seafood bisque recipe
Dive spoon‑first into this seafood bisque recipe—a velvety soup loaded with sweet crab, tender shrimp, and a whisper of sherry.
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Servings: 6 bowls
Ingredients
- 340 g / ¾ lb cooked shrimp peeled, deveined, diced
- 340 g / ¾ lb cooked lump crab meat shells removed
- 15 ml / 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 45 g / ⅓ cup celery minced
- 45 g / ⅓ cup carrot minced
- 100 g / ½ cup yellow onion minced
- 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
- 5 g / 1 tsp sweet paprika
- Pinch cayenne optional
- 30 g / ¼ cup all‑purpose flour or gluten‑free blend
- 30 g / 2 Tbsp tomato paste
- 1 L / 4 cups seafood stock or low‑sodium chicken broth
- 240 ml / 1 cup heavy cream
- 30 ml / 2 Tbsp dry sherry optional but dreamy
- Sea salt + cracked pepper to taste
- Fresh parsley chives, or dill—chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Sauté the base
- Warm olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Stir in celery, carrot, and onion; cook 5 minutes until glossy. Add garlic; cook 60 seconds.
- Bloom the flavor
- Mix in tomato paste, paprika, and cayenne. Stir 2 minutes so everything turns brick‑red and fragrant.
- Build the roux
- Sprinkle flour over veggies; stir nonstop 2 minutes to lose the raw taste.
- Whisk in stock
- Pour broth little by little, whisking to dodge lumps. Bring to a gentle bubble, then drop heat and simmer 12 minutes until slightly thick.
- Finish with cream + seafood
- Stir in sherry (if using) and cream; keep heat on low so it never boils. Fold in shrimp and crab; warm 5 minutes.
- Season & serve
- Taste, add salt and pepper, ladle into warm bowls, and shower with fresh herbs. Pass crusty baguette for swooping every last silky drop.
Notes
Stock swap: half seafood, half vegetable stock amplifies ocean flavor while keeping things light.
Texture tip: blitz half the soup with an immersion blender before adding seafood for ultra‑smooth luxe.
Lighter route: sub half‑and‑half for cream; bisque stays silky, calories dip.
The seafood bisque recipe freezes well minus the cream—stir cream in after reheating for fresh decadence.
From date‑night starter to Christmas Eve centerpiece, this seafood bisque recipe is proof a pot of soup can taste like a seaside holiday. Gather your crustaceans, pour the cream, and let that savory steam tell everyone something special is on the stove tonight.