Langouste à la vanille

Ingredients

Lobster

• 2live spiny lobsters (langouste), about 700 g each
• 2 tbspvegetable oil
• Salt and black pepper

Vanilla sauce

• 2Comorian vanilla pods, split and scraped
• 80 gbutter, diced and cold
• 2shallots, very finely chopped
• 2garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 150 mldry white wine
• 200 mlthick coconut milk
• 100 mlsingle cream
• Juice of 1 lime
• 1 tspgrated fresh ginger
• 1small pinch of chilli

To serve

• Steamed rice
• 2 tbspchopped coriander or flat-leaf parsley
• Lime wedges

Directions

1. Chill the lobsters in the freezer for 20 minutes to sedate them, then split each lengthways through the head and tail with a heavy knife and remove the gritty sac behind the eyes.
2. Season the cut faces, heat the oil in a large frying pan over high heat and sear the lobsters flesh-side down for 3 minutes until lightly browned, then turn shell-side down.
3. Lower the heat to medium, cover and cook 6–8 minutes depending on size, until the flesh is white, opaque and just firm at the thickest part of the tail. Lift out and keep warm; overcooked langouste turns cottony in a minute.
4. In the same pan, soften the shallots, garlic and ginger for 3–4 minutes over medium heat, scraping up the lobster juices stuck to the base.
5. Add the white wine and reduce by two-thirds, then add the scraped vanilla seeds and both empty pods and let them infuse in the hot reduction for 2 minutes.
6. Pour in the coconut milk and cream and simmer very gently for 5–6 minutes until the sauce coats the back of a spoon; never boil it hard, or the coconut milk splits.
7. Take the pan off the heat and whisk in the cold butter a few pieces at a time, so the sauce emulsifies into a glossy, pale sauce that smells of vanilla and sea.
8. Sharpen with lime juice, a pinch of chilli and salt, remove the pods, then return the lobster halves to the pan and spoon the sauce over for a minute to warm through.
9. Serve on hot plates with rice, the sauce poured over the exposed flesh, scattered with coriander and a lime wedge on the side.

Technique

• The dish is the Comoros showing off its two great exports at once, vanilla and the reef. It is festival and hotel food rather than everyday cooking, and the sauce is judged on restraint: vanilla should perfume, not sweeten.
• Real vanilla means split pods, never extract, and never vanilla sugar. Scrape the seeds into the reduction and steep the pods so you extract both the volatile aroma and the deeper woody notes.
• Butter is whisked in off the heat. Above about 80°C (175°F) the emulsion breaks and you get an oily pool.

Substitutions

• Spiny lobster can be replaced by large tiger prawns (cook 3–4 minutes) or by a firm white fish such as red snapper.
• If you have no white wine, use the same volume of coconut water with an extra squeeze of lime.

Variations

• Some cooks grill the split lobster over charcoal and use the sauce purely as a nappe, which suits Comorian home cooking better.
• A Malagasy version thickens the sauce with crème fraîche only, with no coconut milk.

History

Spiny lobster, cooked in a sauce flavoured with vanilla, developed in the Comoros Islands, which historically became, alongside Madagascar, one of the world’s most significant vanilla-producing regions after the vanilla orchid, native to Mexico, was introduced to the Indian Ocean islands through French colonial-era agricultural efforts beginning in the 1800s. This distinctive pairing of a savory seafood dish with vanilla, an ingredient elsewhere in the world almost exclusively associated with sweet desserts, reflects the Comoros’ particular agricultural specialization and the local culinary tradition of incorporating that valuable regional export crop into savory cooking rather than treating it purely as a dessert flavouring. Langouste à la vanille remains one of the dishes most specifically and distinctively associated with Comorian cuisine.

Frequently asked questions

What is Langouste à la vanille?

Langouste à la vanille is a main from Comoros: spiny lobster in vanilla-scented butter sauce, celebratory specialty. Spiny lobster, cooked in a sauce flavoured with vanilla, developed in the Comoros Islands, which historically became, alongside Madagascar, one of the world’s most significant vanilla-producing regions after the vanilla orchid, native to Mexico, was introduced to the Indian Ocean islands through French colonial-era agricultural efforts beginning in the 1800s. This distinctive pairing of a savory seafood dish with vanilla, an ingredient elsewhere in the world almost exclusively associated with sweet desserts, reflects the Comoros’ particular agricultural specialization and the local culinary tradition of incorporating that valuable regional export crop into savory cooking rather than treating it purely as a dessert flavouring. Langouste à la vanille remains one of the dishes most specifically and distinctively associated with Comorian cuisine.

How long does Langouste à la vanille take to make?

Langouste à la vanille takes 25 min of preparation and 25 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 servings. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Langouste à la vanille?

Yes, within limits. Spiny lobster can be replaced by large tiger prawns (cook 3–4 minutes) or by a firm white fish such as red snapper. If you have no white wine, use the same volume of coconut water with an extra squeeze of lime.

What is the most important thing to get right in Langouste à la vanille?

Pour in the coconut milk and cream and simmer very gently for 5–6 minutes until the sauce coats the back of a spoon; never boil it hard, or the coconut milk splits.