Frank's Recipes! Butter Poached Maine Lobster with Leeks, Pommes Maxim, and a Red Beet Essence

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Butter Poached Maine Lobster with Leeks, Pommes Maxim, and a Red Beet Essence

Makes 6 servings

Clarified Butter
Makes about 1 1/2 cups

1 pound unsalted butter

Place the butter in a 1-quart saucepan and melt it over low heat, without stirring. Once the butter has melted, it will have separated into three layers. Skim off and discard the foamy layer of milk solids floating on top. The clear yellow butter beneath it is the clarified butter. Carefully pour it off into a container, leaving the milky liquid behind. Keep covered and refrigerated, frozen.

Pommes Maxim
1 large (about 12 ounces) Yukon Gold potato
1/2 cup Clarified Butter
Kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Peel the potato and slice it into paper-thin rounds on a mandoline. Toss the rounds with the clarified butter; they should be well coated. Arrange them on a Silpat-lined baking sheet (Silpat is a reusable, non-stick, silicon-lined baking sheet), overlapping the slices by half to form a solid sheet of potatoes, or lay them in overlapping circles in a large ovenproof skillet. Sprinkle lightly with salt.

Bake the potatoes for 45 to 50 minutes, or until they are crisp and golden brown. They may not hold together completely. These can be made several hours ahead and left at room temperature.

Beurre Monte
A little bit of water helps the emulsion process: Whether you emulsify 4 tablespoons (2 ounces) or 1 pound of butter, just a tablespoon of water will do. Any amount of beurre monte can be made using the following method. Read the particular recipe through to determine the total amount of Beurre Monte you will need.

Bring the water to a boil in an appropriate-size saucepan. Reduce the heat to low and begin whisking the chunks of butter into the water, bit by bit, to emulsify. Once you have established the emulsion, you can continue to add pieces of butter until you have the quantity of beurre monte that you need (we make 20 pounds at a time). It is important to keep the level of heat gentle and consistent in order to maintain the emulsification. Make the Beurre Monte close to the time it will be used and keep it in a warm place. If you have extra Beurre Monte, it can be refrigerated and then reheated to use as melted butter or clarified.

Though we are enamored of Beurre Monte and use it all day in our kitchens, when a recipe calls for only a tablespoon or two, you can substitute whole butter.

Red Beet Essence
1 pound red beets, peeled, or 1 cup beet juice
3 tablespoons Beurre Monte
1/2 teaspoon red wine vinegar
Few drops of lemon juice

If using fresh beets, juice the beets (you should have a generous cup). Reduce the beet juice slowly in a small saucepan to 2 to 3 tablespoons of glaze.

Bring to beet glaze to a simmer and whisk in the Beurre Monte, red wine vinegar, and lemon juice.

Tomato Diamonds
Peel and quarter a tomato. Place skin side down, cut away the interior, and trim the ribs to create an even sheet. Turn pieces over and cut into 1/4-inch strips. Cut strips on the diagonal into diamond shapes.

Brunoise
1 part carrots, sliced lengthwise on a mandoline into 1/16-inch-thick strips
1 part turnips, sliced lengthwise on a mandoline into 1/16-inch-thick strips
1/2 part leek greens (dark green part)

Cut all the vegetables into 1/16-inch julienne strips and then cut across to make 1/16-inch dice.

Blanch each vegetable separately in lightly salted boiling water to set the color and soften the vegetables. [Note that in this case you are not blanching according to the description provided in the leek part of the recipe.] For small amounts of vegetables, it's easiest to place the vegetables in a strainer and submerge the strainer in the boiling water. When the vegetables are cooked, lift out the strainer and plunge it into ice water for a few seconds to chill the vegetables and set the color. Then lift out the strainer and place the vegetables on paper towels to drain.

When all the vegetables are blanched and drained, mix them together in a covered container and refrigerate for up to a day. For longer storage, spread the drained brunoise on a tray and place the tray in the freezer until frozen. Store the frozen brunoise in a well-sealed plastic bag in the freezer. You can use the brunoise directly from the freezer in recipes where it is warmed before serving.

Leeks
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced leek rounds (white and pale green parts only), washed, blanched until tender, chilled in ice water, and drained
2 tablespoons tomato diamonds
2 teaspoons chopped chives
1 tablespoon Brunoise
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon Beurre Monte
Kosher salt and freshly ground white pepper

Warm the leek rounds in a saucepan. Add the tomato diamonds, chives, Brunoise, and Beurre Monte. Season with salt and white pepper to taste and keep warm.

[Blanch the leeks according to this method. You must use a big pot with a lot of water, more water than you would think you would need. You do this so adding the vegetables doesn't cause the water to lose its boil. You also need to have a lot of salt. One cup of salt per gallon of water. The reason for the salt is to help preserve color. Stop the vegetables from cooking by plunging them in a lot of ice water and don't drain them until they are chilled through.]

Lobsters
Three 1 1/2- to 2-pound lobsters, "steamed" and meat removed, reserve knuckle meat for another use [we used the knuckle meat when we made this recipe]
1 1/2 cups Beurre Monte

To steep the lobsters:
Place the lobsters in a tight-fitting heat-proof container. Cover with cold water. Drain off the water, measure it, and place it in a large pot. Bring the water to a boil and add 1/2 cup of white distilled vinegar for every 8 quarts of water. Pour the boiling liquid over lobsters and let them steep for 2 minutes if using 1 1/2-pound lobsters, 3 minutes for 2-pound lobsters. Remove the lobsters from the hot water, but do not discard the water.

One at a time, using a towel or rubber gloves to hold the hot lobster, grasp its tail and twist and pull to detach it. Twist and pull off the claws and return them to the hot water for 5 minutes.

For the tails:
Hold each tail flat and twist the tail fan to one side; pull off and discard. Use your fingers to gently push the meat through the tail end and pull the meat out through the large opening at the other end. Discard the shell. Lay the tail meat on its back and cut lengthwise in half through middle. Remove the vein running through the top of the meat. Lay the meat on a paper towel-lined plate or platter, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate.

For the claws:
After 5 minutes, remove the claws from the hot water. Twist off each knuckle to remove it. Hold the claw in your hand and pull down to loosen the lower pincer. Push it to either side to crack it and pull it straight off. Ideally, the cartilage from inside the claw should be attached to the pincer and the claw meat should remain intact.

Still holding the claw, crack the top of the shell with the heel of a knife, about 3/4 inch from the joint where the knuckle was attached. You want to go through the shell but not damage the meat. Wiggle your knife to loosen and crack the shell. If the shell does not pop off, it may be necessary to turn the claw over and repeat the procedure. Shake the claw to remove the meat (if it doesn't fall out, cut off the very tip of the shell and blow through the hole to release the meat).

For the knuckles:
Cut off the top joint of each knuckle, the one that was attached to the lobster's body. Use scissors to cut away the shell along the smooth outside edge of the knuckle. Use your fingers to pry open the shell and remove the meat. Add knuckle and claw meat to tail meat.

For the lobsters, bring the lobster pieces to room temperature. Place them in one layer in a large saucepan and add the Beurre Monte. They should be almost covered. [We also added the lobster roe to the butter.] Place the pan over low heat and slowly poach the lobster in the butter for 5 to 6 minutes, just to heat through.

To complete:
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.

Reheat the pommes Maxim in the oven for 2 to 3 minutes.

Place a small spoonful of the beet essence on each plate. Top with a generous tablespoon of the leek mixture, a lobster tail, and a claw. Break off a piece of the pommes Maxim and place it on top of the lobster.