Shrimp Bisque For Dinner Tonight.

I developed this recipe while I was in Danville and wanted to make a Mussel Chowder,
but was unable to do so because of the lack of certain key ingredients, namely mussels.
So I substituted shrimp, since that was readily available.


First, I peeled my shrimp and dumped them in a pan of boiling water just until the first bubble of boil came to the surface, maybe two minutes. Then I drained and set them aside.

After that, I dropped the shells into the shrimp water

to simmer for an hour or two.

Here's my cooked shrimp.

And here are the shells simmering and imparting their shrimpy flavor to the stock.

I took a little trip through the garden and came back with
(from top left and clockwise) bay leaves, parsley,
oregano, sage, and rosemary.

I added the fresh herbs to the shrimp stock.

Then I added some celery, carrots, and onions with the peel, and some salt and pepper.

Keep on simmering.

Now here are the ingredients going into my bisque.

I chopped the onions, carrots,
mushrooms, celery, pepper, and garlic.

First, I sauteed the mushrooms.

Then, I added the chopped carrots,
celery, peppers, onion, and garlic.

Give it a good stir.

Next, I added about a cup of wine.

Then I poured in the shrimp stock through a strainer.

Add in the diced potatoes and
simmer until taters are tender.

I made a roux - just melted 2 TB butter
and added 2 TB flour and cooked it to get rid
of the raw taste of the flour.

Add the roux to the mix and cook a bit to thicken.

After the mixture has thickened,
add in heavy cream and stir.

Finally, add in the cooked shrimp
and heat through.

Now, here are my toppings:
from top left I have a jar of Paprika Oil,
then some chopped parsley, some chopped red onions,
chopped green onions, and a jar of saffron.

For the Paprika Oil, just heat paprika in a skillet, being careful not to burn it,
then remove from heat and add oil.
Keep refrigerated.

Ladle shrimp bisque into a bowl.
Garnish with toppings.

I couldn't decide which picture I liked best.

So I used all three.

And this was some kind of good.