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Chef Mark McEwan says that this Lobster Poutine recipe was a happy accident.
One night, “desperately hungry after a dinner service,” McEwan and his team threw together leftover French fries, bearnaise sauce and butter-braised lobster. “It turned out to be a match made in heaven,” says McEwan. “We put a spin on it by creating a bowl from the lobster shells and then oven roasting the shell to draw out the aroma, which intensified the flavour.”
You can’t make a great poutine without great gravy. What are your top tips? “Pan gravy is all about the brown bits! Roast the pan over heat to clarify the fat and brown the bottom to a beautiful golden colour. Once the fat is clear, drop 90 per cent of it out of the pan and return to heat. Add a tablespoon of allpurpose flour and mix with remaining fat and liquid.
“Allow to foam and then deglaze with a cup of dry white wine and reduce by 60 per cent and burn off all alcohol. Add two cups of good neutral stock or water. Scrap all bits off the bottom of pan and sides working over medium heat. At this point check, your salt and pepper levels and gauge your thickness. It should just lightly coat the back of a spoon.”
Any finishing touches?
“I like to carefully put in a
blender and blitz until smooth, this helps intensify the flavour and gives the sauce a light frothy body. Strain and serve. I typically have bits of garlic and caramelized onion and or shallots in my pan so this all gets blitzed in the blender and then strained. This makes a great pan gravy.”
What would you serve with it?
“The best side dish is something light and refreshing as a contrast like a green salad with fine herbs and a shallot vinaigrette. Very refreshing! For wine, I’d go with a creamy Chardonnay or Champagne.”
Lobster Poutine
2 large Yukon Gold potatoes, about 20 oz (600 g) total,
scrubbed
2 cups (500 mL) clarified butter
2 egg yolks
1 tbsp (15 mL) gastrique
1/2 tsp (2 mL) lemon juice
3 drops each Tabasco and Worcestershire sauce Pinch each of salt and white pepper
1 tbsp (15 mL) chopped tarragon 1 live lobster, about 1-1/2 lb (625 g), par-cooked and shelled, tail shell reserved
1 tbsp (15 mL) chopped chives
Par-cook the French fries.
Lobster basket (optional): Preheat oven to 400 F (200 C). With sharp kitchen shears, trim away and discard the n-translucent underside of the tail shell, then cut the hard shell in half lengthwise. Rinse well and shake dry. Puncture a hole in each shell half near the broad top of the tail and then
through its tail fan. Arrange the two halves side by side with their tail fans pointing in opposite directions, the split top of the shell facing outward and what used to be its underside touching at centre.
Make it circular by joining the two shell sections together end to end, bending them one at a time so that tail fan overlaps the adjoining tail base and the holes line up. Tie them together, then repeat at the second join. Place the basket on a baking sheet, brush with some of the butter, and roast until dry and fragrant, about 10 minutes.
Heat half the butter to 120 F (50 C). Place a stainless-steel bowl over a pot of simmering water, add the egg yolks and gastrique, and whisk until the mixture thickens and turns pale yellow. Remove bowl from heat, and while whisking continuously, slowly add the warm butter. Stir in lemon juice, Tabasco, Worcestershire, salt, pepper, and tarragon and set the béarnaise aside in a warm place.
Heat the remaining butter to 170 F (75 C). Cut the lobster meat into bite-size pieces and add to the butter to heat through. Finish cooking the French fries, then drain and toss with salt.
Place the lobster basket at the centre of a warm plate or simply scatter the plate lightly with some of the chives.
Add half the fries, then scatter half the butter-poached lobster and dabs of béarnaise on top. Make another layer, finishing with a generous smattering of béarnaise, and finally the remaining chives.
Optional: If the lobster is female, sauté the roe and sprinkle it over the poutine along with the chives.
Makes two servings.
Gastrique
1 cup (250 mL) white wine
1/2 cup (125 mL) red wine vinegar
2 shallots, sliced
2 bay leaves
2 tsp (10 mL) kosher salt
1 tsp (5 mL) granulated sugar
1 tsp (5 mL) peppercorns
Combine all ingredients, bring to a boil, then simmer gently to reduce by half. Strain and cool. Keeps indefinitely in the refrigerator.
Makes 2/3 cup (175ml).
Chef Mark McEwan is a Torontobased chef, entrepreneur, mentor and writer of best-selling cookbooks. He is a freelance contributor for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: