On shellfish stock......
Anytime I have leftover lobster or shrimp shells I'll pop them in the freezer and accumulate them over time. Once I have a good amount stored up I take them out of the freezer and make stock out of it. The shells from lobsters or shrimps are items that normally get thrown away, but I find that they hold a great deal of flavor and can be made into a base for many dishes like risottos, seafood stews, pilafs, sauces or soups.
Here's what you'll need: onions, peppers, bay leaves, peppercorns, tomatoes, chilies (or pepper flakes), white wine, garlic, basil, and any aromatic spices ( I like saffron & paprika). What you want to do is get a sauce pot going with some evoo and add your shells(make sure is nice and hot), if your using lobster shells and heads its best if you crush them into small bits ahead of time. The reason being is that the surface area exposed to the heat is greater when the shells are crushed; which in return allows for more caramelization to happen and more caramelization= better flavor depending on the application. With your shells in the pot you want to toast them (not burn) over medium high heat for about 4 minutes constantly stirring, at this point add in your garlic and basil. Brown the garlic and add the rest of your aromatics. Once they begin to sweat either add any leftover shell stock you have laying around, water, or light chicken stock. Be sure to fully submerge the ingredients in liquid and then add some extra liquid on top of that. Cook the shellfish stock on a very light simmer, you never want to boil your stock. You will extract the same amount of flavor whether you boil your stock or cook it at a low simmer. After simmering for 45 minutes strain through a china cap and then strain again through a fine mesh one. You can always freeze your stock and take it out as needed. If you want a stronger flavored stock, instead of using water use any shell fish stock you have from a previous production.
You can use the same technique to make a mussel or clam stock; the only difference is that you want to take out the mussels or clams as soon as they open. Strain the liquid and remove the meat from the shells. I like to reduce the liquid to concentrate the flavor.These last two days I've been running a calamari special which i served with crispy potatoes, squid ink vinaigrette, and a mussel and saffron reduction. I used the stock i made from the mussels and i reduced it on pick up with some cream, saffron, chili flakes, and brine liquid from some cherry bomb peppers. I mounted the sauce with butter and threw in some of the meat from the mussels i used to make the stock.
Its fun to experiment with different aromatics when making shell fish stock. There are so many routes you can take with this technique. Anyways.....here are a couple pictures of the special.
Here's what you'll need: onions, peppers, bay leaves, peppercorns, tomatoes, chilies (or pepper flakes), white wine, garlic, basil, and any aromatic spices ( I like saffron & paprika). What you want to do is get a sauce pot going with some evoo and add your shells(make sure is nice and hot), if your using lobster shells and heads its best if you crush them into small bits ahead of time. The reason being is that the surface area exposed to the heat is greater when the shells are crushed; which in return allows for more caramelization to happen and more caramelization= better flavor depending on the application. With your shells in the pot you want to toast them (not burn) over medium high heat for about 4 minutes constantly stirring, at this point add in your garlic and basil. Brown the garlic and add the rest of your aromatics. Once they begin to sweat either add any leftover shell stock you have laying around, water, or light chicken stock. Be sure to fully submerge the ingredients in liquid and then add some extra liquid on top of that. Cook the shellfish stock on a very light simmer, you never want to boil your stock. You will extract the same amount of flavor whether you boil your stock or cook it at a low simmer. After simmering for 45 minutes strain through a china cap and then strain again through a fine mesh one. You can always freeze your stock and take it out as needed. If you want a stronger flavored stock, instead of using water use any shell fish stock you have from a previous production.
You can use the same technique to make a mussel or clam stock; the only difference is that you want to take out the mussels or clams as soon as they open. Strain the liquid and remove the meat from the shells. I like to reduce the liquid to concentrate the flavor.These last two days I've been running a calamari special which i served with crispy potatoes, squid ink vinaigrette, and a mussel and saffron reduction. I used the stock i made from the mussels and i reduced it on pick up with some cream, saffron, chili flakes, and brine liquid from some cherry bomb peppers. I mounted the sauce with butter and threw in some of the meat from the mussels i used to make the stock.
Its fun to experiment with different aromatics when making shell fish stock. There are so many routes you can take with this technique. Anyways.....here are a couple pictures of the special.
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