Home > Recipes & Trends > Breakfast > Président Butter Poached Lobster Vol Au Vent with Citrus Beurre Blanc
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  • Ingredients


    • For Lobsters:

    • 3 Lobsters, each weighing 400g

    • Pinch of Salt

    • For Puff Pastry:

    • 150g Président Unsalted Butter, Diced

    • 200g Président Butter Unsalted Block

    • 500g Plain Flour

    • 250ml Milk

    • 1/2 tbsp Salt

    • For Vol-au-vents:

    • 1 Beaten Egg

    • Puff Pastry

    • For Beurre Monté:

    • 500g Président Unsalted Butter

    • 50ml Water

    • Salt

    • Citrus Beurre Blanc:

    • 250g Hard Président Unsalted Buffer, Diced 

    • 1 tbsp White Wine Vinegar  

    • 2 tbsp White Wine 

    • 2 Shallots, Peeled and very Finely Chopped

    • 1 tbsp Double Cream 

    • Salt and Freshly Ground White Pepper 

    • Zest and Juice of ½ Lemon

    • Zest of 1 Lime

    • Zest of ½ Orange

    • To assembly the dish:

    • Lobsters ready to be poached

    • Vol-au-vents

    • Beurre Monté

    • Citrus Beurre Blanc

    • Malden sea salt

    • Finely chopped chives

  • Method

    • 1 For Lobsters ready to be poached:

    • 2 Bring a big pan of salted water to a rolling boil

    • 3 Place in the pan, return to the boil and blanch for 2 minutes

    • 4 Remove the lobsters from the pan and take off their claws and knuckles. Return the claws to the pan of boiling water and continue to cook for a further 3 minutes

    • 5 Refresh them in a large bowl of iced water

    • 6 Crack the claws and remove the meat

    • 7 Cut the lobster tail in half lengthways and remove the intestine

    • 8 Portion lobster into 2-3 cm pieces

    • 9 Keep in the fridge until needed, keep the shell for soup or sauces


    • 10 For Puff Pastry:

    • 11 Use your fingertips to rub the diced butter into flour until it reaches a loose breadcrumb consistency. Add the milk and use your hands to bring together the pastry and form it into a rectangular block. Wrap the block in cling film and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes

    • 12 Roll out the pastry on a floured surface into a flat rectangle – approx. 1cm thick – this is known as the détrempe. Keep the sides straight as this will help you when folding the pastry later on. It should be roughly three times as long as it is wide with neat edges and corners

    • 13 Place the 200g of butter between two sheets of greaseproof paper and flatten it using a rolling pin to half the size of the détrempe and rectangular shaped

    • 14 Remove the butter from the paper and place it on the bottom half of the rectangle. Fold over the top half of the pastry to cover and 'seal in' the butter

    • 15 With the folded edge pointing away from you, roll out the pastry to a rectangle roughly 3 times as long as it is wide as in step 2

    • 16 Fold the bottom third of the rectangle into the centre. Now fold the top third on top of that so the pastry is now three layers thick. Rest in the fridge for at least 20 minutes

    • 17 Remove from the fridge and place the pastry on a floured surface with the folded edge perpendicular to you then repeat steps 5 and 6 again for a total of 6 times, resting for 20 minutes in the fridge between each folding

    • 18 Keep in the fridge wrapped till needed  


    • 19 For Vol-au-vents:

    • 20 Preheat the oven to 220C/200C Fan/Gas 7. Line a baking sheet with baking paper

    • 21 On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the pastry until it is 4–5mm thick. Using a plain 10cm/4in round cutter, stamp out 10 rounds. Stamp the centres out of 6 of these rounds using a plain 6cm/2½in cutter. Discard the centres so you are left with three rounds and three rings

    • 22 Arrange the 10cm/4in rounds on the prepared baking sheet, leaving plenty of space between each one. Using a pastry brush, lightly brush the pastry rounds with beaten egg

    • 23 Top each round with a ring of pastry so the edges match up neatly, press down lightly to join them, then brush the tops with some more beaten egg. Prick the exposed centre with a fork to prevent it from rising too much during baking. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until golden and cooked through

    • 24 Store in an air tight container until needed


    • 25 For Beurre Monté:

    • 26 Make the buerre monté just before you plan to use it. Add enough the water to a simmer and then turn down the heat to low

    • 27 Begin whisking cubes of cold butter into the water, bit by bit, to start the emulsion. Once you have established the emulsion, you can add more cubes of butter at a time, whisking continuously to maintain the emulsion

    • 28 Add water to thin the beurre monté to the desired consistency. Season with salt a bit further than to taste. Keep it in a warm place as you continue to assemble the dish


    • 29 For Citrus Beurre Blanc :

    • 30 Place the vinegar, wine and shallot in a small pan and reduce to a syrup. Add the cream and reduce a little more

    • 31 Add the butter dice and whisk in until amalgamated. Stir in seasonings to taste, and then pass through a fine sieve

    • 32 Add lemon juice and zest to taste keep in warm till needed


    • 33 To assembly the dish:

    • 34 If the lobster pieces have been refrigerated, bring them to room temperature. Place the lobster pieces in one layer in the saucepot with the warm beurre monté; the lobster should be almost covered

    • 35 Poach gently over low heat, basting occasionally, until the lobster is cooked through. The lobster is done as soon as it is opaque and firm to the touch. The tail is overcooked when it starts curling up on itself don’t let the beurre monté come to a simmer—keeping the heat consistent is crucial to maintaining the emulsion. If it starts to simmer, add a little bit of water to bring the temperature down

    • 36 Warm the vol-au-vent in oven for few till war and crisp

    • 37 Remove the lobster pieces from the beurre monté with a slotted spoon, placing them on a paper towel–lined plate to drain.

    • 38 Season with Maldon sea salt. Place the lobster in a mix bowl and dress with Citrus Beurre Blanc and few chives. Spoon into the warm Vol-au-vents and serve