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Lobster Tips
Steaming Lobsters
When steam cooking lobsters, put two inches of rocks in pot cover with water and add fresh herbs, like rosemary, thyme and parsley.
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RedLobster.com Tip: Buying live lobster
Buying live lobsters can be a scary task, but it doesn't need to be. You just need to know what to look for. Here are some tips that will make your purchase easier.
Color. When buying live lobsters, look for a healthy-looking brightly colored shell. Even if it is brown, it should still be a healthy, vibrant color.
Shell. The live lobster should have a solid shell, no visual spots, nor any soft spots. Smell. The lobster should not have a strong odor, nor one that is offensive to you. If the lobster's odor makes any remarks about your mother, we recommend you not purchase said lobster. Weight. Pick up the live lobster when buying it. It should feel heavy for its size. But don't comment on it's weight outloud. They are sensitive creatures.
Movement. When deciding upon which live lobster to buy, notice if the lobster is lively and vigorous. It should have a lot of antennae and leg movement. When either you, or the fish monger, lifts up the lobster notice if its tail goes underneath its body. It should do this if it is truly fresh. The tail should not hang down. If the lobster is sluggish, do not buy it. Also, live lobsters that have been refrigerated for a bit will have less movement than those found in warmer holding tanks.
Client: A sure fire way to know you are getting the freshest lobster is to buy it from Red Lobster. They receive their fresh live Maine lobsters early in the morning, direct from the Atlantic. Plus, they hand select their live lobsters. Each one weighs from 1.25 to 3 pounds. To make it even better, Red Lobster offers customers the chance to purchase them online from the Red Lobster website. Buy your live Maine lobster online at www.redlobster.com. It is delivered directly from the dockside to your door step.
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Spiny Lobster Tails
Spiny lobsters are clawless and have large tail sections, the only part that can be eaten.
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RedLobster.com Tip: Lobster Bisque
There is nothing better than a warm, creamy bowl of lobster bisque. It is a great way to use live lobster, especially live Maine lobster. It is tasty, rich and oh so good. Red Lobster has a Lobster Bisque recipe on their website that you can easily make and enjoy. Here is a sample of their virtual fresh fish cookbook:
Serves 4
Ingredients:
6 cups Water
2 cups Dry white wine
2 cups Fish stock
2 each 1¼ to 1½ lbs. live lobster
½ cup Melted butter, salted
1 cup Onions, finely diced
½ cup Carrots, finely diced
½ cup Celery, finely diced
1 tsp. Garlic, minced
½ cup All-purpose flour
¼ cup Cognac (or Brandy)
1½ cups Tomatoes, seeded and diced (fresh or canned)
1 tsp. Paprika
½ tsp. Thyme
¼ tsp. Ground red pepper
1 cup Heavy cream
Preparation:
Place the water, the white wine and the fish stock into a wide, deep pot (or a Dutch oven), and bring to a boil on high heat.
Place lobsters, topside down, in the broth. Reduce heat to medium and cook covered for approximately 6 minutes. With a pair of tongs, turn lobsters and cook covered for another 6 minutes.
Remove lobsters from broth and put them to the side. When the lobsters are cool enough to handle, begin removing the meat from the shell, dicing the pieces into ½-inch cubes. Store the lobster meat in the refrigerator until later. Place the lobster shells back into the broth, reduce heat to a simmer and cook uncovered for 20 minutes.
Strain the broth through a sieve into a container and store in the refrigerator until later. Discard the lobster shells.
Put your pot (or Dutch oven) back on the stove under medium heat. Pour in the melted butter.
Once the butter is heated up, add the onions, carrots, celery and garlic. Saute for 3 to 4 minutes.
Add the cognac (or brandy) and cook until the alcohol has evaporated.
Mix in the flour, stirring with a heavy gauge spatula or spoon until the mixture is blond in color and has a buttery aroma.
Mix the diced tomatoes, paprika, thyme and ground pepper with the cold broth from the refrigerator. Then, pour the broth slowly into the butter and vegetable mixture. Cook uncovered for 30 minutes under medium low heat, stirring frequently so not to burn.
Remove bisque from heat. Blend small amounts of bisque in blender and then puree. Puree all of the bisque and pour pureed bisque back into pot with remaining amount.
Add chopped lobster meat and heavy cream, heat and serve. If the soup is too thick, thin it by adding milk or water prior to serving.
Adding a touch of brandy or sherry to the stock can bring a wonderful touch to this classic preparation.
Lobster Bisque goes well with wines such as a Chardonnay or Cambria Katherine’s Vineyard
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Lobster Storage Tips
When storing live lobsters until ready to use, place them in the refrigerator, but not directly on ice.
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RedLobster.com Tip: Lobster dinners
It seems that few things impress as many people as a lobster dinner does. There is a aura of elegance, delicacy, and sophistication surrounding a lobster dinner. But if you are budget minded, dining on lobster tails is the way to go. They are less expensive and more economical than a whole lobster. Since the majority of a lobster's meat is found in its tail and claws, you are getting more for your money by just buying the lobster tail. By enjoying just the lobster tail,you will not spend as much time working to get to the meat as in a whole lobster. It is quicker eating than a whole lobster.
If you still want to dine on a whole lobster, there is meat to be found throughout the body. You just need to work harder to get it – as mentioned.
Either way you choose, you can enjoy a complete lobster dinner either by preparing it yourself or dining out.
If you choose to dine out, Red Lobster is known as the primo place (and most affordable) as far as your lobster dinner experience goes. The atmosphere, menu choices, high quality food, and knowledgeable staff all combine to provide you with a lobster dinner you will certainly remember.
If you choose to prepare your lobster dinner yourself, Red Lobster can also help you with this. They sell fresh, live Maine lobsters via their website. The lobster is delivered directly to your doorstep. How nice is that?
Aside from Red Lobster helping you, your homemade lobster dinner could include the following: baked potato with chives, corn on the cob with herb butter, steamed broccoli and carrots, and for dessert....fresh fruit. Your beverage of choice could be a soft, delicate Reisling wine.
Enjoying any variety of lobster dinners will have you smiling for days to come.
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Cooking Lobster Meat
To get the meat out of lobster legs, cut the joint off, take a rolling pin and roll from the end, squeezing out the meat.
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RedLobster.com Tip: Ready Made Lobster Bake
You may have heard about a Maine lobster bake. It is a great way for friends and family to get together to enjoy a tasty meal. There have been weddings, corporate parties, and a variety of other great occasions where a Maine lobster bake was the meal of choice. However, after doing research into hosting your own lobster bake, you may discover how time-consuming it really is to put one on, and you may get discouraged. You are ready to give up on the idea. But wait! There are alternatives to a do-it-yourself lobster bake. You can have it catered. Or, you can have it delivered directly to you, ready-made.
Red Lobster offers customers a chance to enjoy their own Maine lobster bake. You can purchase a whole ready-made lobster bake from them. Try their authentic New England lobster bake with all the trimmings. The lobster bake comes with a 1 1/4 pound lobster, steamer clams (or littlenecks) and clam chowder.
In addition to the above-mentioned seafood, you receive all the items necessary to enjoy your Maine lobster bake. Included in each bake is a reusable steamer pot, a placemat with instructions on how to eat the lobster, claw crackers, picks (for the hard to get at places in the lobster), and even bibs.
Check out their website for more information on how to buy Red Lobster's Maine lobster bake.
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Checking Lobster Color
When cooking fresh lobster, check its color. Lobster turns red and the flesh becomes pearly white.
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Do-It-Yourself Lobster Bake
Are you ready to have a lobster bake in your own backyard? It takes time, but it will be well worth it for great food and great fun. It is the perfect way to have a party while enjoying
15pounds of seaweed (from your Asian market or fish monger)16 (1 1/2 pound) live lobsters 16 ears of corn, shucked 5 pounds red potatoes, boiled halfway in salted water 10 pounds large clams 1 (750 ml) bottle white wine 2 yards wet burlap Special equipment: #3 galvanized washtub (easy to find at a local hardware store) Start the fire 1 hour in advance, making sure the coals are white hot before you begin cooking.
Spread 1/2 of the seaweed on the bottom of the tub to protect the lobsters from burning. Place lobsters on top of seaweed. Place the corn on top of the lobster, and the potatoes on top of the corn. Arrange the raw clams on top of the vegetables and top with the remaining seaweed. Pour the wine into the tub. Place the wet burlap over the food and tuck the edges into the tub to retain the steam inside. Place the tub on top of the coals. Every 15 minutes, moisten the burlap with water. Cook for about 45 minutes.
Serve the lobster bake spread out on newspapers, with melted butter, sea salt and your favorite spices. Enjoy!
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Types of Lobster
To help you better understand lobsters, let us learn more about some of the more popular varieties out there.
First of all, you need to know that the temperature of water in which the type of lobster is found is important.
Cold water lobsters are known for tasting better than warm water. This is evident from the brilliant white flesh. This goes without saying that the Maine fishing industry is one of the more popular lobster locations in the world. That is the area where Red Lobster gets their lobster from, another testament to the superior taste of other lobster markets.
Rock lobster is the is the most popular type of lobster consumed, and most lobster tails found on the U.S. Market are of this variety. Red Lobster sells this variety of Maine live lobster. Long, active antennaes are sure signs of a fresh, healthy rock lobster.
Spiny lobster is another term used interchangeably with rock lobster. They are so called due to their hard shell being spiny.
Furry lobster are related to the slipper and spiny variety of lobster. Their antennae are not as large as those specific varieties of slipper and spiny lobsters and their bodies are covered in short hairs, otherwise known as fur. Hence, the term “furry lobster”.
