How To Steam Lobster is an easy cooking method resulting in amazingly tender and delicious lobster meat in just 20 minutes of cooking time!
For more tasty seafood recipes try my crispy Beer Battered Fried Fish & Chips or perfectly flaky Blackberry Lemon Salmon!
How To Steam Lobster will walk you through the process of how to easily and quickly cook your lobsters for all your summer get-togethers! Bright red lobsters with pearly white tender meat will impress all your guests as their mouths water while dipping each bite of this tasty delicacy in melted butter!
I don’t just stop at how to cook the lobsters though! I also let you in on an easy way to crack open the lobsters to get to the meat in a quicker way other than wrestling with a lobster cracker!
Once you discover how easy it is to steam your lobsters you’ll be ordering some lobster bibs, stocking up on butter, and calling up some friends to host your very own backyard lobster feed!
Ingredient Notes
Cooking lobster requires minimal ingredients and just a few helpful tools to carefully but quickly get to the meat! For this recipe you’ll need:
- Lobster – I chose to use fresh lobsters.
- Sea Salt – Used when boiling the water in the stockpot.
- Stockpot – A stockpot with a steamer insert is preferred but not necessary.
- Kitchen Shears – For cutting through the shell when getting to the meat.
- Bamboo Skewers – Used for helping to push meat out once the shell is cracked open.
All that’s left is choosing how to eat your lobster meat! One of the most popular ways is enjoying it served with melted butter and lemon wedges.
You can also use the lobster meat in a delicious Lobster Roll or creamy Lobster Bisque! How about adding it into your favorite Mac and Cheese recipe?
How To Steam Lobster
- Place the live lobster in the freezer to gently put them asleep.
- Fill a large stockpot with water and sea salt and bring it to a rolling boil over high heat.
- Remove the rubber bands from the lobster claws, then lower them into the pot head first and close the lid.
- Steam the lobster until the antennas come off when gently tugged on, the shells are a bright red color, and the meat is white.
- Rinse the lobster in cold water. Then wait 5 to 10 minutes before removing the meat in case hot water got into the shell during the steaming process.
How To Break Down Lobster
Removing the meat from the lobster may seem like a lot of work! But by using just kitchen shears and bamboo sticks I’ll walk you through an easy way to get to that tasty lobster meat!
- Separate the claws and legs from the body of the lobster by twisting and gently pulling. Remove the meat from the claws by cutting the shell on each side of the claws to release the claw meat.
- Hold the lobster at the knuckles and twist to separate each section. Then use the bamboo skewers to push the meat out of the knuckles. Cut both ends of the legs and push the meat out using a bamboo skewer.
- Twist the tail off by grabbing the lobster with one hand on the tail and the other on the body. Then discard the head and rinse off the green tomalley in the tail under cold water.
- Flip the lobster tail so the bottom is facing up and then cut down the middle of the shell using the kitchen shears. Then gently remove the lobster tail meat.
How To Store Steamed Lobster
Store any shucked lobster meat in an airtight container in the refrigerator and enjoy it within 2-3 days. You can also store the leftover lobster meat in the freezer.
To do so place the meat in freezer bags and store for 3-5 months in the freezer. To thaw it just place it in a bowl overnight in the refrigerator.
How Do I Know If The Lobster Meat Is Cooked?
When the lobster meat is opaque and pearly white it’s done cooking. If the meat is still translucent just place it back in the pot to finish cooking.
Can I Reheat Steamed Lobsters?
Yes you can! Just place the whole lobster on tin foil, belly up, and place some butter on the belly and tail. Then wrap the lobster up in the tinfoil and place it on a baking sheet.
Reheat in the oven at 350 degrees F for about 10 minutes. Lobster is done when the meat is warmed.
You can also place the whole lobster into a pot of boiling water to reheat it.
How Much Lobster Meat Is In One Lobster?
On average you will get about 20-25% of the total lobster weight back in meat. Generally, a 2 pound lobster will yield about 6-8 ounces of lobster meat.
Can I Steam More Than One Lobster At A Time?
Depending on the size of your lobsters and the size of your stockpot you can. Try to find out ahead of time how many lobsters will fit into your pot. For reference, a 4-5 gallon pot will fit 2 lobsters.
How To Steam Lobster is a great way to enjoy tender, delicious seafood in no time! Check out more of my tasty Seafood Recipes that I think you’ll enjoy just as much!
- Simple Shrimp Alfredo Pasta Dinner – Your choice of pasta, delicious shrimp, fresh veggies, and a creamy alfredo sauce combine for a dinner ready in under an hour!
- British Fish Pie with Simply Bake Salmon – Loaded with flaky salmon, tender vegetables, and topped with creamy mashed potatoes!
- Crispy Air Fryer Shrimp – A recipe that brings the heat from the breading to the jalapeno cream chili dipping sauce!
- Easy Fish Tacos – This light and easy meal option uses frozen tilapia to quickly get dinner to the table in 30 minutes!
- Garlic Butter Shrimp With Zucchini Noodles – The perfect one-pan meal that’s quick and healthy!
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How to Steam Lobster
Ingredients
- 1 (2lb) lobster
- 2 tablespoons sea salt
Instructions
How To Steam Lobster
- Place lobster into the freezer for 20 minutes to gently put the lobster to sleep.
- Fill a large stockpot with 2” of water and sea salt and bring to a rolling boil. *If you have a stockpot with a steamer insert it is preferred to use the steamer but not necessary.*
- Carefully remove rubber bands off of lobster claws. Hold the lobster where the head meets the body for this. The lobster should not wake up, but to be safe hold this way to prevent any pinching *The rubber bands can leave a slightly bitter taste.*
- Lower the lobster into the pot head first and close the lid. Halfway through, adjust the position of the lobster to help cook it uniformly.
- Steam lobster for 10 minutes for the first pound, and 4 minutes for each pound after. For a 2 lb lobster, 14 minutes will be perfect. To be sure the lobster is done, gently tug on the antenna, it should release fairly easily. The lobster shell will be bright red in color, with white meat. If the meat is slightly translucent, steam for 1 to 2 more minutes to complete cooking.
- Rinse the lobster with cold water once cooked and transfer to a wooden cutting board or flat work surface. Be careful, as some water could get inside the shell of the lobster while steaming. It is best to wait 5 to 10 minutes before removing the meat because of this
How To Break Down Lobster
- To remove the meat from the lobster, you will need kitchen shears and bamboo sticks.
- First, separate the claws and legs from the body of the lobster. Twist and gently pull to separate. Set aside to extract meat.
- Now, remove the tail. Grab the lobster with one hand on the tail, and the other on the body and twist to separate. Discard the head. Rinse off the green tomalley in the tail under cold running water. Flip the lobster tail so the bottom is facing up, and use kitchen shears to cut down the middle of the shell. Push down on the sides of the shell with your hands and gently remove the meat from the shell. If it does not easily slide out, insert your finger and run it along the shell to free the meat. Use a knife to cut the tail meat in half. Remove the dark vein with a paring knife and discard. If female, there will be a red roe- remove and discard this as well.
- Next, extract the meat from the claws. Hold the lobster at the knuckles, and twist to separate each section. Use a bamboo skewer to push the meat out of the knuckles. Once finished, remove the meat from the claws. Cut the shell on each side of the claws to release the meat.
- Finally, extract the meat from the legs. There is not a lot of meat here, but the meat that is in the claws is very tender and sweet. Simply use kitchen shears to cut both ends of the legs and push the meat out with a bamboo skewer.
- Save the shells to make a delicious seafood broth!
Notes
- If cooking lobster from a frozen state, allow it to thaw in a bowl with ice overnight in the refrigerator before steaming
- If cooking more than one lobster, make sure your stockpot is large enough to accommodate both lobsters. A 4-5 gallon pot will fit 2 lobsters. Place into the pot one at a time
Nutrition
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