Lobster Preparation

East Coast Seafood Lobster (Homarus Americanus)

aka: American Lobster, North Atlantic Lobster, Canadian Lobster, Maine Lobster.

The East Coast Seafood lobster is harvested from the ocean waters along the Northeast Atlantic Coast of Canada and the United States. This unique and savory shellfish is a perfect selection for holiday meals, family and friends get togethers, or just a fun meal.

Cooking Lobster

Steaming: Put 2 inches of seawater or salted fresh water (2 tablespoons of salt for each quart of water) in a large kettle and bring the water to a rolling boil. Put live lobsters in the kettle, one at a time, by grasping the body behind the claws. Cover the pot tightly and bring water back to a boil. Steam hard shell lobsters 18 minutes for a 1-1½ lb. and 20 minutes for 2+ lb. For soft shell lobsters reduce cooking time by 3 minutes.

Boiling: Fill a large kettle with ¾ full with seawater or salted fresh water (2 tablespoons of salt for each quart of water) and bring the water to a boil. Put the live lobsters head first in the kettle, one at a time, completely submerging them. Reduce the heat, cover the kettle and let the lobsters simmer. Allow hard-shell lobsters to simmer for 15 minutes for 1-1½ lb. and 20 minutes for 2+ lb. For soft shell lobsters reduce cooking time by 3 minutes. When the antennae pull out easily and a bright red color is attained, the lobsters are ready to eat.

Eating Lobster

1. Twist off the claws so that they break off where the "arm" connects to the body. Bend the arms back at the knuckle to separate them from the claw.
2. Break the smaller bottom piece off each claw. Use a nutcracker to break the claw apart. Using a fork push the meat out of the claw.
3. Turn the lobster on its back. Separate the tail from the body by arching the back and twisting until it cracks. Break off the flippers by bending them back.
4. Insert a fork into the end of the tail where the flippers break off and push out the tail meat. Remove the black vein that runs down the middle of the tail.
5. Break the legs away from the body and suck out the meat.
6. Open the body of the lobster by breaking it apart sideways. The meat lies in the four packets where the six small legs were attached.