Lobster at Home by Jasper White (Creamy Lobster Succotash Recipe)

This week will be Lobster at Home by Jasper White. White is a notable authority on New England food and the history of seafood in that area. Printed in 1998, this a pretty great guide for everything revolving around Maine lobsters, Homarus americanus. This lobster is different from the spiny lobsters found on the west coast. Maine lobsters are famous for their claws as well as their tails.

Lobster at Home Chapters and Contents

There are 7 chapters in Lobster at Home with an introduction and mail order source guide. Amazingly enough, of all the suppliers he recommends 21 years ago when this book came out, only 2 look to be out of business or don’t have a web presence at all.

The chapters include: The Lobster Primer; Basic Cooking Techniques; Soups, Broths, Chowders, and a Bisque; Hot Appetizers and Small Dishes; Lobster Salads, Sandwiches, Cold Plates and Composed Salads; Classic Main Courses; and Great Lobsters from Great Chefs.

In the first two chapters you’ll get a good grasp on Maine lobster fishing, how and when to buy lobsters, lobster anatomy, and basic techniques for boiling, steaming, microwaving (steaming), and grilling lobsters, as well as how to cut up a live lobster and remove meat from a cooked lobster.

The recipes inside Lobster at Home are solid (which is why I snapped it up at a used book store, score!!) but if you are looking for a cookbook with lots of fancy colored pictures for each dish, this is not one of them. There are a few pictures tucked in the middle of the book, though, and all the illustrations of techniques are clear and precise.

White’s stories and notes throughout the cookbook add a helping hand to the reader, and also makes for great reading. As for the last chapter, you’ll find recipes from other notable chefs with a little history about them and their dish. Rick Bayless, Wolfgang Puck, Joel Robuchon, Daniel Boulud, Larry Forgione, and Emeril Lagasse are just some of them and each recipe brings an international touch to the cookbook.

All in all, Lobster at Home is a great cookbook devoted to the Maine lobster. Below is book information and a selected recipe adapted from the cookbook.

Creamy Lobster Succotash Recipe

I’m a succotash fan, and the Cream Lobster Succotash recipe is quick to put together with a few advance prep ingredients. If you know you’ll have fresh lobster on any given day and you’re too busy to make a long meal, then prepare the succotash the day before and warm it up before adding in the cooked lobster. Serves 4 to 6 as a side dish, less for a main course.

 

Ingredients

  

• 2 pounds fresh lima beans
• 1 live 1 pound lobster
• 4 ounces green beans
• 2 large ears sweet corn
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 small onion finely diced
• 3/4 cup savory lobster broth or quick lobster stock see book for recipes
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon cold water
• Salt and pepper
• Cayenne pepper

Instructions

 

• Shell the lima beans and blanch in lightly salted water until tender. Drain, then reserve.
• Cook the lobster and let it cool. Remove the meat and cut into 1/2 inch chunks. Reserve for the recipe.
• Trim the green beans and boil in lightly salted water until tender. Drain, and then shock in ice water. Drain, and then cut into 1/2 inch pieces.
• Husk the corn, remove the silk, and cut all the kernels off with a sharp knife. Scrape the cob with the back of a heavy chef's knife to remove as much of the milk and kernels remnants that you can. You should have 1 1/2 cups total.
• Cook the onions in the butter over medium heat in heavy saucepan. Cook until the onions are tender. Add in the corn, lobster broth, and the cream. Bring the mixture to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Add in the shelled lima beans and simmer for another 5 minutues. Mix the cornstarch with the water together and add it to the corn mixture. Bring it back to a boil and season as desired.
• Mix in the green beans and lobster meat to warm up. Remove from heat and serve.

Notes

Note: you can use fresh cranberry beans or other shell beans in place of the Lima beans - whatever you can find fresh at your market.

Book Info

• Title:Lobster at Home by Jasper White.
  
• Publisher:Scribner; 1998.
  
• ISBN:0684800772
• Notes:Available in hardback.
  
• Find it on Amazon: Lobster at Home by Jasper White .
• Find it on Book Depository:

This book came from my personal collection



Enjoy,

Renee Shelton
Succotash Reviews
:)
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