Bisque, a French soup known for its smooth, thick, and creamy texture, is a gourmet delight that can be easily recreated at home. Traditionally, bisque is thickened with flour or rice, making it unsuitable for a keto diet. However, this article explores various keto-friendly seafood bisque recipes that maintain the rich flavor and creamy texture without the added carbs.
Understanding Bisque
Bisque is characterized by a tasty broth, enriched with heavy cream and butter for flavor and tomato for color. The key to its signature smooth texture lies in puréeing the soup base before incorporating the seafood.
Keto-Friendly Adaptations
The primary challenge in adapting bisque for a keto diet is avoiding traditional thickeners like flour or rice. Several alternatives can be used to achieve the desired consistency:
- Pureed Cauliflower: This can be used instead of cream for a lighter yet creamy texture.
- Xanthan Gum or Guar Gum: A small amount can be sprinkled in to thicken the soup.
- Glucomannan Powder: Can be used for thickening.
General Keto Seafood Bisque Recipe
This recipe provides a foundation for creating a delicious keto seafood bisque, with variations for lobster and shrimp.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup Heavy Cream
- 1/3 cup chopped Onions
- 1 teaspoon Thyme, fresh
- 16 ounces Seafood (Shrimp, Lobster, Crab, or Clams), cooked, peeled
- 1 tablespoon Tomato Paste, canned
- 1 tablespoon Unsalted Butter Stick
- 28 ounces Clam juice
- Olive oil
- Wine
- Low carb Worcestershire sauce
- Celery salt
- Paprika
- Cayenne pepper
- Black pepper
- Parsley
- Garlic
- Lemon
- Old Bay seasoning
Directions
Sauté Vegetables: Melt butter in a 2-quart saucepan over medium-low heat. Add white onion, cover, and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until translucent. Add tomato paste and continue to cook another 2-3 minutes. Celery and carrots can also be added for additional flavor.
Read also: Easy Low-Carb Cheese Crackers
Infuse Cream: In a separate small saucepan, bring cream and thyme to a boil, reduce heat slightly, and cook until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove thyme and let cream cool.
Create Broth: Add clam juice (about 3 cups or 28 oz) to saucepan with onion and bring to a boil; reduce heat slightly and cook 5 minutes. Cool and stir in reduced cream.
Purée Soup Base: In a blender in two batches, starting on low and increasing to high, purée broth mixture until smooth. Alternatively, use an immersion blender directly in the pot.
Add Seafood: Stir in the seafood and heat through.
Keto Lobster Bisque Recipe
This variation focuses on lobster as the primary seafood.
Read also: Keto Calorie Counting: A Detailed Guide
Ingredients
- Lobster tails (frozen or live)
- Onions, chopped
- Carrots, chopped
- Celery, chopped
- Garlic, minced
- Olive oil
- Butter
- Tomato Paste
- Old Bay Seasoning
- Dry White Wine
- Broth (seafood or chicken)
- Heavy Cream
- Lemon
- Optional: Keto Red Lobster Biscuits, Grilled Portobello Mushrooms
Instructions
Prepare Lobster: If using live lobsters, boil them until the shells turn bright red (about 6-8 minutes). If using frozen lobster tails, boil them until the shells become a bright red. Remove the lobster tails and set aside to cool down. Reserve the boiled water as lobster stock. Remove the lobster meat from shells and chop into bite-sized pieces. Return the shells to the water and boil for another 10 minutes. Strain the lobster stock using a fine mesh strainer and reserve 2 cups.
Sauté Vegetables: In a large stock pot or Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat. Sauté garlic, onion, carrots, and celery in the oil until the vegetables are soft.
Simmer Soup Base: Add the tomato paste, stock, Old Bay, and white wine. Bring the mixture to a simmer for at least 15 minutes.
Blend Soup: Blend the soup using an immersion blender until smooth. Stir in the heavy cream. Reduce the heat to low and cover.
Sauté Lobster Meat: In another skillet, sauté the lobster meat in the butter, garlic, and lemon for 3-4 minutes.
Read also: Magnesium Supplements for Keto
Combine: Add the lobster and garlic butter to the soup.
Keto Shrimp Bisque Recipe
This variation uses shrimp as the primary seafood. This recipe, which can be eaten while on a keto or low-carb diet, is packed with flavor. And you’re not going to have to scour specialty markets for the ingredients. Chances are you have everything on hand.
Ingredients
- Raw jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails on or off
- Onion, garlic & celery
- Olive oil & unsalted butter
- Fresh herbs (dill, thyme & oregano)
- Tomato paste
- Worcestershire sauce
- Dry white wine
- Seafood stock
- Freshly grated parmesan cheese
- Heavy whipping cream
- Spices: salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, cayenne
Instructions
Prepare Shrimp Stock (Optional): Peel off the shrimp shells and toast them until they turn a bright orange color in a stock pot. Add garlic, celery, carrots, onions and a couple of bay leaves, along with some salt and pepper. Add a few cups of water, then simmer for about 10 minutes, or until you achieve your desired level of shrimp flavor. Then, strain away the shells and extra bits.
Sauté Vegetables: In a stock pot or dutch oven, add butter and olive oil, then add in diced onions, and celery with a big pinch of salt. Cook until softened, about 5 minutes. After about 5 minutes, add in fresh garlic, thyme, oregano, dill, tomato paste, and spices. Cook until tomato paste has deepened in color, about 5 minutes.
Deglaze and Simmer: Pour in the wine and cook for about 5 minutes to cook off the alcohol. Add the warmed stock.
Puree: Add the warmed stock with vegetables into a blender, or use an immersion blender to puree it until silky smooth, then add back to the stock pot & stir in heavy cream to warm through.
Melt Cheese: Stir in freshly grated parmesan cheese over medium-low heat, moving frequently to melt the cheese evenly and ensure it doesn't stick to the bottom of your pan. Keep stirring until the soup is silky smooth, then add in bay leaves.
Add Shrimp: Add most of your shrimp to the pot and simmer in the soup until the shrimp is cooked through, about 5-7 minutes.
Garnish: Ladle the soup into bowls. Garnish with fresh cream, herbs, parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and optional cooked shrimp with a drizzle of olive oil.
Tips and Tricks
Spice it Up: For an East Asian flair, try chile paste, some coconut cream, and substitute cilantro for the parsley. For a Cajun inflection, add some cayenne pepper, dried oregano, and thyme. For an Indian flavor, consider ground cumin, cardamom, or coriander, and tons of chiles.
Frozen Shrimp: Use frozen shrimp, but make sure to thaw them completely and pat them dry so they don’t make the bisque watery.
Thickening: If you prefer a thicker bisque, mix 2 teaspoons cornstarch with 1 tablespoon water and stir in to the simmering soup. Cook until it thickens, 2 to 3 minutes. However, if you’re on keto, take heed.
Fresh vs. Dried Herbs: You could technically use all dry herbs and spices for this shrimp soup, but we love using some fresh thyme, oregano, and especially fresh dill.
Serving: Serve with a big fall salad of roasted delicata squash, feta, toasted pecans, and pomegranate arils over romaine and arugula dressed with a maple syrup balsamic vinaigrette.
Storage and Reheating
- Storage: Store any remaining soup in an air-tight container in the fridge. Seafood does not last as long as other foods such as beef or poultry.
- Reheating: Reheat any leftover bisque low and slow in a saucepan. Start the soup on low and stir after 10 minutes. Increase the heat to medium-low, stirring occasionally until the soup has warmed through. Since it's packed with cream, you don't want to heat it too quickly or too much, because it will just make the cream curdle. You also have to pay special attention to the shrimp. Please note that every time you reheat this soup, the shrimp will cook further, making it tougher. You could set the shrimp aside when you heat up the broth, then just add it back into the hot soup for about a minute before eating again. Overall, this soup is truly best when it's served hot and fresh.
- Freezing: Portion out and freeze soup to save for a busy night down the road. When ready to reheat, either microwave or heat up in a pot over the stove with a splash of water. When you get a craving for lobster bisque, take the soup out of the freezer and let it thaw overnight in the fridge. After thawing it, I recommend reheating the soup on the stove, not your microwave or oven.
Nutritional Information
Nutritional information is approximate only, and accuracy cannot be guaranteed. Erythritol carbs are not included in carb counts as it has been shown not to impact blood sugar. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber. Each serving has 228 calories, 8.9 grams of carbs, 1.4 grams of fiber. This makes each serving an impressive 7.5 net carbs.