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Lobster is the star of the New England table. Make lobster rolls the warm Connecticut way or the cold Maine way, broil tails with garlic butter, bake whole stuffed lobsters, or pair a tail with filet mignon for surf and turf.
Lobster meat is done at 140 F, when it turns opaque white.
Delmonico's 1876 classic: tender lobster in a silky sherry cream sauce thickened with egg yolks, spooned over toast points with a dusting of paprika. Serves 4.
A simple, rich New England lobster stew of lobster meat warmed in butter and sherry, then gently heated in milk and cream, as served at Boston's Locke-Ober, where it was John F. Kennedy's favorite. Serves 4.
The signature dish of Boston's Locke-Ober: lobster meat in a creamy sherry sauce with mushrooms and green pepper, piled back into the shell under Parmesan and baked until golden. Serves 2.
Live New England lobsters steamed in salted water until bright red and tender, served whole with melted butter and lemon. The classic summer shore dinner; serves 4.
Chunks of sweet lobster warmed in melted butter with a squeeze of lemon and piled into a toasted, buttered split-top bun. The warm Connecticut-style roll. Makes 4.
Chilled lobster meat lightly dressed with mayonnaise, lemon, celery and chives, served in a toasted, buttered split-top bun. The classic Maine roll. Makes 4.
Lobster tails butterflied so the meat sits on top of the shell, brushed with garlic, lemon and paprika butter and broiled until just opaque. About 25 minutes; serves 4.
Whole lobsters split and filled with a buttery cracker-crumb stuffing with scallops, baked until golden. A New England special-occasion classic. Serves 2.
A pan-seared filet mignon topped with garlic herb butter and a broiled butterflied lobster tail, served with drawn butter, lemon and asparagus. A steakhouse dinner for two.
A whole New England clambake layered in one big pot: red potatoes, onions, sausage, corn, lobsters, steamers and mussels, steamed together and served with melted butter. Serves 4.
Poor man's lobster: haddock or halibut cooked with onion, chilled overnight and folded into a Russian-style dressing of Miracle Whip, chili sauce and pimento. Serve on lettuce.
Where to buy lobsterLobster Anywhere has been shipping fresh Maine lobster since 1999. See how much meat to expect from each lobster on our lobster yield chart.
More picks: where to buy seafood. We may make money from the links on this page, but it doesn't affect what you pay.
A whole lobster is mostly shell. Only about a quarter of its weight is meat, so a 1 1/2 pound lobster gives you roughly 6 ounces of picked meat. That is why lobster rolls and salads call for picked meat or tails, and why whole-lobster recipes plan on one lobster per person.
The chart from Lobster Anywhere shows how much meat to expect from each size of lobster, which helps when you are buying for a crowd or a clambake.
Size and tenderness. Lobsters of 1 to 1 1/2 pounds (chicks, quarters and halves) have the sweetest, most tender meat and are the classic size for a whole lobster dinner. Larger lobsters give more meat per pound and are great for lobster rolls and salads, but the meat is firmer and coarser, especially in the claws, and they are easier to overcook. See the Steamed Whole Lobster times by weight.
Northern or southern. The New England (American or Maine) lobster has two big claws full of sweet meat and is the one cooked whole. Warm-water spiny lobsters from Florida, the Caribbean and California have almost no claws; nearly all of their meat is in the tail, so they are usually sold as frozen tails. Cold-water tails are generally sweeter and more tender; warm-water tails often cost less. See Broiled Lobster Tails.
