Creamy Shrimp Bisque Recipe

This recipe was FANTASTIC! I made this bisque soup, then poured the cooled soup into ziplock bag-lined 16oz cups, then froze. When completely frozen, I removed the soup filled ziplocks from the cup molds and had a dozen servings ready to defrost on a moments notice in my freezer. This recipe is not an easy one, but VERY fun to make with a friend (you will probably need help with the cheese cloth straining - it's a slow messy strain). HIGHLY Recommend for taste, show and fun challange to prepare. Serves nicely with fresh tomatoe grilled-cheese sandwiches. Thank you!

This soup is worth the time it takes to make it! Here's what I did: 1. Made the butter / flour roux in one pot 2. In another pot, I put chicken broth / stock (because I couldn't find any seafood broth) and boiled the shells & legs of the shrimp in that to make a seafood broth. 3. I fished out the shrimp shells with a small strainer / sifter. Then I poured the seafood broth into the butter / flour roux (with strainer below to catch anything I missed). 4. I used the empty pot to cook veggies in butter.I added extra veggies like I always do! (Spinach, mushrooms, squash, tomatoes). 5. I added the shrimp (already deshelled). 6. Didn't have but 1 Tbsp. frozen tomato paste on hand, so just used that along with a can of tomatoes. 7. I added the rest of the ingredients, except the brandy and pepper sauce (I don't keep those on hand!), into the pot of veggies and shrimp. I only put in 2 Tbsp. paprika for fear of it being overpowering. 8. I poured the veggie / shrimp combo into the pot with the roux and broth and used an immersion blender to puree. 9. Added some salt and pepper to taste! It was GREAT!!

this was delicious! it does take a bit of time to prepare but it is worth it. i actually doubled the amount of shrimp and put half into the simmering mixture in step two (in place of omitting the shrimp shells) that way after the whole mixture simmered for 45 minutes, i could throw it all into a blender without having to pick out shrimp shells. the extra shrimp adds a lot of flavor and bulk. after pureeing it in the blender i put it in the fridge overnight, and reheated it the next day. After reheating it,i then added in the cream, spices, and more shrimp. wonderful! dinner party of 12 and everyone loved it!

I made this yesterday and received compliments on how good it was. Yes, I did a little substituting. I used Hennessy in place of the brandy and cooking sherry. I also seasoned it with Cajun seasoning, onion powder, season salt and old bay. I used the shrimps that was already peeled so I didn't have any shrimp shells, so I used a bag of powdered shrimp which gave it the flavor that was needed. So I didn't have to strain the mixture. My husband really loved it. We also had warm sour dough bread with butter on the side.

Love love this! Even though it takes longer than noted in the prepping stage, it’s a great tasting bisque. It’s my go-to 1st course when doing a special dinner. The only “tweaking” is in Step 2, where I cook approx 1/2 of the shrimp with the shells and then after adding the stock, I use a blender before straining. Strictly a matter of personal taste, I find it makes for a tastier, creamier consistency.

Dropped my spoon! By far, the most lovely soup I ever made. I didn't feel it was too much work, results were worth it....perhaps a double batch next time. I also used homemade chicken stock...will start saving those shrimp shells for seafood stock for the next batch. The alcohol is important, for those concerned, only the taste remains...the actual alcohol component is vaporized. Did both shrimp and scallops on the bbq before adding. The spices were accurate for my taste. A soup I am proud to serve...even better made a day in advance!

excellent recipe...thx for posting it...I did not have sherry nor brandy but towards the end of the cooking I ended up adding a whole bottle of a mild white wine. I had some home made chicken/turkey stock plus come canned seafood stock. I used tomato powder instead of paste, and I used less paprika per other reviews. S/P, Cajun seasoning, red hot, and Worchester...I don't measure but just did it to taste...the other change I'll next time is that before I add the rue to the stock I'll cook my schells with the stock and then the straining won't be so difficult, because I think it would be nice to have bits of onion,garlic and celery in the soup itself. Also, I didn't need to use so much cream because the soup with the rue was quite thick.. This is a keeper recipe.

I used a mix of crab shrimp and lobster to make this incredibly decadent. SO worth it. I could not find any seafood stock, so I just put all my shells in the chicken stock to flavor that, and instead of straining out the onions used an emersion blender to purree them. I was VERY VERY happy with the results, as were all 5 people I fed it too.

Fresh Medium Shrimp taste delicious in this Shrimp Bishque II. I have added 2% milk instead of 3 quarts of seafood stock to enrich this Shrimp Bisque. Also, I substituted 1/2 cup of all-purpose flour to balance the consistency and thickness of the Shrimp Bisque II. In order to maintain the Fresh Shrimp taste, I added 1/2 onion diced with one cup of grape tomatoes chopped for flavor. In addition, added one tablespoons of olive oil to compliment the richness of butter. This Shrimp Bishque II does taste like fresh Medium Shrimp by popular consensus and review.

I made the shrimp stock from scratch which is key…..you’ll never get anything as good from a fine restaurant. Best stuff ever!

We are eatting this right now and we wish that we could give it more stars!! It is soooo smooth. My husband says he has never had anything like it...."a true culinary experience" is what he thinks!! Things I did differently: 1. Used cooking sherry and vermouth instead of sherry and brandy 2. used the crawfish stock that I made last night and did not cook the shrimp shells 3. doubled the hot pepper sauce and worcestershire sauce 4. used half and half!

Definitely saving this recipe for a special occasion or when I have more guests over. It's an elegant and flavorful entrée, with perfectly balanced flavors. The touch of alcohol at the end wasn’t overpowering—it just added a beautiful depth to the dish. Next time, I’d add a bit more hot sauce for an extra kick.

Excellent! I used stock I made from Norwegian crayfish (live in Oslo) and a little armagnac, wonderful flavor.

Made it yesterday — everyone loved it.

This is the best. Better than any restaurant.

This was SO easy and delicious. I added fresh corn from the cob. Incredible! Do it!

Thank you for the recipe. You made our Valentine's Day supper wonderful.

Do not skip the booze! The alcohol cooks off and made this dish really well balanced. I didn't use the old bay seasoning because sometimes it can make a dish too salty. I put it on the side and anyone that wanted it could add it to their individual bowl. I used half and half instead of cream.

Wonderful full flavor and worth the trouble.

Wow, is this a great bisque! I did not use the shell on shrimp, but instead bought the tail on shrimp. I also used more shrimp that the recipe called for. I also used some seafood stock that I found at Wegmans. I think it makes way more that 15 servings though. Very good, it's a keeper!!