding additional ingredients as needed. 

If possible, let the stock sit in the refrigerator overnight before incorporating it into another recipe.  I recently used this stock for a lobster bouillabaisse and it made for a delicious soup.