How to Cook Live Maine Lobsters

We recommend steaming versus boiling your live lobsters!

If you cook more than one lobster at a time, you will need to increase the overall cooking time by only a few minutes. Do NOT use the combined total weight! You can use the lobster's antenna as a tester: tug a bit on the antenna and if it pops right off, they are done. To verify accurate cooking, look between the lobster body and the tail. You will have to slice the membrane to expose the meat. The meat should appear solid white with splashes of pink/red. It should not appear gray or jelly-like. All lobsters have a light to dark green substance in their body cavity called the tomalley, basically the lobsters liver/pancreas. Some folks enjoy eating it and consider it a delicacy. We recommend that you do not eat it, all the body meat surrounding it is fine to enjoy! Also, some female lobsters may be carrying eggs, which unfortunately, no one can see inside the lobster. When cooked, it will appear solid red/orange. If uncooked, it may appear to be green or black in color and gelatinous inside the body and on rare occasions on the tail meat of the lobster This can be rinsed off prior to eating. Again, there is no way to tell if a lobster is carrying eggs inside their body and as rare as it is, the lobster is completely safe to eat. Do not over cook lobsters. With about 2 inches of water and a few pinches of salt in a large pot (steaming rack is optional), bring the water to a rolling steam over high heat. Carefully add your live lobsters into the pot. Cover the pot tightly, as that will bring the water back to a boil as quickly as possible. Once the water boils again, begin timing. Use the individual lobster’s size to calculate your approximate cooking time: 13 minutes for the first pound and 3 minutes per pound for each additional pound. Lobsters will turn bright red when cooked.

Example: 2 to 2-1/2 pound lobsters should steam for 16 minutes; 11-pound lobsters, for 141 minutes.

To save your lobsters for later, immerse them in an ice-water bath immediately after cooking. Failure to do this will allow the lobsters to continue cooking, possibly leading to overcooked lobsters! Cooked lobsters will store in the fridge for up to 2 days. To keep longer, remove the meat from the shell, and freeze for later use. We suggest that you remove the flap of meat along the back of the lobster tail and rinse this area under cold water to remove any roe and or entrails prior to freezing; this will make for better quality lobster when you are ready to use it! We also suggest storing your lobster meat in a zip-top bag, removing as much air as possible.

To reheat a cooked lobster, we recommend steaming: bring 2-3 inches of water to a boil, carefully place the lobsters in the pot, cover tightly, and cook for only 2-3 minutes. Do not overcook. Disclaimer: Please be advised that consuming raw or undercooked meats, poultry, seafood, shellfish, or eggs may increase your risk of foodborne illness. Raw, uncooked shellfish or seafood should not be consumed by pregnant women or anyone with an underlying medical condition.