Cooking seafood could be a daunting job. With out the right know-how, it’s straightforward to go from completely performed to overcooked in minutes. Lobsters aren’t any exception to these nerves, particularly since they go for a hefty value per pound, and are often reserved for a special day. We consulted with knowledgeable lobsterman (he’s additionally a marine biologist,) from the land of the perfect lobsters you will discover, Maine, and that’s the place this information is available in. Loaded with easy suggestions, and even some methods from the professional, learn to cook dinner a lobster in a number of steps, and we’ll additionally present you crack them open and get the delectable meat out. All you’ll want is a tall pot, tongs, shears and a lobster cracker.
Whereas most individuals boil their lobsters, our lobsterman, Curt Brown likes to steam his lobsters. That is extra environment friendly as a result of the water will come to a boil sooner, and can also be safer as you don’t should deal with a pot stuffed with boiling water.
Put together your lobster.
Fill a tall pot with 1–1½ inches of water and add a few tablespoons of salt (sea salt is greatest when you have it). Set on excessive warmth, with the lid on. Subsequent, place your lobster on a chopping board, and utilizing a big chef’s knife, place the tip of the blade on high of the pinnacle of the lobster, proper behind the eyes. Utilizing agency stress, plunge your knife all over the pinnacle, after which carry your blade down, successfully killing the lobster. (The lobster would possibly nonetheless be shifting however is now not alive.)
Skewer the tail.
This subsequent step is non-compulsory, as there’s nothing flawed with a curled tail. However when you have lengthy steel and picket skewers, push one from the tail finish, by means of to the physique. This can guarantee you’ve gotten tail meat that’s straight, which is extra aesthetic and in addition helps in even cooking.
Drop the lobsters.
As soon as the water is boiling, take away the rubber bands from the lobster’s claws. Take away the lid off the pot, and decrease the lobsters into the water, tail first. Be sure to not add too many directly, two 1–1½ lb. pound lobster is greater than sufficient for one pot. Sufficient room across the lobsters ensures that they may cook dinner evenly. Change the lid and permit to steam cook dinner for 12 minutes for delicate shell lobsters, and a further 2 minutes for exhausting shells. The lobsters will go from a darkish orange and black to a vibrant pink as soon as they’re utterly cooked, and an antenna ought to come proper off when gently tugged. Utilizing tongs, raise the lobsters, permitting any extra scorching water to drip away within the pot, and switch to a big rimmed baking sheet, or a chopping board. Permit to chill for a couple of minutes earlier than dealing with.
Seperate the tail.
It’s greatest to interrupt down lobsters of their anatomical elements, after which proceed to get the meat out. It makes the duty extra manageable and environment friendly. As soon as the lobsters have barely cooled, grip with one hand on the physique behind the pinnacle, and the opposite on the tail and twist, pulling aside the place the physique meets the tail. Set the physique apart, and pull the skewer out from the tail and discard.
Break open the tail meat.
Deal with the tail first. With one hand on the fins, and the opposite hand on the second phase on the tail, apply light stress to snap the shell and draw back, revealing a part of the tail meat. Reserve the fin, and flip the tail, utilizing your thumbs to crack aside the remaining shell, revealing the lengthy tail meat (hopefully intact in a single piece,) discarding the shell. Put aside the meat and work on the reserved fins, pulling every flipper, revealing just a little nub of meat that you would be able to pull out when you squeeze the fin. ‘These are my favourite little morsels of lobster’ Brown says, they’re additionally often neglected by most shoppers.
Pull the claw away.
Transfer on to the physique of the lobster. Tugging and twisting gently with one hand on the knuckle (or arm) and the opposite hand on the physique, draw back the claws. Then utilizing the identical approach, separate the knuckle from the claw.
Crack at that claw meat.
The claw is in two elements. The smaller backside part could be twisted away gently which reveals the meat that you would be able to gently pull out utilizing your fingers, or a picker fork.
Then middle the bigger a part of the claw in your lobster cracker and use light however agency stress to interrupt open the shell. You wish to break free the exhausting shell, however you don’t wish to puncture or tear the meat inside, particularly in the event you’re going to make use of it complete in a recipe, like in linguine with chilis. As soon as a part of the shell is eliminated, revealing a number of the meat inside, gently shimmy out the meat, making an attempt to maintain as a lot intact as attainable, and discard the shell. Repeat this course of for the second claw.
Crack these knuckles.
You’ll have two knuckles left. Utilizing kitchen shears, snip away the size of the shells, and pull out the meat, discarding the shells. And lastly, the leg meat, that Brown insists we will’t neglect about, particularly since there are 8 of those little legs hooked up to the physique. Maine Lobster processes 2,000 lb. of leg meat per day, so we knew we needed to take Brown’s approach. First, pull all of them away from the physique. And second, use something spherical that you would be able to roll, like a rolling pin, or a bottle, to begin on the closed finish of the leg and roll up, to push out the leg meat, and that’s all there’s to it!
Brown doesn’t wish to get messy with the physique of the lobster, however in the event you’d like, he encourages folks to simply use their fingers to drag aside the shells and see what they discover.
Like all new talent, observe makes good. When you’ve steamed greater than a few lobsters, you’ll be knowledgeable at getting every little morsel of meat out. Use this information to get acquainted with the anatomy of a lobster
The fantastic thing about lobster is that it’s sustainable, scrumptious, and so easy to cook dinner…in the event you can boil water, you possibly can cook dinner a lobster. I favor steaming my lobsters.
Whereas garlic butter or honey butter pair nice with lobster meat, I typically simply dunk my lobster meat in recent squeezed lemon juice. The citrus taste goes so properly with the candy and tender lobster meat.
Whereas steaming lobster is my favourite option to cook dinner a stay lobster, there are additionally many nice methods to take pleasure in lobster on the grill. Cut up lobster both proper on the grill or on a cedar plank is a enjoyable and totally different (and nonetheless easy) option to take pleasure in Maine’s iconic crustacean!
