Lobster Macaroni And Cheese Or Crawfish Recipes

HOW TO MAKE MAINE'S BEST LOBSTER MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Bring water to a boil and add salt. Cook pasta a 2-3 minutes less than what the directions state (before al dente). Use tongs to agitate the pasta a couple times to prevent sticking.
• Pour pasta into colander and shock with cold water until cool. Drain and set aside.
• Bring milk, bay leaf and garlic to a gentle simmer
• Remove from pan and allow flavors to infuse for 15 minutes
• Melt butter in a saucepan and add shallots. Saute until shallots are translucent has thickened
• Incorporate flour with a whisk. Cook at low temperature until flour is golden in color. Add brandy
• Slowly whisk milk into flour mixture until fully incorporated
• Cook for 10-15 minutes on low heat, whisking often, until sauce has thickened
• Add cayenne and black pepper (Note: wait until the end to add salt, lobster will add lots of flavor)
• Add lobster and cook in sauce until lobster is close to desired texture
• Finally add cheese and then add the cooked pasta and stir to combine

LOBSTER MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling, stir in the macaroni, and return to a boil. Cook the pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through, but is still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Reserve about 2 cups of the hot pasta water, then drain the pasta in a colander set in the sink, and rinse with cold water to cool. Set aside.
• Return the pasta water to the large pot, and place the lobster halves in the pot, cut-side up. Return the water to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and steam the lobster just until the meat firms and turns opaque, about 3 minutes. Remove the lobster and allow to cool for a few minutes, then remove the meat and cut into bite sized pieces. Reserve the shells.
• Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion and cook until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes; scrape the onions into a small bowl and set aside. Place the reserved lobster shells, garlic, shallots, peppercorns, and milk into the saucepan. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat, and cook for 20 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Melt 5 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk in the flour, and stir until the mixture becomes paste-like and light golden brown, about 10 minutes. Strain the milk through a mesh sieve. Gradually whisk the milk into the flour mixture, and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook and stir until the mixture is thick and smooth, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Stir the Gruyere, Cheddar, and Romano cheeses into the thickened milk mixture until melted and smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then stir in the reserved lobster, onions, and macaroni. Pour the macaroni into a 4 quart casserole and smooth the top. Sprinkle evenly with the panko crumbs.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the sauce is bubbly, and the top is golden brown, 8 to 12 minutes.

LOBSTER MACARONI AND CHEESE (OR CRAWFISH)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a large casserole dish.
• Meanwhile, in large saucepan, to make the roux, melt 6 tablespoons of butter, whisk in the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring quickly with a whisk.
• Still whisking, add the milk, lobster juice, and cook for a minute or two more, until thick and smooth. Turn the heat to low, whisk in all of the cheese, salt and pepper to taste and nutmeg or cayenne. Add the cooked/drained pasta and lobster meat and mix well. Place in the casserole dish.
• Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, combine with the fresh bread crumbs, and sprinkle on the top. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the sauce is bubbly and brown. Top with fresh parsley or cilantro.

LOBSTER MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Drizzle oil into a large pot of boiling salted water. Add the pasta and cook according to the directions on the package, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain well.
• Meanwhile, heat the milk in a small saucepan, but don't boil it. In a large pot, melt 6 tablespoons of butter and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. Still whisking, add the hot milk and cook for a minute or two more, until thickened and smooth. Off the heat, add the Gruyere, Cheddar, 1 tablespoon salt, the pepper, and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and lobster and stir well. Place the mixture in 6 to 8 individual gratin dishes.
• Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, combine them with the fresh bread crumbs, and sprinkle on the top. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top.

CRAWFISH MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot filled with water to a boil over high heat; salt it generously. Add the macaroni and cook according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
• Preheat the broiler to high.
• Heat a Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter, then add the onions. Cook until the onions soften, 2 to 3 minutes. Then stir in the garlic, mustard, 1/2 teaspoon salt and the pepper and cook for another minute. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon butter to the pan to melt. Sprinkle the flour over the butter and stir until it turns a deep blonde color and has a nutty aroma, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the milk. Cook, whisking frequently, until it starts to thicken. Then add the cream and thicken for another 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the cheeses until melted. Add the crawfish to the sauce, and then fold in the macaroni until coated. Remove from the heat.
• Divide the mac and cheese among 8 large ramekins or cast-iron skillets. Broil until the tops of the noodles are golden brown and bubbly. Let cool slightly, then serve warm.

EMERIL'S SEAFOOD MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook macaroni 2 minutes less than al dente. Drain; rinse with cold water. Set aside.
• While pasta is cooking, melt butter over medium in a large saucepan. Transfer 2 tablespoons melted butter to a medium bowl, and reserve. Add onion and garlic to pan; cook until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add flour; cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add milk; whisk until smooth. Bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer, and cook until sauce has thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Season with 3/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and nutmeg.
• Remove pan from heat. Fold in seafood, macaroni, and cheese; transfer to a shallow 4-quart baking dish. To bowl with reserved melted butter, add breadcrumbs and Creole seasoning; toss, and scatter over macaroni mixture. Place baking dish on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until topping is golden and sauce is bubbling, 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.

LOBSTER MAC & CHEESE

Steps:

• Take the lobster and twist the claws off, then use a rolling pin to crack the claws and pick the meat out. Peel the tail, exposing and removing the fleshy meat. Roughly chop all of the meat, then cover and set aside in a bowl in the fridge. Bash all the pieces of shell with the rolling pin to break them up a bit.
• Heat the oil in large frying pan over a high heat, add the onion and a large pinch of salt and cook for around five minutes until softened and well coloured, then add the lobster shell and fry for a couple of minutes more. Add the cayenne pepper and tomato purée and stir to coat everything, the turn the heat down to medium and add the milk. Stir well, then remove from the heat when it is just coming to a simmer and set aside for 30 mins to infuse. Meanwhile, mix the garlic, olive oil and lemon zest together with some seasoning to make the breadcrumb topping, then set aside. Strain the milk mixture into a jug and discard the shell.
• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Boil the macaroni in salted water until it has a slight bite (around two minutes less than on the packet instructions), drain and set aside. Melt the butter in a large frying pan over a medium heat until foaming, then add the wine and cook for 5 minutes until the wine has reduced by half, then whisk in the flour to make a sandy paste. Turn down the heat and pour the strained milk into the pan a little at a time, whisking constantly and allowing each addition of milk to be fully absorbed before adding any more.
• Add the chopped lobster meat, mustard, crab and cheese. Stir well until the cheese has melted, then season to taste. Tip in the macaroni and stir to coat everything in the sauce. Tip into an ovenproof baking dish (or six small ones) and top with a sprinkling of grated cheese and the garlic breadcrumbs. Bake for 20 mins until golden and bubbling, then allow to cool a little before serving.

CHEF JOHN'S LOBSTER MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Butter 2 gratin dishes.
• Heat oil in a skillet over high heat. Cook lobster tails in skillet until slightly golden and about halfway cooked-through, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer tails to a plate to rest. When cool enough to handle, remove lobster meat from shells and chop meat. Reserve shells.
• Melt 2 tablespoons butter in the same skillet over medium heat. Whisk in flour; cook and stir until a paste forms and flour taste cooks off, 1 to 2 minutes. Add cold milk to flour mixture; whisk until completely incorporated. Bring to a simmer; reduce heat to low, and stir in paprika, nutmeg, and cayenne pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thick, 3 to 4 minutes. Season sauce with salt.
• Stir Cheddar cheese and Gruyere cheese into milk mixture until cheese is melted. Remove from heat and stir Worcestershire sauce into cheese sauce.
• Bring a large pot of water with reserved lobster tails and a pinch of salt to a boil. Cook elbow macaroni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally, until cooked through but firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Remove and discard lobster shells, drain pasta.
• Stir macaroni into cheese sauce with thyme leaves. Divide macaroni mixture between the 2 prepared gratin dishes. Top macaroni with chopped lobster meat, poking meat down into macaroni mixture with a fork.
• Stir bread crumbs and melted butter together in a bowl. Add Parmesan cheese and stir. Top each gratin dish with bread crumb mixture.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden and bubbly, 15 to 20 minutes.

LOBSTER MAC AND CHEESE

Steps:

• Fill a large pot with salted water and set it over high heat to come to a boil. Plunge lobster into water and cover pot. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, or until it is bright red. Check doneness by pulling an antenna; if it comes off without resistance, the lobster is done. Remove lobster to a bowl and allow to cool.
• Meanwhile, heat oven to 375 degrees, with a rack in the upper third of the oven. Use a tablespoon of butter to butter a 9-by-13-inch-square baking pan.
• In a blender, purée cottage cheese, milk, mustard, cayenne and nutmeg, and lightly season with salt and pepper. Transfer mixture to a large bowl, add grated cheese and uncooked pasta and stir well to combine. Pour into prepared pan, cover tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, crack lobster claws and tail over the bowl and remove the meat, reserving all liquid that comes out of the lobster. Roughly chop lobster meat.
• Uncover baking pan, gently stir in lobster meat and up to 2 tablespoons of the reserved lobster juices, and dot with remaining tablespoon of butter. Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes more, until browned on top. Let cool for 15 to 20 minutes before serving.