Kabocha Pumpkin Lobster Bisque
SoCal Dive Babes Catch & Cook Recipe
by Mitsuki “The Lazy Seal” Hara
Photos by Shelby JungersChef’s Note
“This Kabocha Pumpkin Lobster Bisque is one of my most favorite dish to make because it is based on my mother’s kabocha soup recipe - with flavors that always flood me with childhood memories of being with my family. I customized her kabocha soup recipe with speared / harvested SoCal sea food, so that someday when my family visits me from Japan, she can enjoy the taste of SoCal sea food and her familia kabocha soup together.
Being new to spearfishing, Fin + Forage has been a very helpful platform to learn about spearfishing, harvesting seafood in California and how to enjoy it in the best way possible. I am honored to give my recipe to their team, because I know this platform has been and will help so many spearos / spearas. It is meaningful to me to donate my knowledge to such people, like other spearos/ spearas did for me. I am happy to be a part of this beautiful circle of passing knowledge to one another.” - Mitsuki Hara
Ingredients
Japanese sweet potato (regular and purple)
Vegetable oil
Kabocha Pumpkin (pasto 1 cup)
Water
1/2 Stick of Butter
1/2 cup Dry White Wine
1 cup Heavy Cream
1/4 Fennel Bulb
1/2 Yellow Onion
2-4 Cloves Garlic
2 Lobster
4 Medium Scallops
1 White Rock Fish
16 Mussels
Oregano
Sage
3 Bay Leaves
Italian Parsley
Sea Salt
Black Pepper
Red Pepper
Cumin powder
Pumpkin Seeds
Crispy Japanese Sweet Potato Chips
Cut the regular and purple Japanese sweet potatoes into very thin slices (8 slices of each color potato)
In a deep pot, heat the vegetable oil until it reaches 160 degrees Celsius
Once hot, place sliced sweet potatoes in the oil and cook for 3-5 minutes until crispy. (Convection oven works too!)
Remove potatoes from the oil and place it on a rack or paper towel to remove the excess oil.
Sprinkle a pinch of salt and cumin powder to taste
Set Aside
Kabocha Pumpkin Paste
Cut a whole kabocha pumpkin in half and remove the seeds.
Slice the kabocha pumpkin into chunks.
Steam pumpkin for about 20-30 minutes until it gets soft.
Remove from pot and let cool until it is warm to the touch.
Remove the skin from the chunks.
Crush the kabocha to make a paste by pushing the kabocha chunks through a fine mesh strainer.
Lobster Head Preparation
Bring a pot of water to hard boil (enough to submerge the entire lobster heads).
Place the Lobster heads in the boiling water until color turns to bright red.
Take the lobster heads out and quickly rinse it with cool water.
Set Aside.
The Bisque
Roughly cut fennel, sweet onion, and garlic cloves, put them in a food processor and chop it until it becomes a smooth paste. If necessary, add a small amount of water to make this process easier.
Place butter in a deep pot. When the butter melts, add the onion/ fennel/garlic paste. Cook them on medium heat for 10 minutes.
Put fish, scallops, lobster tails, red pepper, black pepper and herbs in the pot. For lobsters, cut an opening down the side to let broth mix into the tails.
Add ½ bottle of white wine in the pot, let alcohol evaporate.
Add 1 1/2 cup of water, close the lid, let it simmer for 20 minutes until all the sea food is cooked.
Take the sea food out from the pot and keep them on a side plate to prevent over cooking them.
Add one cup of heavy cream and one cup of kabocha pumpkin paste in the pot, keep staring until the bisque thickens.
Remove the herbs and add salt to taste.
Plate Preparation
Spoon the finished bisque into a bowl
Place cooked lobster head at the top of the bowl
Place cooked lobster tail opposite the lobster head
Place scallops and muscles in bisque around bottom of the lobster
Garnish with pumpkin seeds and crispy Japanese Sweet Potato Chips
Enjoy