Lobster meat question

[BreezyCooking]

I agree about it possibly being the cooking. I often buy 2+ pounders & cook them at home (boiled), & have never found them to be tough.

Larger sizes than that, however, may take a little more cooking finesse to have them come out properly.

 

[mish]

I agree about it possibly being the cooking. I often buy 2+ pounders & cook them at home (boiled), & have never found them to be tough.

Larger sizes than that, however, may take a little more cooking finesse to have them come out properly.

Andy & Breezy, I think you have a good point re overcooking.

Mish's Lobster Tale

Re the tough-as-nails restaurant 2 pounder-lobster (& the nuked baked potato - blech)...

Looking forward to this special meal, I made reservations in advance for my friend & I. We wanted a really big lobster! My friend (who passed on, bless her soul, I love her bunches), always sent things back as long as I can remember & is very picky, & has been known to walk thru the restaurant kitchen to check things out

When I arrived at the restaurant, my friend was already seated at the very loud bar - sports game going on on TV. The restaurant was empty - 'round lunchtime. My friend had this sheepish look on her face, & knowing my dear friend as I did - I said (insert name) - okay what'd ya do?

She told me she wanted to be sure we were getting a 2-pounder, walked thru the kitchen to see/ask 'bout the lobster. So, sitting in the empty restaurant, with reservations, we waited 30 mins - they told us the potatoes weren't ready - do we want the lobster first. We said No.

Long story short - too late - lobster tough, potato nuked - bill was not cheap. Maybe the staff was watching the big game? I'll never know. Was miffed at the time, but look back and laugh at the whole big lobster experience.

THE BEST - Was Live baby, Live!
BF shows up in full scuba gear at my front door with a live one in each hand. Best I ever had. As to weight, we didn't weigh 'em - just ate em. YUM! & there was plenty 'o meat.

 

[BreezyCooking]

Unless it's a very casual outdoor seaside place, I never order whole lobster in restaurants anymore. First of all, 9 times out of 10 it's overcooked; secondly, when I enjoy one properly, I'm always a mess afterwards - nothing a little plastic lobster bib or a 2" x 2" "moist towelette" can handle - lol!!

In fact, one of the only times I ever got sick from restaurant food was when my husband & made the mistake, many years ago, of dining at "Red Lobster", where good old "Lobster Fest" was going on. I ordered a lobster & should have known something was awry when no matter what we did, we couldn't crack the claws open. We actually had to send them back to the kitchen, & it took them so long to get them open that I can only assume they had taken them out into the parking lot & were backing a car over them. Obviously had spent WAY too much time under those infrafred heat lamps.

Anyway, later that night, I had one of the most intense cases of - ahem - "intestinal distress" imaginable, & definitely feel it was from that lobster.

It was not only the last time I ordered whole lobster at a non-seaside restaurant, but also the last time I ever ate at Red Lobster.

 

[mish]

Unless it's a very casual outdoor seaside place, I never order whole lobster in restaurants anymore. First of all, 9 times out of 10 it's overcooked; secondly, when I enjoy one properly, I'm always a mess afterwards - nothing a little plastic lobster bib or a 2" x 2" "moist towelette" can handle - lol!!

In fact, one of the only times I ever got sick from restaurant food was when my husband & made the mistake, many years ago, of dining at "Red Lobster", where good old "Lobster Fest" was going on. I ordered a lobster & should have known something was awry when no matter what we did, we couldn't crack the claws open. We actually had to send them back to the kitchen, & it took them so long to get them open that I can only assume they had taken them out into the parking lot & were backing a car over them. Obviously had spent WAY too much time under those infrafred heat lamps.

Anyway, later that night, I had one of the most intense cases of - ahem - "intestinal distress" imaginable, & definitely feel it was from that lobster.

It was not only the last time I ordered whole lobster at a non-seaside restaurant, but also the last time I ever ate at Red Lobster.

Wow. Sorry to hear this Breezy. Red Lobster is okay. What "cracks" me up - is the old get-to-know-your lobster - go to the tank & pick the creature/familiarize yourself with Herman or whomever's in the tank with rubber bands round its' claws & you know Herman will be dead facing down on your plate in no time. I try not to think about it RE market value, who knows. Is the Dow up or down? I'll call my broker. LOL

 

[GB]

I am sure Amber will back me up on this...The best places to get lobster are the places that look the worst. The little shacks that have all the paint peeling off, red picnic tables out back, screen doors that may or may not still be on the hinges. The lobsters are not served on plates, but instead come in little paper holders. There are no napkins, but instead rolls of paper towels. Those are the places you sould get a lobster from (at least in Maine).

 

[mish]

I am sure Amber will back me up on this...The best places to get lobster are the places that look the worst. The little shacks that have all the paint peeling off, red picnic tables out back, screen doors that may or may not still be on the hinges. The lobsters are not served on plates, but instead come in little paper holders. There are no napkins, but instead rolls of paper towels. Those are the places you sould get a lobster from (at least in Maine).

Hmmm, yes and no, from my experience. Maybe depends on where you live, as well.

Use to be a dingey/dark place on Santa Monica Pier called Moby Dicks. Don't know if they're still around - may have been washed up by storms/rebuilt. Not great atmosphere, but good lobster. There are a few good places in Marina de Rey - not cheap, ambiance, bar, view, etc. There were some excellent places on Pacific Coast Highway - romantic atmosphere, view, watching the waves come in. Newport and Laguna beach has some excellent restaurants/seafood places - not cheap, but oh so good. Perhaps beach communities & NY/East Coast do it best, IMO. Gladstone's use to have a good reputation - it's on the list. On the other hand, Vegas - in the middle of the desert rarely does food badly (unless you're eating at Circus, Circus). Downtown, steak & lobster tail, salad $7.99.

To get back on track, grumble, were you thinking bout the yield for making it at home in a recipe, dining out, etc?

 

[buckytom]

a number of restaurants "do" lobster well around me, especially spanish/portugese places, and their prices are reasonable. around $15 for two steamed lobsters, about a pound each, with accompaniments.
of course, most seafood specialty places here have good lobster, but they're pricey.

i agree with gb that the best places in new england are the little shacks that dot the coastal roads. my fave place is next to the tiny bridge in kennebunkport. i have a cookbook of the best recipes from the coastal new england seafood shacks. i'll have to go dig it out.

i love to go to sandy hook, nj on sundays, catch some rays on the beach for the day (i don't go swimming in the ocean anywhere i can still see the city , unless it's 105 out or something. then you will need a tetanus shot, which if you're lucky, you might also find in the sand or surf ).

but then, on the ride home, there's a little outdoor cafe/deck that overlooks (underlooks?) the drawbridge that connects the island of sandy hook to the mainland. they have truely amazing steamed lobster platters, and steamed p!ss clams. unfortunately, they're expensive. around $25 for two 1 pound lobsters and fries. add the basket of steamed clams, a crab cake, corn on the cob, and a few foster's oil cans, and you're talking $75 to $100 for dinner for 2.
still, everything is so fresh, and perfectly steamed or fried it's worth it. supposedly, they get a bi-weekly delivery directly from maine ports.

also, you get to sit at picnic tables on a big deck still in your tank top and flip flops, watching the sailboats queue up, awaiting the next open bridge.
i can't wait to go this year.

 

[Alix]

and steamed p!ss clams.

At the risk of sounding like a complete idiot, what are these and why would you eat something with that name? Please tell me they are named for something other than their flavour.

 

[buckytom]

alix, they are soft shelled clams with a long siphon that sticks out of one end. it looks like a you know what, and they will spit water at you thru it, hence the name.
i think they're also called ipswich clams.

to eat them, they are boiled in a little net-like bag in clam broth, and served in the net in a basket with little bowls of clam broth and clarified butter. you pull open the shell and the creature out of the shell by it's siphon, peel off the skin of the siphon and discard, then dunk it in hot clam broth, then the warm butter. oh man, i'm jonesing for them now.

if you like clams, it's something you must experience.

 

[Alix]

Whew. Thanks for that explanation. Being a prairie girl I don't know all the different kinds of clams, etc that are available on the shore. Thanks for the explanation. They sound delicious by the way.

 

[buckytom]

alix, here's a good site about seafood.

http://www.victoriapacking.com/fishinfo.html

the picture of the p!ss clams is not showing the siphon for some reason.

 

[Alix]

Thank you.

 

[GB]

MJ I have never heard that term before, but it sounds like you are decribing what we would call steamers. Only difference is that ours are steamed (obviously) instead of boiled. sometime beer and garlic is aded to the steaming liquid. Great stuff! When I used to do a lot of mountain biking I would always get a craving for steamers after a hard run. That and a few cold beers were my reward for a good workout

 

[buckytom]

thank you, dr. freud.yup, they're also called steamers. but around here, steamers could be any clam that's steamed, from little necks to ipswich.

 

[BreezyCooking]

Where I grew up in Long Island, NY, they were either called steamers or soft-shell clams. Boy, do I miss them!!

Sometimes during the summer a few seafood purveyors here in VA carry them once in awhile, but because of the thin, brittle shell they don't ship well, & also just generally have a shorter shelf life than hard-shell clams, so I don't get to have them very often since moving.

When I was a kid we used to dig for them all the time at low tide. You'd just walk around on the mud flats & sand bars looking for their siphon squirts, & then dig FAST. Of course, that was way back when all Long Island waters were all still clean & pristine & you didn't have to worry about "certified waters" & poisoning yourself.

 

[GB]

thank you, dr. freud.yup, they're also called steamers. but around here, steamers could be any clam that's steamed, from little necks to ipswich.

Gotchya

 

[auntdot]

Sorry for jumping in a bit late but love the soft shell clam.

When we lived in NY and MA soft shell clams=Ipswich clams=steamers=piss clams.

Although in NY they always seemed to serve them steamed, in New England they also love to deep fry them.

Nothing better than those guys battered and deep fried.

Used to be able to buy them in clam shacks in pint or quart sizes, everyone always seemed to have their own favorite place to go.

Steamed or fried, fried or steamed, that is the question.

 

[Andy M.]

As a kid growing up, I used to eat fried clams by the bucketful. During the summer between high school and college, I developed an allergy to clams and can no longer eat them in any form.