We are facing the top recipe of Menorcan gastronomy and probably one of the tastiest dishes in Spain. The lobster stew is easy to prepare and although most of us mortals have to settle for cooking lobsters that do not come from the island, even the approaches cooked with substitutes are excellent.
I usually make this recipe roughly, without paying much attention to the amount of each ingredient to use. My rule is to use the same weight of tomatoes, green and red peppers, and double the onion, leaving the garlic according to the taste of the cook and the diners. It is a very special recipe that will look great at any dinner or meal for the upcoming Christmas.
INGREDIENTS (4/6 people):
- 1 lobster of 4 to 5 kg /9-11 lbs (or several lobsters, of course, these sizes are nowdays difficult to find...)
- 500 grams (1.1 lbs) of chopped onion
- 250 grams (9 oz) of tomatoes without skin or seeds, cut into small cubes
- 250 grams (9 oz) of green pepper, cut into small cubes
- 250 grams (9 oz) of red pepper, also cut into small cubes
- 3 garlic cloves
- A handful of roasted and salted almonds
- Fried bread (2 or 3 slices)
- 1 garlic clove fried
- Fresh parsley
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Salt
- Pepper
- Sweet paprika
- Water
It is important to cook the lobster in a large clay pot.
First we cut the lobster as follows: we separate the head from the tail. We cut the tail into slices and the head into four parts. We empty the head of blood and guts and reserve.
In the clay pot, fry all the resulting pieces in plenty of olive oil. When the pieces are fried - a little, it's just to give off aroma - we take them out and lightly fry the bread.
Now we pour all the vegetables into the hot oil. First the garlic, then the two types of pepper, then the onion and when it is browned, add the tomato. We simmer until the sauce takes a dark red color. Then we add a little sweet paprika and we take it all out to go through the blender or through the blender. Now we are going to put the sauce that has already become "pasta" back into the clay pot and add the lobster pieces. We pour water just to cover. We leave over medium heat for half an hour.
The next step is to add a chopped mix.
To the meat extracted from the lobster head and that we had reserved, we add a fried garlic clove, the bread, a sprig of parsley, the almonds, we put it through the blender and we also add it to the casserole after that half an hour. Now we have to put the fire very strong for ten minutes. We rectify the salt and pepper and it is ready to serve.