A Christmas Eve tradition in my family is a Maine lobster stew dinner. This year I made my lobster stew and packed it up for our trip down to Rhode Island to spend Christmas in my son Nate's new house. Now that the stew is done (and my hands are recovering from breaking all those prickly lobster shells), here is the way we "do lobster stew" for 4 people.
Keeley's Maine Lobster Christmas Eve Stew
4 cooked lobsters, preferably hard shell (at least 1.25 pounds each) Add a lobster for each person you serve. (This is actually quite meaty- 1 lobster for 2 will actually suffice)
3 cans evaporated milk (add more if you add more lobster)
1 cup regular milk
1 stick of butter
4 T of sherry (or more to taste)
1 T of paprika
Add salt to taste
1. First you have to pick out the lobster meat and capture the "juice". I rinse my cooled lobsters off in the sink before I begin. As I crack my lobsters and take out the meat, I also capture some of the water inside the shell that has the salty taste of sea water and the lobster "juice". This adds a lot of flavor to the stew. I put the meat and juice into a bowl (the juice should not be so much that it covers the meat. I estimate I save about half a cup of liquid). Now I am not a big fan of tomalley. Some people like it and if so, you can add it to the meat. The green color doesn't change the color of the stew. I scoop the tomalley out of the bodies, discard it, and save the bodies and cracked shells to set aside for later.
2. Cut the lobster meat up into stew size pieces - whatever size you prefer.
3. Melt 1 stick of butter (yes, real butter. It is just not the same if you use margerine. Those of us who are cholesterol conscious make an exception for this!). Add the lobster meat with juice and add the paprika. Simmer for about 15 minutes. Add more sherry if desired. The lobster meat that has some of the red tinge on it will add more orange color to the stew. Add more paprika if you like a darker orange. Stir in 2 cans of evaporated milk. Cool and set aside overnight for flavors
4. Meantime, put the saved shells into a large pot and add the milk and one can of evaporated milk. Simmer for 30 minutes. Cover and put in fridge or set in a cold place for 24 hours to soak.
5. After 24 hours, warm up the lobster , milk, and sherry mixture. Strain the liquid in the shells and reserve one cup of "lobster milk broth". Add to the stew mixture and reheat. Add salt to taste although with the juice that contains some salty Maine sea salts, it really isn't necessary to add salt.
The stew is now ready to serve, freeze, or in my case- pack in a cooler ready to take to Rhode Island for Christmas Eve! Serve with a nice crusty bread and salad!
Photos: Serving of Xmas Lobster Stew, picked lobster meat, soaking lobster bodies in the pot, cooked lobsters in the sink ready for picking!
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