Lobsters, to Boil
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Choose heavy, lively lobsters for freshness.
Bring a stewpan of water to a boil and add the salt.
Boil
Add the lobsters to the boiling water.
Boil quickly for 20 to 45 minutes, depending on size, skimming regularly.
Check doneness: overcooked meat becomes thready, undercooked spawn is not red.
Finish
Rub the shells with a little butter or oil, then wipe off.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Coarse sea salt
- Seasons the boiling water so the lobster meat is lightly flavored as it cooks.
- Live lobsters
- Provide the main protein; their meat firms and turns opaque as heat sets the proteins.
The step that matters
Checking doneness. Overcooking makes lobster meat tough and thready because prolonged heat squeezes out moisture and tightens the proteins. Undercooked spawn stays dark and unset. Checking by appearance and texture prevents both problems.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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