For all of us that can’t resist the succulent taste of lobster, you’ve come to the right place. Welcome to the lobster lovers ultimate “quick guide”of the different ways to cook this delicious lean protein from under the sea. Grab your bib and lobster crackers because we’re about to dive into lobster cooking fun!
Before we get started, there is one important element that gets the best tasting result from any of these cooking methods. That most important element is, of course, fresh Maine lobster. Afterall, fresh is best!
Method #1: Boiled
The best choice for beginner and experienced home chefs, boiling lobster that is still in its shell is the quick and easy way to accurately time perfectly cooked lobster. Some quick tips for boiling lobster are:
- Use a large stove top potfilled with water to boil all the lobster tails at once
- Watch the shell color to tell when the lobster is cooked (cooked lobster will turn bright red)
- After boiling, crack open the tail and check if the meat is opaque(uncooked will be translucent)
Best of all, boiled lobster should take no longer than 10-minutes to cook, then easily slip out of the shell.
Method #2: Baked
Of the various ways to cook lobster tails, oven baked lobster is sure to take the prize for presentation.
The key to presentably perfect baked lobster tails is to use kitchen shears to butterfly the raw tails lengthwise before cooking. Before baking the lobster tails, quickly pan fry the raw tails meat side down for a couple minutes then transfer to the baking pan to finish cooking until the opaque color is achieved.
Method #3: Grilled
It’s time to heat up the barbeque because we’re going to grill those delicious lobster tails! After butterflying and coating the raw tails with butter or oil, set the grill to medium-high heat and then lay the tails cut-side down. For this method paying attention is essential so these tips may come in handy:
- Only flip the tails once while on the grill
- Watch the lobster tails grilling and remove when the shell turns red to avoid drying out the meat
- Make sure the meat is firm and opaque in color before eating
One thing is for sure, grilled lobster makes for an easy post-meal clean up!
Method #4: Pan Seared
When it comes to pan searing, you can either cook the lobster tails in the shell or without the shell. Some recipes call for pan searing the lobster tails without the shell but leaving the shell on for searing will add flavor as the shells brown while cooking.
Method #5: Poached
Test your lobster cooking skills by going for the poached approach. Take those raw tails still in shell and follow these tips for perfectly poached lobster:
- Boil tails for about 2-minutes then immediately transfer into bowl of ice water
- Remove shell from partially boiled meat
- Heat butter and splash of water in a saucepan then add lobster meat
- Keep the mixture just below a boil while continuously coating the lobster meat
As always, when the lobster meat turns opaque in color it’s time to stop cooking and enjoy!