Enjoying a whole lobster for a luxurious meal or celebration may seem wonderful until the massive crustacean arrives and you realize you don’t know how to eat lobster! Where do you start? Which parts can you eat? Luckily, learning how to eat a whole lobster can be broken down into just a few easy steps that make this daunting task more efficient and rewarding.
Impress fellow diners with your knowledge of how to eat lobster as you access every bite of treasured meat from claws to tail. Whether you ordered the lobster at a fancy restaurant or are serving whole lobsters for a summer celebration at home, knowing how to eat lobster with these five easy steps will ensure you can confidently extract every morsel of succulent seafood out of its shell.
Lobster is a delicious crustacean that is popularly served in restaurants and enjoyed during special occasions. However, eating lobster, especially a whole lobster, can seem intimidating if you’ve never done it before. Don’t let that stop you from indulging in this tasty seafood treat! Here is a detailed guide on how to properly eat a lobster
Getting Started
Before getting into the steps of eating a lobster, let’s go over some basics
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Order your lobster from a reputable fish market or restaurant. Opt for lively lobsters that are active in their tank. Their shells should be firm and shiny.
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Make sure your lobster is thoroughly cooked before eating. Boiling or steaming for 8-10 minutes usually does the trick. The shell should turn bright red when it’s ready.
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Have the proper utensils on hand. These include a lobster cracker, pick, small fork, and seafood scissors. Wet wipes and napkins are also useful for the mess.
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Don’t forget the butter! Drawn butter, melted and drizzled over the meat, adds delicious flavor. Lemon wedges are also great for squeezing over lobster.
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Be ready to get messy! Eating lobster is hands-on, so leave your manners behind. Enjoy the experience.
Now let’s get cracking!
Step 1: Twist Off the Claws
Grip the lobster body firmly in one hand and twist each claw off with the other hand. It may take some effort, but twist slowly and they should separate.
Step 2: Crack the Claws
Use a lobster cracker to crack open the claws. Place the claw inside and squeeze the cracker. Keep squeezing until the shell cracks. Then pull apart the cracked shell to access the claw meat.
Step 3: Remove the Tail
Hold the body in one hand and the tail in the other. Twist gently to separate. The tail may also come off with a swift tug.
Step 4: Open the Tail
Peel back the split shell covering the tail meat. You can also use seafood scissors to cut the shell all the way down the center.
Step 5: Extract the Tail Meat
Use a fork or pick to slide under the tail meat and gently pull the meat out whole. Remove the digestive tract if needed.
Step 6: Crack the Knuckles
Crack open the knuckles at the claw joints. Pick out meat once cracked open.
Step 7: Open the Legs
Use seafood crackers or scissors to crack open the thin leg shells. Pull out the leg meat with a pick.
Step 8: Access the Body
Use a pick to get remaining meat from inside the main body cavity. Scoop out tomalley (the green liver) if desired. Avoid the feathery grey gills.
Step 9: Enjoy Dipped in Butter!
Dip the extracted lobster pieces in melted butter or lemon butter sauce. Enjoy!
That covers the step-by-step process of how to properly eat a lobster. Here are some additional lobster eating tips:
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Work over a plate or pan to catch any juices or fallen meat.
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Use a damp paper towel to get bits of meat out of the tight spaces in shells.
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Suck the juice and meat directly from legs and knuckles if desired.
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Go slowly and take time to savor the experience and flavors.
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Eat the body meat first while the claws and tail are still hot.
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Save the tail, the most prized part, for last.
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Pair steamed or boiled lobster with corn on the cob and drawn butter.
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Chilled lobster meat makes great lobster rolls, bisques, or mac and cheese.
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Store lobster overnight submerged in butter in an airtight container.
Step One: Break It Down
The first step of how to eat lobster — or even how to extract lobster meat for this fantastic lobster risotto — is to break it down. Although staring down at a whole lobster may seem intimidating, strategically separating the lobster into distinct parts makes the task more manageable.
Begin by twisting off the tail. Grab the tail at the top near the body, then twist and pull the tail away to separate it. Next, detach each of the claws by pulling with a slight twist. You now have four separate pieces including two claws, the tail and the body.
One of the most prized parts of the lobster, and its largest treasure trove of meat, is the tail. There are two methods for how to eat lobster tail. For a more elegant method, use a knife to cut the tail down the center and split it lengthwise. If you prefer a hands-on approach, squeeze the edges of the shell together between your palms until the thinner shell on the underside cracks and you can remove the whole piece of tail meat.
Be on the lookout for a dark vein running through the tail. This is the digestive tract and should be removed and discarded. If you are eating a female lobster, you might come across some red or orange lobster eggs. The eggs, or roe, can be eaten as is or saved for use in spreads or soups.
The claws also contain plenty of succulent lobster meat, although they require a little more work to break down than the tail. It may seem tedious and clumsy as you learn how to eat lobster claws, but it will become faster and easier the more you practice.
First, push the smaller, thumb-like piece away from the rest of the claw until it breaks off. As you pull this piece out, it may release some water, so have a towel or napkin nearby. Now you can move on to the rest of the claw and knuckles. Using a cracker, hammer or heavy knife, carefully break the claw and pull out the meat.
For the smaller knuckles, the cracker and a small fork can help ensure you get every bite of meat from each section. Be sure to watch for pieces of shell while you are picking the meat.
The legs have the least amount of meat, so not everyone is willing to put in the effort. For those wanting no meat left behind, break open each knuckle, then wiggle out as much of the meat as you can by hand or with the help of a small skewer or fork.
If you are at home and want an easy method for how to eat lobster leg meat, grab a rolling pin or bottle to help push it out.
Since the body does not generally have much meat, some choose to set it aside with the rest of the shells for making seafood stock. As you learn how to eat lobster, it is important to know which parts are edible and which to avoid, especially as you work through the body.
The body does often contain some good meat along with a greenish substance called the tomalley — the liver and pancreas of the crustacean. Tomalley is one of the parts of a lobster you can eat and is considered a delicacy by many. As you learn how to eat lobster, give the tomalley a try to find out whether or not you like it.
To access the body cavity, split the body down the center and use a small fork to pick out the small pieces of meat that can usually be found between the cartilage-lined pieces and toward the front of the body cavity. Be sure to avoid the feathery-looking pieces on the side as these are the lungs and not edible.
How to Eat Lobster
When practicing how to eat a lobster, keep in mind that breaking down an entire crustacean will get messy, so keep a stash of towels or napkins nearby. Especially for those newly learning how to eat lobster, a few helpful seafood tools can assist with quickly, easily and safely disassembling a lobster, such as a claw cracker and small picks or forks. Follow these easy steps as you learn how to eat lobster with confidence.
How to Shell and Eat A Whole Lobster | Serious Eats
FAQ
What part of a lobster can’t you eat?
- Black vein in the tail: This is part of the lobster’s digestive system and can have a bitter or unpleasant taste.
- Feather-shaped cartilage in the larger claws: This is a tough, non-digestible cartilage.
- Other cartilage: Any cartilage, especially in the body, should be discarded.
- Tomalley: This is the lobster’s liver and pancreas, found in the body cavity. Some find it a delicacy, while others avoid it due to its strong flavor and potential for toxins.
- Hard shell: The exoskeleton is not digestible and should be avoided.
How do you eat a lobster?
Eating lobster can be quite an undertaking, so it’s best to know all of your lobster tools (and how and when to use them) before you dig in. Use a lobster pick to extract meat from the shell, and use a nutcracker to crack open the claws.
Is lobster high in low-density lipoprotein (LDL)?
Lobster is low in saturated fatty acids and rich in omega-3 fatty acids which are good for the heart and help lower cholesterol.
How do you eat lobster legs?
“The legs are thin, but depending on the size of the lobster, they can have a good deal of tasty meat,” King says. “You can use a rolling pin or wine bottle to push the meat out of the legs onto a flat surface. You can also just dip the legs in some drawn butter and suck on the legs to pull the meat out this way.” 4. Tackle the body
Can you eat a whole lobster?
Lobster is a delicious crustacean that can be intimidating to eat, especially if you’ve never tackled a whole lobster before. With its hard shell, claws, legs, and tail, it may seem daunting to properly extract all the sweet, succulent meat. But armed with the right techniques and tools, eating lobster can be simple, fun, and satisfying.
How long does it take to eat a lobster?
It involves putting on a lobster bib, using napkins to protect your clothing, and taking the time to crack open the lobster and extract the meat from the tail, claws, and legs. The process can be messy, which may cause some diners to shy away. You may also have to accept the fact that you might finish eating last. Time needed: 10 minutes.
How do you eat a soft shell lobster?
If you’re eating a soft shell lobster, you should be able to crack open the shell and extract the meat easily. For hard shell varieties, use either a seafood pick or your thumb to push into the hole left behind from removing the fins. Gently push the meat under the shell until the whole tail comes out from the other side.