Bisque (food)

Bisque (French pronunciation: [bisk] ^ⓘ) is a smooth, creamy, highly seasoned soup of French origin, classically based on a strained broth (coulis) of crustaceans.^[1] It can be made from lobster, langoustine, crab, shrimp, or crawfish. The French bisque is one of the most popular seafood soups around the world. Although originally applied to seafood soups, the use of the word has expanded to mean any thick soup, such as bisque of tomato or bisque of mushroom.

Bisque

Lobster bisque
Type	Soup
Place of origin	France
Main ingredients	Crustaceans (lobster, langoustine, crab, shrimp or crayfish), rice
Cookbook: Bisque   Media: Bisque

Etymology

The French-language name bisque may derive from Biscay, as in the Bay of Biscay.^[2]

Method

Bisque is a method of extracting flavor from crustaceans not perfect enough to send to market. In authentic recipes, the shells are ground to a fine paste and added (sometimes with rice) to thicken the soup. Julia Child remarked: "Do not wash anything off until the soup is done because you will be using the same utensils repeatedly and you don't want any marvelous tidbits of flavor losing themselves down the drain."^[3]

See also

• Food portal

• List of crab dishes
• List of cream soups
• List of French soups and stews
• List of seafood dishes
• List of soups