Cook Lobster Tails

A meal of lobster tails may seem like a gourmet feast to your guests, but lobster tails are easy to prepare. Believe it or not, lobster meat used to be looked down on and considered food for peasants. Now, lobster meat is one of the delicacies of the sea. Add a little sprig of garnish and a fancy side dish and you’re sure to impress your date, your dad, or even your mother-in-law.

  • Prep time: 10 hours, 45 minutes (active prep: 15 minutes)
  • Cook time: 12-20 minutes
  • Total time: 11 hours

Steps

Preparation

  1. Prepare your lobster tails for cooking. If the tails are frozen, you'll need to thaw them out before you cook them. (You could cook them frozen in a pinch, but they won't be as tender). When the lobster tails are thawed, you should easily be able to touch the head of the lobster tail to the end of the tailflap. To thaw:
    • Put them in the fridge for 10 hours or so. If you plan ahead, this method of thawing is the most effective.
    • Place in cold, not hot, water, for 30 minutes to one hour. Change the water every 15 minutes so that it doesn't get progressively colder as the lobster thaws.
    • As a last-ditch effort, thaw them in the microwave on defrost. Be very careful if you choose this method, because you don’t want them to start cooking in the microwave. Only defrost one minute at a time.
  2. Remove the meat from the shell or cut the shell for ease of cooking. Of course, if you don't want to remove the lobster meat from the tail, then skip this step. How you intend on cooking the lobster could affect how you prepare the meat and whether or not you remove the meat from the tail:
    • Broiling or baking: Let the meat "piggyback" on top of its shell. This is where you cut all but a tiny bit of the meat out of the shell, lift it up, and then place it on top of the shell. Makes for quicker baking and a really pretty presentation! See more below.
    • Grilling: Cut the tail completely in half or leave the tail whole. Grilling usually involves high heat, in which case the outer shell actually protects the meat from overcooking. See more below.
    • Boiling: Most cooks leave the meat in the shell until the lobster is finished cooking. Then, if the cook desires, he or she can cut the top of the lobster shell to make eating easier. See more below.
    • Pan searing: Remove the meat from the shell entirely. You'll be able to adjust the heat settings, being able to cook just the meat. See more below.

Broiling Lobster Tail

  1. Set the oven to 375° F (190° C).
  2. Prepare the meat by letting it "piggyback" on top of its shell. In order to do this, you shouldn't rip the tail meat completely from the tail. Instead:
    • Cut the shell lengthwise with a knife or a pair of kitchen shears, starting at the head of the tail. Be careful not to cut completely down the length of the tail, leaving the tailflap (the very end of the lobster) and an inch of shell above it intact.
    • With your hands, pry the tail meat from the membranes in the shell. Start with the thickest meat at the head of the tail. Separate all meat from the shell except an inch or so near the tailflap.
    • Lift most of the meat out of the shell, close the shell under it, and let the meat rest on top of the shell. The tail meat should look like it's piggybacking on top of its own tail.
  3. Season the tail as necessary. Some ways that you could season the lobster include:
    • Olive oil, paprika, salt, and pepper.
    • Lemon juice, salt, pepper, and dill.
    • Butter, salt, and pepper.
  4. Cook the lobster according to the weight of the tail. Cook approximately 1 1/2 minutes for each ounce of meat. This would mean:
    • An 8-ounce lobster tail would cook at 375° F for 12 minutes.
    • A 10-ounce lobster tail would cook at 375° F for 15 minutes.
    • A 12-ounce lobster tail would cook at 375° F for 18 minutes.
  5. Slightly before the tails are done cooking, cook under the broiler for 1 or 2 minutes (optional). Put a pat of butter on each tail, place at least {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} underneath the broiler, and cook, keeping a close eye on each lobster tail.
  6. Serve with clarified butter and lemon.

Grilling Lobster Tail

  1. Clean the grill so that any food, debris, or char is removed before cooking.
  2. Turn the grill on medium heat or set up a charcoal chimney if cooking with charcoal.
    • If using a charcoal grill, once the charcoal is fully lit, scatter them in your grill so that there is a hotter area and a cooler area. Having one uniformly hot area will make it harder to cook the lobster.
  3. Cut the lobster tail in half, lengthwise, or leave in shell. If you've decided you want to cut the lobster in half, get a clean break so that you have two smaller halves of lobster for each tail. Leave the meat in its shell.
  4. Brush the lobster tails with butter or oil and season appropriately. Many people like to add lemon juice as well.
  5. Grill each side for 3 to 5 minutes. Start with the meat side down before flipping over to the shell side. You may need to cook the shell side a bit longer than the meat side for perfect doneness.
    • Make sure that the tails do not burn — if there are any flames on the grill, move the lobster away from them.
    • The tail meat is cooked when it's turned opaque and is no longer translucent.
  6. Serve with clarified butter and lemon.

Boiling Lobster Tail

  1. Bring 6 to 8 cups of salted water to boil in a large pan for approximately 4 lobster tails. Be generous with the salt, but don't add more than a couple tablespoons.
  2. Leave the lobster in its shell. It's customary to leave the shell on the lobster if you're boiling it. The shell will help impart flavor and make sure the meat of the tail doesn't fall apart while cooking.
  3. Drop the tail(s) in the boiling water and reduce to a simmer.
  4. Cook for about 1 minute per ounce of tail meat. For example, 10 oz. of tail meat needs to cook for 10 minutes. If you are cooking with 4 tails that each weigh 10 oz., don't cook the tails for 40 minutes; cook for 10 minutes!
    • If you are cooking a lot of tails (4+), add a minute or two on top of the original cooking time.
  5. Once the lobster is cooked, crack the shell open with kitchen shears to make it easier to eat (optional). You can also do this with a knife, but be careful not to break apart the lobster meat as you cut through the shell.
  6. Serve with clarified butter and lemon.

Pan Searing Lobster Tail

  1. Remove the meat from the tail by cutting lengthwise down the entire tail, but not cutting meat in half. Pry meat from its membrane gently. You should get a whole piece of tail meat that's lightly cut on top.
  2. In a non-stick pan, heat {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} of olive oil or butter over medium heat.
  3. Place the tail meat in the skillet and cook approximately 3 minutes each side, depending on the size of the fillet. The second side might need a little less time to cook.
    • Lobster tail is finished cooking when the meat is opaque or no longer translucent.
  4. Serve with clarified butter and lemon.

Tips

  • Take care not to overcook your lobster or it will be rubbery and tasteless. Lobster is cooked when it is no longer transparent.
  • Use a large stockpot for boiling lobster tails; use enough water so it stays boiling when you put the tails in.
  • To eat your lobster tail, start by breaking off the small flippers at the base. Pry these open; they contain a little meat you can nibble while the rest of the tail cools. Once it is no longer scalding hot, push the tail meat out of the shell with your finger; push from the small end, where you removed the flippers.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

Retrieved from "https://kipkis.com/index.php?title=Cook_Lobster_Tails&oldid=270873"