Thomas Keller Appreciation Night

Butter-Poached Lobster with Zucchini, Portobellos, and Rosemary-Infused Rice.

4 Lobster Tails, ~5oz a piece
1 Medium Zucchini
3 Portobello Caps, sliced to about 3/8" thick (2 slices per plate)
1.5C Rice, long grain.
4 Sprigs fresh Rosemary.
Butter (I used 6 sticks; it depends on how big your pot is)
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil

Serves 4.

For the beurre monte.
In order to get to the heart of Thomas Keller's famous butter-poached lobster, one must make a beurre monte.  Put your lobster tails in a pot, and cover with water so that you have about 1/4" between the water and the tops of the tails.  Drain and measure the water.  That's the amount of butter you will need.  I needed ~6 sticks (I needed roughly 4C, but I like to be sure and I wanted a bit more beurre monte).  Boil 1 tablespoon of water in a pot, and then incorporate chunks of butter, whisking constantly.  This will allow the butter to maintain its emulsified state; without that water, it'll break up and clarify.  DO NOT let it reach above 200 degrees (or to boil).  It will break, and then you're fucked.  Set this aside (you have about an hour, so relax, and keep it on very low).  (once you're done poaching, you can also keep it frozen).

Removing the lobster shells.
Boil about 2 quarts water with 1/8C white distilled vinegar.  Turn it to half, wait until the bubbles stop appearing, and pop the tails in there.  Steep for 3 minutes.  Remove them from the water, and then take the shells off (save them for stock!).  Set aside, covered.

For the rice.
Create a tea with 3 sprigs of rosemary and 4 cups of water.  Steep for 10 minutes (at least, more if more flavor is desired).  Let it boil down to about 3.5C, add the rice, and constantly check on it.  Rice is a tricky bitch, and you can always add a tad more water to make sure it cooks through.  But once it's overcooked, it's game over, so watch out and keep your eye on it.  Mine took ~20 minutes tops.

For the zucchini.
I put about a cup of water in the bottom of pot, and place the slices (roughly 3/8" thick) in there clockwise.  Season with salt/pepper, and steam for about 10 minutes; wait until the centers start to become translucent, and immediately remove them from heat, set aside.

For the portobellos.
Place the ports in about 2 tablespoons butter and 1tablespoon olive oil, season with salt/pepper, and saute until each side is getting a bit brown.  Roughly 4-5 a side, depending on your heat (I prefer to cook ports at lower temps, right around medium, to enrich their flavor--remember folks, browning seals in NOTHING).

For the butter-poached lobster.
Put the tails in the beurre monte.  You want to make sure it is no higher than 180 degrees (170-175 is preferable).  I used a little $20 kettle that has much more precise temp control than my stove.  Again, always check the temp.  Always, always, always.  Cook for about 7-9 minutes, depending upon size and how deep the beurre monte is.  The deeper it is, the more likely for temp fluctuation (unless you have a sweet circulator; if you do, well, fuck you, and please send me one!).  I sprinkled some rosemary on the top; whether or not it did anything is debatable, but I like to think it did. (and yes, there are bubbles, but I took this right after doing a stir and dropping them in; I assure you it did not boil!)

For presentation.
Start with a spoonful of rice; I kept the rosemary in the rice for taste and presentation purposes.  You can remove it if you like.  Put the zucchini next to it, 3 slices per plate, and then place the lobster on top.  Put 2 slices of port per plate, and drizzle with the lobster-steeped beurre monte.  Sprinkle parsley, and serve.   I did about 4 different ones, but pictures of the fourth suck.  My bad.

It's all about finesse- Thomas Keller

Enjoy.