You say summer time, I say lobster time. At least once every barbeque season you owe it to yourself to beat the restaurant prices and serve lobster to your family and friends in your background lobster shack.
Here is how to cook two very different cousins. Live whole lobster from the cold waters around the Maine and rock lobster tail harvested and then frozen from the warm waters of the tropics. The Maine lobsters are sweet and tender in taste and are larger than the rock lobster ranging from a pound up to three, four and even five pounds and yes, they are alive.
Traditionally, the Maine lobster is boiled, drop it alive into a large pot of heavily salted water. When the water comes to a boil, cut the rubber bands off the lobster claws, boiled rubber bands can alter the flavor.
Cook the lobster for about seven minutes for the first pound and three minutes for each pound after. Remove them from the pot and submerge them in an ice bath so they don't overcook and become tough.
After your lobster is cool enough to handle you could start to take it apart. First, twist the tail apart from the body by holding on the back end with one hand and twisting the tail off with the other. Then twist off the claws. There is tender and flaky meat in the claws. Open with a nutcracker or knife to release the meat. We often reserve the claws and make a lobster salad roll for lunch the next day.
To remove the meat from the tail, remove the legs.
Then with a pair of kitchen shears cut along the underside until the meat is released.
The spiny lobster otherwise known as the rock lobster is found in warmer water. They have a firmer texture and a mild sweet flavor and the outer shell can be dark red and orange above with yellowish abdomens and a colorful fan tail. Preheat your grill to medium high heat. Place them on the grill for about four minutes.
And then turn and cook for about two minutes longer.
Cooking thee tail on all sides will ensure the meat is cooked all the way through.
Then stand on its end and cook for two additional minutes.
To release the meat from it shell, cut the tail end off and then with a pair of kitchen shears cut along the underside.
For presentation, slice the meat on a bias.
And fan out on a plate. Serve with melted butter. Nothing screams somewhere louder than a lobster cooked and eaten in a backyard.
For more delicious barbeque recipes for your picnic table, visit summerkitchen.tv.
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