Humanely Kill the Lobsters by inserting a knife into the ‘X’ mark on its head. This will kill the Lobster immediately. Twist and pull the head to remove it and reserve it for the Bisque and the Butter. Remove the claws from the head section. Tie the two tails together ‘head to tail’ so that they do not bend during the cooking.
Bring a pan of water to the boil that has been salted with 3% of its weight in salt, along with a handful of mirepoix vegetables. Gently Poach the tail for around 3 minutes, depending on its size, and the Claws, again size dependant, for around 5 minutes. Chill the tail immediately in ice before peeling. The Claws and knuckles are easier to crack when warm, so allow them to cool for 2 minutes so you can handle them before attempting this. Chill these immediately on a tray over a tray of ice.
For the Lobster Bisque:
Chop the head and gently sweat in olive oil. Add the spices, vanilla and the mirepoix and cook for 5 minutes or so to soften the vegetables. Add the Armagnac and Flambé. Add the Wine and reduce by half. Add the fish stock and water, along with the tomato. Bring up to a boil and allow to simmer for 45 minutes.
Once the 45 minutes is up, pass through a moulis to crush the shells and extract all of the liquid and reduce to just before a glaze. Add a capful or two of double cream, adjust with lemon juice if necessary and use this to warm through the coco beans. Finish with fresh chopped tarragon.
For the Pickled Girolles:
Lightly toast the mustard seeds and cover with the pickle, bring this to the boil and pour over the girolles. Cover and allow to cool.
For the Lemon Puree:
With a fine peeler, peel the zest off all of the lemons. Blanch the zest for 2 minutes in boiling water lightly seasoned with salt and sweetened with 25% sugar. Do this 5 times in different changes of water, refreshing in ice water each time. On the final blanch, do not refresh in ice water but strain and transfer into a blender. Blend with the sugar, vanilla, olive and lemon oils, a pinch of sea salt, the juice of half of the lemons and enough of the final blanching water to allow it to blend. The Puree should be a perfect balance of sweet and tangy, and savoury.
For the Lobster Butter:
Blend the Head with the butter and the spices. Place in a vacuum pack bag and cook on steam at 80 degrees for 2 hours. Failing that, the butter can be cooked in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Pass through a double layer of muslin cloth.