How to Cook Lobster Tails: Grill, Bake or Poach

TL;DR: Thaw slowly in the fridge, butterfly the shell so the meat sits on top, cook meat side up over medium heat, and pull it the moment the meat turns opaque. Roughly 8 to 10 minutes for a 200 gram tail.

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Lobster is the most expensive thing most people ever cook at home, which makes it the thing they most want to get right and are most likely to rush. The good news is that there is very little technique involved. The only real skill is knowing when to stop.

Lobster meat is lean and delicately structured. Cook it correctly and it is sweet, firm and slightly springy. Cook it three minutes too long and it turns dense and rubbery, and no sauce will bring it back.

Thawing, which matters more than you think

Most lobster tails are sold frozen, and that is a good thing. They are frozen at sea within hours of being caught, which preserves them better than a few days in a chiller ever would.

How you thaw them decides the texture.

• Best: overnight in the fridge on a plate, still in their packaging. Around 12 hours.
• Fast: sealed in a bag, submerged in cold water, around 30 minutes. Change the water once.
• Never: hot water, a warm bench or a microwave. The outer layer starts cooking while the centre is still frozen, and you end up with a tail that is tough on the outside and raw in the middle.

Pat the thawed tails dry before cooking.

Butterflying the tail

This is the presentation everyone recognises, and it is genuinely the best way to cook a tail, because it exposes the meat to seasoning while the shell insulates it from the heat below.

1. Sit the tail on a board, hard shell facing up.
2. With kitchen shears, cut along the centre line of the top shell from the open end down to the tail fan. Stop at the fan.
3. Do not cut through the softer under shell.
4. Push your thumbs into the cut and prise the shell apart.
5. Lift the meat up and out, keeping it attached at the tail fan, then rest it on top of the closed shell.
6. If there is a dark vein running down the meat, lift it out with the tip of a knife.

That is it. Two minutes per tail once you have done a couple.

Grilling and barbecuing

The best method on the Gold Coast, because everyone has a barbecue and the smoke suits the sweetness.

• Preheat to a medium heat, around 200°C. Hot enough to colour, not hot enough to scorch.
• Brush the exposed meat generously with melted butter mixed with crushed garlic, lemon juice and salt.
• Lay the tails meat side up. Close the lid.
• Cook 8 to 10 minutes for a 200 gram tail, basting once at the halfway point.
• Optional finish: flip them meat side down for the final 60 seconds for grill marks. Any longer and you undo your work.

Cooking meat side up for nearly all of the time is deliberate. The shell acts as a dish, holding the butter and shielding the meat from direct flame.

Baking

The most controlled method, and the one to use if you are cooking six tails at once for a table.

• Oven to 200°C.
• Butterflied tails on a tray, meat side up, buttered and seasoned.
• 10 to 12 minutes for 200 gram tails.
• For a finish, switch to the grill setting for the last 90 seconds to brown the top. Watch it closely.

Add a spoon of white wine or stock to the tray to keep the oven humid.

Poaching in butter

The luxury method, and the most forgiving of all because the temperature never gets high enough to seize the meat.

• Remove the raw meat from the shell entirely.
• Melt 250 grams of butter in a small pan with a splash of water and hold it at around 60 to 70°C. It should never bubble.
• Slide the meat in and poach gently for 6 to 8 minutes, turning once.
• The meat turns opaque and stays extraordinarily tender.

Save the butter afterwards. It is now lobster butter and it is superb on pasta or a steak.

Knowing when it is done

Three signals, in order of reliability.

1. Colour of the meat. Translucent and glassy means raw. Opaque and white means done. This is the one to trust.
2. Colour of the shell. It goes bright red as it cooks.
3. Internal temperature. Around 60°C at the thickest point if you want to use a thermometer.

When in doubt, take it off. Carryover heat will carry it a little further while it rests, and slightly under is recoverable while overcooked is not.

What to serve with it

Keep it simple, because you did not buy lobster to hide it.

• Melted garlic butter and lemon wedges.
• A green salad with a sharp vinaigrette to cut the richness.
• Crusty bread for the butter left in the shell.
• Chips, if you are being honest with yourself.

For something a little more involved, split the cooked meat between the shells with a mornay sauce and a light dusting of cheese, then grill for two minutes.

Quantity Planning

Main course: one 200 gram tail per adult with sides. Part of a seafood platter: half a tail per person. Lobster mornay as a starter: half a tail per person.

Lobster is rich enough that people rarely want a second one, so resist the urge to over order.

Where to Source It

Tasman Star carries frozen lobster tails year round, along with Moreton Bay bugs, scampi and green king prawns for anyone building a proper seafood platter. Ask the team when the next delivery lands if you are planning a big night, and order ahead over Christmas and Easter when tails move fast.

Find us at 5 to 7 Olsen Ave, Labrador or 20 Casua Dr, Varsity Lakes, open 7 AM to 6 PM, 7 days.

Browse lobster tails and order online for Gold Coast delivery.