If you’re in the mood for something warm and comforting, this prawn bisque is a good one to try. It’s creamy, full of flavour, and has that rich taste you get from cooking with prawns. It’s simple, but it feels a bit more special than your usual soup.

A Taste of Coastal Elegance

Prawn bisque is a classic seafood soup that comes from France. It’s known for its smooth, creamy texture and deep flavour from the prawns, which is what gives it that rich taste. This version is inspired by a recipe from South Australian chef Andrew Fielke, who often works with ingredients like lemon myrtle.

The key to a good bisque really comes down to the prawns. They have a naturally sweet, delicate flavour, and you can get even more out of them by using the shells. Instead of throwing them away, cooking the shells helps bring out that deeper flavour, which becomes the base of the soup.

To build the flavour I add aromatic herbs, spices, and sometimes a splash of white wine. Everything simmers together into a rich broth that becomes the backbone of the whole bisque. Then comes the cream. Heavy cream goes in and completely transforms the texture — suddenly everything becomes smooth, silky, and just rich enough to balance out the natural brininess of the prawns. That balance is really what makes a good bisque. It is one of those dishes that works for any occasion. Impressive enough for guests but also exactly what you want on a cold evening when you just need something warm and satisfying.

The Magic of Making Prawn Bisque with a Thermomix

This is where having a Thermomix makes a real difference.

Prawn shells normally need a lot of time sautéing and simmering to get the flavour out of them. The Thermomix handles all of that — grinding and cooking the shells and extracting every bit of flavour without the extra effort.

The temperature control means you do not have to hover over the stove worrying about overcooking anything. You set it and walk away. Go have a glass of wine, chat with your guests, do whatever you like. It handles itself. When it is time to blend everything together the result is consistently smooth and creamy — no lumps, no uneven texture, just a properly finished bisque every time. And cleanup is straightforward which after a cooking session is never a bad thing.

If you have been wanting to try prawn bisque but felt like it was too involved this is genuinely the way to make it approachable. The flavour is there, the process is easy, and the result feels like something special.

Give it a try — it is worth every spoonful.

Ingredients:

• 12 large whole green prawns
• 20 g peanut oil
• 10 g sesame oil
• 1 fresh long red chilli, trimmed and cut into halves
• 3 garlic cloves
• 5 spring onions/shallots, trimmed and cut into pieces
• 100 g carrot, cut into pieces
• 100 g celery (approx. 2 stalks), cut into pieces
• 50 g fresh ginger, peeled
• 2 stalks lemongrass, trimmed, white part only, cut into pieces
• 30 g tomato paste
• 4 lemon myrtle leaves or 1 tsp dried lemon myrtle
• 3 fresh kaffir lime leaves
• 12 sprigs fresh coriander, roots only (approx. 25 g) and leaves set aside
• 15 g fresh basil leaves
• 1000 g liquid fish stock
• 25 g fish sauce
• 50 g palm sugar
• 270 g coconut cream
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• 2 tbsp water
• 4 fresh scallops, in half shells

Thermomix Instructions:

1. Twist heads from prawns and reserve. Using a small skewer if necessary, remove digestive tract by pulling it out. Shell prawns, leaving the tails intact; reserve the shells.
2. Place reserved prawn heads and shells, oils, chilli and garlic into mixing bowl, then cook 15 min/100°C/speed 1.
3. Add spring onions/shallots, carrot, celery, ginger and lemongrass, then chop 20 sec/speed 7, then cook 5 min/100°C/speed 2.
4. Add tomato paste, lemon myrtle, kaffir lime leaves, coriander roots, basil, fish stock, fish sauce, palm sugar and coconut cream, then cook 18 min/100°C/speed 1.
5. Stir cornflour and 2 tablespoons water in a small bowl to form a smooth paste. Add to mixing bowl and stir with aid of spatula.
6. Place Varoma dish into position and add reserved prawn meat. Insert Varoma tray and add scallops on the half shell. Secure Varoma lid then steam 4 min/Varoma/speed 2 or until prawns and scallops are cooked through. Remove Varoma and set aside.
7. Insert measuring cup and start Blend /40 sec.
8. Strain bisque through a fine-mesh sieve into a jug. Place 3 prawns and a scallop in the shell in each serving bowl, pour bisque around the seafood and top with coriander leaves to serve.

Prawn Bisque with Lemon Myrtle: https://cookidoo.ca/recipes/recipe/en-CA/r670730