Name: Lobster Gelees with Fresh Tarragon Oil
Cook time: 1 3/4 hr
Total time: 5 1/4 hr
Yield: Makes 8 servings
Ingredients: 8 quarts water; 4 (1 1/4-lb) live lobsters; 1 cup dry white wine; 3 carrots, chopped; 2 celery ribs, chopped; 1 fennel bulb (sometimes labeled "anise") with fronds, stalks, and bulb chopped and fronds reserved for fresh tarragon oil; 1 medium onion, finely chopped; 3 large garlic cloves, minced; 3 (6-inch) plus 8 (1-inch) sprigs fresh tarragon; 1 teaspoon salt; 1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds, slightly crushed; 1/4 teaspoon dried hot red-pepper flakes; 2 1/2 teaspoons unflavored gelatin (from two 1/4-oz envelopes); 1 1/2 teaspoons tarragon white-wine vinegar; 1/3 cup fresh tarragon oil; Accompaniment: lobster claw toasts; a 10- to 12-qt pot; heavy-duty (sometimes labeled "fine") cheesecloth; 8 (5- to 6-oz) baba au rhum molds or ramekins

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Lobster Gelees with Fresh Tarragon Oil

This dramatic first course won't soon be forgotten. Chunks of sweet lobster meat bound by a shimmering jelly of fennel-and-tarragon-scented lobster stock promises the most pristine lobster salad you'll ever taste.

Cooks' note:

Gelées can be chilled in molds up to 2 days.

Recipe notes

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