For the past few days my husband and I have been enjoying our stay in a small coastal town on the south shore of Massachusetts. Seafood shops and restaurants abound in this area, so we’ve been indulging in all manner of fish. Over the weekend we planned a lobster lunch for my spouse’s birthday and purchased nine of these crustaceans for the celebration. Unexpectedly, two guests opted not to eat the shellfish, so we had several left over. After removing the glorious cooked meat from these extras, I decided to make a favorite lobster and corn chowder with them.

Traditional corn chowder is elevated to new heights when chunks of tender rosy lobster are added as a garnish. Although potatoes are common in fish chowders, I omitted them so that corn along with lobster are the dominant flavors in this dish. The base of the soup is prepared by sautéing finely diced carrots, celery, and chopped onions in bacon drippings and then adding fresh corn kernels, chicken stock, and cream. As a thickener, some extra corn kernels are processed in a food processor to make a thick puree that is added to this potage as it simmers. When done, each serving is topped with a small mound of lobster and sprinkled with crumbled bacon and chives. This chowder is an indulgence–perfect for special occasions like summer birthdays!

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Lobster and Corn Chowder

4 1/2 cups fresh corn kernels (scraped from 7 to 8 ears of corn)
4 cups chicken stock
5 slices (4 oz) smoked bacon
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup diced carrots (cut into ¼-inch cubes)
1/2 cup diced celery (cut into ¼-inch cubes)
1 tsp kosher salt plus more if needed
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper plus more if needed
1 cup whipping cream
1/4 cup crème fraîche
4 tsp unsalted butter
12 ounces cooked lobster meat (See cooking tip and suggestions for substitutes)
2 tbsp chopped chives

1. Place 2 1/2 cups of the corn kernels and 3/4 cup of the stock in a food processor. Process until it is a thick puree. Set aside.

2. In a large heavy pot (with a lid) set over medium heat, sauté the bacon until crisp. Remove and drain on paper towels. Then chop coarsely. Pour off and discard all but 2 tablespoons of the drippings in the pan, and then add the onions. Sauté them, stirring, until transparent and golden, 3 minutes or more.

3. Add the carrots, celery, remaining 2 cups corn kernels, salt, black and cayenne peppers, and stir a minute more. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and cook (sweat) the vegetables 5 minutes. Add the remaining stock and simmer, uncovered, 5 minutes. Stir in corn puree and the cream, and simmer for another 5 minutes.

4. Remove the pot from the heat and whisk in the crème fraîche. Season the chowder with more salt and cayenne pepper if needed. (Chowder can be made 1 day ahead; cool, cover, and refrigerate. Wrap bacon tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate. Reheat the chowder over low heat, stirring.)

5. To serve, heat the butter until hot in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the lobster meat and stir just to heat through. Ladle the soup into 6 soup bowls and garnish each serving with some lobster meat, crumbled bacon, and a sprinkling of chives.

Serves 6

Cooking tip: Fresh cooked lobster meat is available in many fish markets. You can also cook lobsters yourself. A pound of uncooked lobster will yield about 1/4 pound cooked meat. For this recipe you’ll need to cook 3 pounds of lobster to get 12 ounces of cooked meat.

Substitutions; Other shellfish can be substituted for the lobster meat. Fresh lump crab meat or cooked shrimp would both work. Just sauté in some butter to warm them. You could also use sea scallops (halved crosswise) which you’ll need to sauté for several minutes until cooked through.

Copyright Betty Rosbottom 2024