Grilled Lobster

Photo Courtesy of buckaroobay

Show off to the neighbours with this grilled lobster recipe of simple steps for how to grill lobster.

Before grilling lobster, clean the barbecue thoroughly with a wire brush. The barbeque should be cleaned after every use, but this is especially true before and after cooking seafood. After it is clean, grease the grill so that what is cooked on it doesn't stick to it. I like to use a nice light extra virgin olive oil. The light extra virgin oil won't change the taste of the meat, but it does a great job in keeping it from sticking. Preheat the barbeque so the heat is good and hot, but even across the bbq.

You want to start any barbecue lobster recipe with active live lobsters. Somewhere between 1 and 2 pounds is a good size. If they are too large, some of the meat will be dried out before the middle is well cooked.

The seabugs need to be dead before you put it on the barbecue. You don't want to grill live lobster! You can kill it with a knife by plunging it through the head. I've always been squeemish about doing this, so I prefer to just steam the lobster - but only for a minute, definitely no more than two. The point is not to cook it through.

Put the crustacean on it's back on a cutting board, and cut lengthwise, cutting about 3/4 of the way through to the back. Spread it open and take out anything that isn't meat (including the roe and tomalley).

Some grilled lobster recipes suggest brushing meat with drawn butter, lemon butter, or garlic butter. It does add a nice flavour to the meat.

Once they are fully prepared, put them on the bbq, on their bellies, spread open so that some of the meat is touching the grill. But don't push down to hard, or the back will split apart. Cook until you can see nice grill marks on the meat. Turn them onto their backs and continue grilling lobsters for about 10 more minutes. How long to grill lobster will depend on their size. They will taste dry if they are over-cooked, so do keep a close eye on them. Watching them is the best way to tell if they are cooked; if the meat is solid white and doesn't look transparent any more, they are done.

BBQ lobster is nice served with drawn butter. Barbeque lobster is easy for your guests to eat, since it has already been cut in half for them. I think that when you are having a lobster bbq, having lots of fresh vegetables done on the grill with them is nice. I like asparagus if it is fresh, and of course corn on the cob is a staple. They can all be cooked with the lobster on the bbq.