I love Maine lobster – in butter, in bisque, but most especially in rolls. I’ve never thought twice about cooking one myself… but then again, I’ve never chased one around my living room before.
I didn’t set out to cook a lobster. It was a recent revelation that you could buy ones pre-steamed, and that’s what I had in mind. But my fish store was jammed and they gave me a choice: take the live ones or come back in an hour. Too hungry to wait, I set down the street with two live crustaceans and some sage advice: pop them in the freezer quickly before steaming. Simple enough.
Now let me preface by saying I’m a complete lobster novice. Raised in California, I don’t own a shred of seersucker and have never even cracked a cooked lobster without adult supervision. And thus begins my post: things I have learned about lobster.
First, photographing a live lobster is the quickest way to re-create the classic lobster scene from Annie Hall. I naively tried to sneak in a few shots while the water boiled, and at first the lobster obliged. Then he did a sudden flick-flick-flick jujitsu move with his tail, lunged for the camera and flung himself off the table onto my living room floor. Scared the living daylights out of me! Lobster 1: Liz 0.
Second: they don’t really freeze, they just kind of chill out a little. When I slipped off the claw bands, he grabbed the bag and held on for dear life. In a tug-of-war, lobsters win every time. Lobster 2: Liz 0.
The good news is, he emerged from his bath all bright red and steamy. I triumphantly twisted of his tail… and found myself covered in lobster goop. Didn’t see that one coming. Lobster 3: Liz 0.
Determined, I pried some respectable chunks of lobster free, and piled them high in a toasted roll with celery, lemon, chives and (purists look away) crème fraiche, since I was out of mayo. I am happy to report that it was absolutely delicious, transporting me back to the Maine coast last summer where I first fell in love with lobster.
In the end, the roll was totally worth the trouble… though next time around, I’ll stick with pre-steamed, both for food and for photos!
Lobster Roll
makes 1 roll
meat from 1 lobster
1/2 celery rib, minced
1 tablespoon crème fraiche (or mayo)
1 teaspoon chives, chopped
squeeze lemon juice
salt and pepper
1 tablespoon butter
hot dog bun
In a small bowl, combine lobster meat with celery, crème fraiche, chives, lemon, and salt and pepper to taste. Melt the butter in a small saucepan and toast roll until golden brown. Stuff with lobster mixture, and enjoy.
(I am not going to attempt to tell you how to cook a live lobster, because clearly I’m not fit to give anyone advice on that front.)
Related:
• The Celluloid Pantry: Lobster Wrangling and Annie Hall (1977)
• How to Kill a Lobster (Humanely)
• Sense of Place: The Flavors of New England
(Images: Liz Vidyarthi)
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Such gorgeous photos!
You are brave. This is something I always think I'll do someday, but then, I don't even know where to go to get a lobster.
The roll sounds delicious!
And then the lobster was delicious. Lobster: 3. Liz: 2 bajillion.
Not everyone makes them with mayo. They can be just the lobster meat with butter and maybe some chives. I prefer sans mayo. It's also better I think if the lobster is cold for the roll. That's just me.
So glad that you love lobster. It's one of life's greatest pleasures.
ive never had a lobster roll in my entire life, and now i know i've totally been missing out!
I've been planning to make lobster rolls (have hawaiian spiny lobster in freezer). Will need to make homemade rolls though -- the thought of putting it in store-bought rolls (especially what you can find in Hawaii), is ridiculous.
Aloha, Jeff
Lobster rolls used to be a once-a-year in Maine sort of treat for us. Recently, though, my husband has been buying small lobster tails from the market and roasting them. He saves the shells for seafood stock and makes lobster rolls (with drawn butter and a bit of salt) with the meat.
I feel so lucky to be able to enjoy something this good on just an average weekday. It's like a mini-break right in the middle of the week.
This is a must watch accompaniment to this article.
Little guy sees lobster for first time. :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWuH9mmhC3Y
@ChzPlz- that was so cute. Wow!
The next time you steam lobsters yourself (and do it again!!!!), keep the claw bands ON during steaming. Remove once cooked. They are on there on purpose- to keep your fingers safe from the tight grip while they are alive.
I come from the land of lobsters, and I do get a kick out of people's squeamishness. :) You can stand them on their heads, too, if you want - that will put them to sleep. But really, most people just pop them in the water.
A couple things to note - make sure you HEAVILY salt the water with coarse (or kosher) salt. Once they are cooked, have a pot of cold, heavily salted water to plunge them into. Around here, the lobster pounds dip the pot right in the ocean and use that water to cook them, but if you can't get it, remember that salting the water is important!
Also, PLEASE don't ignore all the meat in the body; it's not all in the claws/tail. :) You can suck it out of the little legs, but just pick it out of the rest. And don't skip the green stuff up near the head - that's the tamale, and is considered a delicacy.
One of the things that surprise me around here is home cooks pretty much just either cook it whole and eat it with butter/vinegar or make it into rolls. You'd think that at $3/lb, you'd experiment more! And around here, you can get a McLobster sandwich (but only in season). I find that vaguely horrifying.
You said "purists look away" too late! Mayo and MAYBE some lemon is all you need for a phenomenal lobster roll, and I'm not a fan of mayo. I've had other variations, and would be willing to try yours, but I'm always left wanting the basics that I used to get up on the coast. I'm glad you chose tackle a lobster!
Eh, delicacy or not, the tomalley is now on the list of things not to eat. (FDA says "No recommended consumption")
It's the liver and pancreas, and collects contaminants from the environment, including toxins from the same algae that cause red tide, and heavy metals like mercury.
The meat part of the lobster's still fine, thank goodness!
Meh, people have been eating it around here for 200 years and still manage to live to tell about it. We North Americans are positively paranoid about food. I'll take my chances. I even still eat raw cookie dough. Raw eggs, such a risk! ;)
This is definitely one of the funnier posts I've read here in a while!
There is nothing I like more on a hot, summer day than a lobster roll (and a beer, of course). It's funny to read about your interactions with the live lobsters, tho. I grew up in Puerto Rico so I had plenty of experience with the Caribbean lobsters (no claws) and kind of know what to expect. When we did cook Maine (i.e. cold water) lobsters, tho, we always left the claw bands on until they were cooked. You don't want to get pinched, trust me.
The best way to cook a lobster, IMHO, is to steam it. I find that the lobster meat tastes "watered down" when it's boiled (water is a solvent, after all, and does dilute the taste). Try tossing them in a steamer basket next time for better results.
Don't forget to make stock out of the crushed-up lobster shell. Then turn it into a cream sauce and, ta-dah, lobster linguine!
Liz, This post is hilarious and so genuine! Love it!
I disagree with what some people say - take the claw rubber bands off! Otherwise your lobster will have a distinctly rubber band flavor, no joke, I am speaking from experience. Always take them off!