291114 Thu Dec 05 15:45:05 -0800 2002 12 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1582643 Does anyone know how to do this the right away in your standard kitchen ? And also, how do you make the butter sauce ? Thu Dec 05 15:45:05 -0800 2002 0 Andrew Chen 1 1582646 If it's approximately 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 lbs, I throw it in a pot of about an inch of boiling water for 12 minutes. A little longer for larger beasts. As for the "butter sauce". I simply melt butter. Some people clarify the butter, but I don't bother. Another option is to remove the tomalley from the cooked lobster and mix some into the butter. Enjoy! Thu Dec 05 15:52:21 -0800 2002 1582643 0 AlanH 2 1582648 That should say "in a covered pot..." Thu Dec 05 16:00:30 -0800 2002 1582646 0 AlanH 2 1582700 I do the same but, my way involves 2 bottles of beer, I emtpy the first one into the water then I drink the other one while I'm waiting for the lobster to finish. The lobster should be done just about when you finish your beer (at a leisurely pace of course). Fri Dec 06 08:51:06 -0800 2002 1582646 0 fatboy 1 1582649 There was a really good thread about this back in April. Link is below I think the consenscus was to make sure your lobster was relaxed through steaming. Sort of like a warm sauna where they fall asleep. Plunnging into boiling water made the meat tough because they tensed up. Well yeah, I'd tense up too if you dropped me in in a pot of boiling water. Bon apetite. Link: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/288921#1561564 Thu Dec 05 16:08:41 -0800 2002 1582643 0 Stanley Stephan 2 1582657 To this end, I recommend drowning in white wine both the cook and the beast before cooking. Thu Dec 05 16:39:03 -0800 2002 1582649 0 GG Mora 3 1582702 On Iron Chef they put live lobsters into a pot of cold sake, left them for half an hour, and then brought them to a boil. The panelists seemed to think they were really good. Not in my budget. I wonder if Carlo Rossi white would do it? Fri Dec 06 08:56:40 -0800 2002 1582657 0 ironmom 2 1582838 On the Food Channel, Alton Brown relaxes them by putting them in the freezer for half an hour before plunging them into the boiling water. You can kill them first by plunging a sharp knife through the top center of their heads. They don't see this coming, so they don't tense up and the meat stays tender. Fri Dec 06 19:38:54 -0800 2002 1582649 0 Karolyn 1 1582664 I assume because you asked about a sauce that you want something other than merely melted butter. A lot of people like just plain melted butter because it's a tasty fat that still doesn't get in the way of the delicate lobster flavor. By the way, lobster butter, strictly speaking, is a butter than is made with butter and lobster coral and is used to sauce finfish (ie, it's a butter made with lobster, not for lobster). If you want a somewhat flavored butter, you would start with melting (and, if you wish, clarifying -- letting the whitish solids drop to the bottom of the pan and pouring off the clarified butter; clarified butter doesn't burn as easily or get as off-flavored) some sweet (unsalted) butter. (It's fresher butter.) Classic additions might include: some thyme, some minced shallots (garlic is usually too strong), a bit of strained lemon juice, a tiny pinch of cayenne pepper, salt and freshly ground pepper (black for fuller flavor, white for sharper taste). You can make this up in advance and chill it for future use. Just don't overdo the seasonings: they should be background, not foreground. If you wanted more of a sauce than a butter, you could thicken it slightly with standard thickening processes, but that would be more appropriate for lobster being served outside its shell rather than being picked apart by the diner and dunked, as it were. Thu Dec 05 16:59:38 -0800 2002 1582643 0 Karl S. 2 1583058 I find a drop of truffle oil in my butter to be evilly decadent and complementary. Mon Dec 09 16:08:12 -0800 2002 1582664 0 dude 2 1583059 I find a drop of truffle oil in my butter to be evilly decadent and complementary. Mon Dec 09 16:08:12 -0800 2002 1582664 0 dude 3 1583090 Try adding a squeeze of lemon juice to the clarified butter. Simple but nice change, especially in the warm weather (we can dream). Mon Dec 09 20:02:06 -0800 2002 1583059 0 Chris Stacion 1 1582757 I like to throw in some seaweed too (w/ the 1-2 inches of water). Lots of seafood shops have fresh seaweed that often comes in with packaging. adds a little salt flavoring. Fri Dec 06 13:03:31 -0800 2002 1582643 0 Dax