Warm Lobster Tacos With Guacamole

Recipe: Warm Lobster Tacos With Guacamole
Page: 231
Date Cooked: Monday, August 6, 2010

From my initial skim of "A Great American Cook," it was obvious from the get-go that Jonathan Waxman has an affinity for lobster, chilies, and guacamole. So it came with little surprise that he combined those three items to come up with this recipe.

Ingredients: Live lobsters, onions, tomatoes, shallots, jalapeno chilies, cilantro, poblano chilies, avocados, lime, sea salt, corn tortillas, and olive oil

I think any recipe that calls for something to be alive can come with some trepidation. The trick with lobster though is put it in the freezer long enough for them to be slow (but of course not dead) and then when the water is boiling drop them in. This was the right method for me. It minimizes any thrashing or boiling water spillage.

Two medium sized Maine lobsters

The rest of the recipe called for lots of chopping. However, while you chop, a reduction of onion, lobster shells, and two cups of the lobster cooking water are placed on the stove, allowing you to use your time somewhat wisely.

The components of the reduction

Jonathan Waxman instructs you to blacken and blister some poblano and jalapeno chilies. I hadn't used this technique before and was intrigued by what would come of this. Once the chilies have achieved a blackened and blistered state, they are steamed in their own heat. The next part was the most interesting. You peel the skin by hand, stem, seed, and then cut into strips.

Process of blackening, blistering, steaming, peeling, stemming, and seeding the chilies

While the chilies and the tomato salsa (more on that later) appeared to be a bit of a tedious process, the guacamole was quite simple - avocados, salt to taste, cilantro, and lime. Now remember that lobster broth reduction we have going, well here is where that comes in. In a large bowl, tomatoes, shallots, jalapenos, and cilantro have been chopped, mixed, and tossed. Almost a quarter of the reduced lobster broth is then added to the tomato mixture. The tortillas were then placed in the oven to warm. And finally, the strips of chilies and lobster meat are heated over the stove with some olive oil.

Guacamole, tomato salsa, and lobster meat with chilies

Our three main components are now ready for taco assembly and here is the final product:

Warm Lobster Taco with Guacamole.

The verdict....

The warm lobster tacos with guacamole were good. However, they were not worth the effort. The one place I thought the recipe would really shine was the addition of the lobster broth reduction to the tomato salsa. Who doesn't love lobster? And then adding some more of that wonderful lobster flavor to the salsa. Well, that should really make it sing. Unfortunately, I found reducing the lobster broth and adding it to the tomato salsa was a waste of time and effort. It added no extra dimension that couldn't be found in the lobster meat itself. There was also a large amount of tomato salsa left over after assembly, making me think the proportions were slightly off.

The blackening and blistering of the chilies - while that wasn't the most time consuming aspect of the dish it seemed somewhat frivolous. Granted the heat from the chilies provided a nice kick to the tacos in general. I think it could have been achieved by simply dicing them all into the tomato salsa.

The star of it all was the lobster. But that didn't have much to do with the recipe itself than it did with the natural taste of a wonderful ingredient. All in all, the other components of the taco didn't do much to elevate the flavor of natural lobster.

Enjoy!

I would like to thank Nathan for allowing me to make a mess in his kitchen and use all his pots and pans.