Angry Lobster with Lemon Rice and Crispy Basil
Epicurious | March 2009, by David Burke, David Burke's New American Classics

"This is probably the most requested dish at my restaurant, davidburke & donatella. You can, of course, adjust the heat in this dish to your own palate. I really like it to have a powerful note. It is another terrific dish for entertaining as the rice, basil, and tomatoes can all be made in advance. The rice can be kept warm over hot water or it can be reheated in a microwave. The lobster can be cut up in advance, and then all that is left to do is to put it all together, which should take no more than twenty minutes."

Brian and I made this with shrimp. For 1 pound of shelled shrimp, we cut the recipe in half and skipped cooking the shrimp in the oven. We dusted them with the seasoned flour, sauted them in the pan, and removed them to bowl to keep warm while we made the sauce.

Lobster:
Combine the Wondra flour, chili powder, cayenne, and salt in a plastic bag. Set aside.

Cut the live lobsters in half. [I would briefly steam the lobsters to kill them first if you dont know how to kill a lobster quickly with a knife. More humane.] Remove the claws and break the claws open to expose as much meat as possible. Remove the meat from the lobsters and place it into the seasoned flour. Shake to coat well. Remove the lobster from the flour and shake off any excess.

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees.

Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over high heat until smoking. Add the lobster pieces, cut side down, a few at a time, if necessary, and sear them for about 4 minutes, or until they are golden brown. Transfer the lobster to a baking sheet, and when all of the lobster is seared, place the baking sheet in the preheated oven and bake for 10 minutes.

While the lobster is baking, prepare the sauce. Return the sauté pan to medium heat and add the garlic and red pepper flakes. Sauté for about 3 minutes, or until the garlic is golden brown but not burning. Add the stock and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Whisk in the butter and remove the pan from the heat. Whisk in the lemon juice, basil leaves, and the tomato julienne. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Remove the lobster from the oven. Place a mound of Lemon Rice in the center of each of six plates. Place equal portions of the lobster over the rice. Spoon the sauce over the top of each mound and garnish with Fried Basil.

Serve immediately.

Lemon Rice:
Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and allow them to sweat their liquid for 4 minutes. Add the garlic and sweat for an additional 3 minutes. Stir in the rice and sauté it for 1 minute. Add the stock (or water), lemon juice, salt, and pepper.

Raise the heat and bring the stock to a boil. Boil for about 15 minutes, or until the liquid has reduced to about 1 1/2 cups. Lower the heat and tightly cover the rice. (If you don't have a tight-fitting lid, cover the rice with aluminum foil.) Simmer for 30 minutes, or until the rice has absorbed all of the liquid. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the rice to steam for 15 minutes. Do not uncover the pan. When ready to serve, fluff the rice with a fork.

If using the zucchini, while the rice is resting heat the optional 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the zucchini and sauté for 4 minutes, or just until slightly softened. Season with salt and pepper to taste. When ready to serve the rice, add the zucchini and fluff it into the rice.

Fried Basil:
Heat the oil to 350 degrees on a candy thermometer in a large saucepan over high heat.

Standing as far back from the pot as possible and wearing an oven mitt, drop the basil leaves into the hot oil. The oil may bubble and splatter. Fry for about 1 minute, or until the leaves are crisp. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the leaves to a double layer of paper towels to drain.

Serves 6

What Are Instant Flour & Wondra?

Question: I have come across recipes listing instant flour and Wondra flour. What are these, and can I replicate them?

Answer: Instant flour is a low-protein, pregelatinized wheat flour to which some malted barley flour has been added. It has been formulated to dissolve quickly in either hot or cold liquids, and is most often called for to thicken gravies and sauces.

Because of its low-protein content, it is also sometimes used in making pie crusts and other recipes that call for cake flour, which is also lower in protein than all-purpose flour. Some bakers find the slightly acidic taste of cake flour objectionable and prefer the instant flour. The leading brand available in this country is Wondra.

If instant flour is hard to find where you live, you can substitute all-purpose or cake flour. But you want to recognize what the recipe writer is trying to accomplish in calling for instant flour. If the flour is used to thicken a sauce, you can certainly use all-purpose flour, but you may have to take added precautions to avoid the development of lumps in the sauce (i.e., stir like mad, use an immersion blender). If the instant flour is used in a baking project and is called for in a relatively large quantity, it is probably specified because of its protein content, and your best option would be cake or pastry flour.