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<\/p>\nA Maine lobster roll lets the flavor of the lobster shine. Chilled lobster meat is lightly dressed with mayo, salt, and pepper, and piled into a toasted New England-style hot dog bun.<\/p>\n
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Folks take their summer seafood seriously here on the coast of New England. The classic clambake<\/a> is a common theme for family reunions and gatherings with friends. The meal is filled food and lively conversation, all while cracking lobsters, clams, squirting juice everywhere, dipping in melted butter, and eating with your hands.<\/p>\n The best time to make lobster rolls is the day after a clambake. We always cook extra lobsters just for the leftovers. They are refrigerated overnight, and the meat is removed from the shells the following day and turned into lobster salad for lobster rolls.<\/p>\n A simple, chunky lobster roll is made from fresh caught, cooked, and chilled lobster meat, combined with a little mayo, seasoned, and heaped into a warm butter-toasted, New England-style bun.<\/p>\n Lobster is the star of the sandwich. You don’t want other ingredients to overpower the wonderful lobster flavor. Here are the simple ingredients for making a classic Maine lobster roll:<\/p>\n If you don’t have leftover lobster meat from another meal, you can cook and chill your lobster ahead of time. We are going to boil the lobsters for this lobster roll recipe. Boiling cooks the lobsters quickly triggering the meat to contract, which makes it easy to remove it from the shells.<\/p>\n If you prefer to steam your lobsters, follow the instruction found in this clambake recipe<\/a>.<\/p>\n Many lobster pounds, seafood markets, and even grocery stores will cook lobsters. If you are uncomfortable boiling live lobsters yourself, give them a call and see whether they will cook them for you.<\/p>\n You will find fresh caught lobsters available along the coast of Maine at local fish markets and lobster pounds. Most grocery stores also carry lobsters during the summer months. You can also have live lobsters shipped to you overnight<\/a>.<\/p>\n The type of lobsters available may be soft-shelled or hard-shelled depending on the season. Lobsters molt and shed their outer shells as they grow. Underneath the old shell is a new one, but it will be soft and flexible right after molting, and hardens up over time. Shedding usually occurs from July to September. Soft-shelled lobsters contain less meat than hard-shell, but the meat is sweet, and they are much easier to crack and clean using just your hands.<\/p>\n Inspect the tank and choose lobsters that are healthy and moving around. When lifted from the water, they should arch their claws and tail when picked up. Choose lobsters around the same size, so they will cook evenly.<\/p>\n Live lobsters should be cooked the day you purchase them. Get them home right away and keep them cool and damp until you are ready to cook them. Place them in an open container such as a plastic storage bin and keep them in the fridge.<\/p>\n You will need a pot large enough to hold the lobsters and keep them submerged under the water by a few inches. An 18 to 20-quart pot<\/a> is plenty big for cooking four lobsters at once and allow the heat to circulate. Cook in batches if your pot is smaller.<\/p>\n This recipe is for lobsters that weigh about 1 1\/4 pound. Adjust the cooking time to the size of your lobsters. Let the pot come to a boil and then cook for:<\/p>\n Lobsters are fully cooked when the meat looks opaque and the internal temperature is 140\u02daF. To check, stick an instant read thermometer<\/a> into the joint where the tail meets the body. If you don’t have a thermometer, cut the shell where the tail meets the body. If the meat is white, the lobster is fully cooked. If it is still translucent, return it to the pot and cook a little longer.<\/p>\n Once the lobsters are finished cooking, remove them from the pot using tongs<\/a>. Snip the tips of the claws and let the extra water drain into the pot. Set the lobster aside to cool slightly. Once the lobsters are cool enough to handle, get cracking:<\/p>\n It is interesting to note that most of the printed “How to Eat Lobster” instructions that restaurants still use today on placemats, bibs, and plates come from an original illustration published back in the 1950s by Maine Department of Sea and Shore Fisheries.<\/em> (Source: Cuisinology.com<\/a>)<\/p>\n The actual process of making a lobster roll is a simple one. Break the lobster meat into chunks and chill it in the refrigerator. Combine it with just enough mayonnaise to give it a light coating, add some salt and pepper to taste, and pile into a toasted New England-style hot dog bun<\/a>.<\/p>\n Serve lobster rolls with a side of coleslaw, chips, fries<\/a>, or onion rings<\/a>, and a dill pickle<\/a> to balance the richness of the lobster.<\/p>\nIngredients for Lobster Rolls<\/h2>\n
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How to Boil Lobsters<\/h2>\n
Buying Live Lobsters<\/h3>\n
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<\/p>\nUse a Large Pot<\/h3>\n
How Long to Boil Lobsters?<\/h3>\n
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<\/p>\nHow to Clean a Lobster<\/h2>\n
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<\/p>\nHow to Make a Lobster Roll<\/h2>\n
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