337470 Thu Oct 26 19:39:28 -0700 2006 32 31 Home Cooking 0 1975077 I would like to buy some live lobsters on Friday to prepare on Saturday evening. Is there a way to keep them alive for 24 hours or so? I'm used to doing tails, so steaming a live one is a new adventure for me. I just hate to fight the crowds at the fish market on Saturdays..... Thanks in advance for any tips! mothrpoet Thu Oct 26 19:39:28 -0700 2006 44682 mothrpoet 1 1975102 Lobsters are hardy creatures even out of water. Just put them in a paper bag and put them in a cool part of the refrigerator. They'll snooze and bubble but I think they'll stay alive for at least 24 hours. Thu Oct 26 19:45:25 -0700 2006 1975077 13609 Scagnetti 1 1975105 Buying them friday to cook saturday is a fine idea but you might want to change your tack. Have you considered parcooking your lobsters friday night and then throwing them in the fridge to finish saturday? I don't think that they will be in the prime of life after 24 hours out of water. Thu Oct 26 19:45:48 -0700 2006 1975077 12758 Ernie Diamond 1 1975113 They will survive if properly refrigerated. I wouldn't go much longer than 36 hours. Thu Oct 26 19:47:54 -0700 2006 1975077 11222 Infomaniac 1 1975505 24 hours in the fridge won't be a problem for healthy lobsters. Wrap some damp newspapers around them and put them in the bottom of the fridge. If you're not locked into steaming them, you might consider stuffing and baking them. Thu Oct 26 21:35:14 -0700 2006 1975077 10784 Scrapironchef 2 1977634 I watched the Alton Brown episode on lobsters recently. . .he advocates putting them in the fridge because it dulls their senses -- he's overly concerned with killing them humanely. So yeah, you wouldn't have to worry about them running around. Fri Oct 27 18:15:32 -0700 2006 1975505 12858 Covert Ops 1 1975734 i may sound dumb, but i keep kosher, so i have no experiance whatsoever with lobsters but if its still alive, wont it crawl around the fridge? Thu Oct 26 22:44:41 -0700 2006 1975077 19822 chai18 2 1976311 They could, but the light is off in the fridge so they probably won't get too far :) I squeamish about live seafood and the same thought crossed my mind. Fri Oct 27 03:48:19 -0700 2006 1975734 13030 free sample addict aka Tracy L 3 1976335 Out of the water they're not exactly speed demons, chilled in the fridge they're pretty torpid. Fri Oct 27 03:57:10 -0700 2006 1976311 10784 Scrapironchef 4 1978887 How far do you think you'd go wrapped in wet newspaper?? They'll get in there and more or less fall asleep. As I understand it, they can actually live a surprisingly long time like this. As long as the paper is wet. I'd just fight the crowd on Saturday. Get there really early and it won't be too bad. DT Sat Oct 28 03:00:59 -0700 2006 1976335 11291 Davwud 3 1979837 LOL Tracy!!! I was going to comment that unless there is another lobster in the frig, I don't think they'd want to go anywhere. I've parboiled my lobsters and then "finished them off" later. Melly http://www.sacramentofoodgroup.org Sat Oct 28 21:04:39 -0700 2006 1976311 11408 melly 1 1975828 If you keep kosher, why are you throwing a lobster in your fridge? But anyway, it shouldn't crawl around in there. Lobsters are cold-blooded and the cold will make it sluggish and not move. Just in case, maybe put it in a plastic tub with a lid. Thu Oct 26 23:30:58 -0700 2006 1975077 29135 scoobyhed 2 1976296 im not the one buying the lobster mothrpoet is! i was just wondering how you could possibly put a live lobster in your fridge. Fri Oct 27 03:40:46 -0700 2006 1975828 19822 chai18 3 1977376 Sorry, chai. I need to RTFA. Fri Oct 27 16:49:34 -0700 2006 1976296 29135 scoobyhed 3 1977786 Paper bag is traditional. Fri Oct 27 19:04:05 -0700 2006 1976296 12806 curiousbaker 1 1976182 Personally, I'd buy it on the same day as I planned to cook it. Sure, you may get 24-48 hours in the fridge but what if you don't? Who's the lucky recipient of the cooked dead critter on Saturday if one dies pre-pot? If you must buy the day in advance, make sure the market only gives you very lively looking lobsters. There's a difference if it's just barely moving. A good sign is if it snaps its tail wildly as they are being taken out of the tank. Of course, your proximity to actual ocean will be one factor dictating the degree of freshness. Every lobster that I've ever bought comes in a paper bag so crawling around the fridge is never an issue. (Kosher lobster?....Puh-LEASE!!! May as well stuff it with fatback bacon and italian sausage.) Fri Oct 27 02:26:20 -0700 2006 1975077 14387 CapeCodGuy 2 1978895 All also throw in that you want to see the claws spread out and long antennae. Basically, you're looking for one that is pissed about being taken from his tank. The more fight (claws/tail), the healthier. The long antennae would suggest that it hasn't been in the tank very long. One other tip. Bigger is not better. About a pound and a quarter is perfect IMHO. DT Sat Oct 28 03:07:21 -0700 2006 1976182 11291 Davwud 3 1978980 The antenna tip is good but aren't lobster's claws banded where you live? They all are here for two reasons. First the bands are color coded as to size to help the fishmonger choose the approximate size from a glance. Second, the bands prevent them from fighting each other in a crowded tank as a one armed lobster is a discounted lobster! I was told once by an old lobsterman that the best weight lobster for meat to shell ratio also happens to be the tastiest. He insisted a 2.5 pounder is the way to go. Having tested his theory many times...I agree with the ole salt! There's a reason the selects are more expensive by the pound than the chix or the jumbos. A 5-6 pound lobster is a chewy effort. A 1.25 pounder may as well be shrimp! A 2.5 pounder is heaven..... Sat Oct 28 04:19:22 -0700 2006 1978895 14387 CapeCodGuy 4 1979737 I have a friend who won't eat a lobster over 1.25lbs. He's from Cape Breton so he oughta know. I guess I could go to the market and buy one of each and do a taste test. It could also be the type of lobster. What we get here (TO) is from Nova Scotia. Perhaps from other areas this theory is different. As for the claws, I don't mean that they open up, I mean their whole "Arms" open up wide to expose their "Chests". Not just hand there. DT Sat Oct 28 19:50:43 -0700 2006 1978980 11291 Davwud 4 3979842 My personal preference (key word being "personal") is a 1.5 to a 1.75 pound lobster. I have been eating lobster for years and always wanted to try a 2 pounder. For my birthday one year, my hubby bought me a couple of them. I found them to be really tough to chew. The claws and the arms were fine, but the tail meat was really tough. So I prefer the ones that are a little smaller and of course hard shell are the best. Fri Aug 22 19:21:35 -0700 2008 1978980 220746 lobstahlovah 1 1976295 I use to work at a seafood wholesaler place, I remember that the lobsters were wrapped in damp newspaper and then packed in a cooler. I have seen lobsters stay alive in this packaging for over 24 hours (in a fridge). The lobsters need to stay in a cool place, live lobsters hate heat. Fri Oct 27 03:40:37 -0700 2006 1975077 34604 sweetie 2 1976357 YOu guys are the greatest! I'll put the big critter in a cooler with plenty of ice and plan on him living overnight. If I have to wrap him in newspaper, what would he like to read? I suppose he would die if I wrapped him in the food section.. Thanks for all the good advice! mothrpoet Fri Oct 27 04:07:47 -0700 2006 1976295 44682 mothrpoet 3 1976410 Go for th ecomics- if ya gotta go, go with a smile! Fri Oct 27 04:43:18 -0700 2006 1976357 39914 lunchbox 3 1977467 DON'T SUBMERGE THE BEAST IN ICE. BE SURE TO LEAVE HIM ON TOP!!! Fri Oct 27 17:22:48 -0700 2006 1976357 12758 Ernie Diamond 3 1978069 As a former owner of a Commercial Lobster Co. from Boston, I have some advice here. Don't put lobsters in a cooler with "wet" ice. All lobsters bought and shipped, are done so on dry ice. The lobster will die quickly by adding fresh water or ice. The best way to store them in the fridge, is in the "crisper drawer". Put a dry paper towel down on the bottom of the drawer, and add the lobster in the drawer (no bag), shut the drawer. They will keep very nicely for about 2 days or more, in this weather. Fri Oct 27 20:40:50 -0700 2006 1976357 15691 mcel215 1 1977668 I used to work in a seafood department - lobster were shipped in cardboard boxes with a little chipped ice on refrigerated trucks - they were kept out of the water (and alive) after 48 hours of travel. The lobster will keep fine - keep them in the heavy duty paper bag that the fishmonger gives you, on the bottom shelf of the fridge. Depending on the market, see if they have some seaweed you can wrap them in - otherwise, use some damp newspaper. Fri Oct 27 18:24:33 -0700 2006 1975077 16399 Biggie 1 1977928 Just a reminder. If when you are ready to cook them and one (or more) is dead, throw it away! You do NOT want to cook a dead lobster and serve it to anyone. If you garden, dead uncooked lobsters makes for great ferilizer, just not dinner! Fri Oct 27 19:49:20 -0700 2006 1975077 14387 CapeCodGuy 2 1978925 I don't get it -- it dies the minute you steam it -- what does it matter if one dies a bit before? Is there a certain amount of time it's been dead where it becomes a problem? And for what? (Just wondering. . .) Sat Oct 28 03:40:37 -0700 2006 1977928 12858 Covert Ops 3 1979740 From what I understand, the second a lobster dies, bacteria start to take over. You may be okay for an hour or two, I don't know. The thing is, are you willing to gamble?? DT Sat Oct 28 19:52:19 -0700 2006 1978925 11291 Davwud 4 1982606 Ah, didn't know about that, thanks. Mon Oct 30 15:46:27 -0800 2006 1979740 12858 Covert Ops 1 1978102 I went to a birthday party a few years back in Montana where the birthday girl had about 50 lobsters flown in from Maine (for her 50th). They dumped them out on a tarp prior to putting them in the pit they dug and I only saw one live one. I think they had stored them in fresh water and drowned the poor things. I (and a chef friend of mine, who saw the whole fiasco too) avoided the lobsters and watched everyone else eat the slimy, mostly undercooked nasty looking things. Amazing everyone didn't get sick. Oh, they also had a bunch of steamers that they neglected to clean, gross. Luckily they had a locally raised lamb that was delicious. Fri Oct 27 20:49:26 -0700 2006 1975077 11634 saeyedoc 1 1979341 Lobster can be still good to eat after they have died. But, you only have a few hours (about 6), to cook them. Lots of commercial people in the field, have lost lobster due to lack of refrigeration, filtering water problems etc. They can't sell them, but we used to take them home. When you have a "dead" lobster, fold the limp tail under the lobster and place it on the bottom of the lobster pot in boiling water. Cook about 10-12 minutes (depending on size), and when you take it out of the water, the tail "must" be tightly clinging to the underpart of the lobster, just like any other cooked lobster. If the lobster is limp after cooking (tail hanging down), definately throw it away, it has passed it's stage to eat. Sat Oct 28 15:12:10 -0700 2006 1975077 15691 mcel215 2 1979744 Good tip. I'll have to trust you I guess. I do a good job of keeping my critters alive though. DT Sat Oct 28 19:53:29 -0700 2006 1979341 11291 Davwud