Best lobster roll recipe

Life is Good: let the good times (and lobster) roll!

Grant and I are suckers for seafood so it's not surprising that our kiddos are, too! Earlier this week, I surprised everyone with lobster rolls for dinner. It brought back some good memories from our trip last summer to Boston, Cape Ann (commonly known as "the other cape"), and Portland, ME. 

There are, essentially, two kinds of lobster rolls--with mayo and without. Mayo has eggs and our kids are allergic, so that is out. But, frankly, we just prefer the "without" version anyway. Grant and I have sampled our fair share of lobster rolls and as pedestrian as it sounds, the best "roll" is a high-quality hot dog bun. It's just the right amount of doughy goodness without overpowering the taste of lobster.

Here's how I made ours:

1. I started by steaming lobster tails. I use my Calphalon saucepan with steamer like this one (only mine is not non-stick). We got ours in a set for our wedding from Dillards and the set is still in great condition! I simply put a couple of cups of water in the saucepan (with about a teaspoon of pink himalayan sea salt) and then put the steamer on top. I bought a 6 ounce lobster tail for each person in our family. I layered the tails so that the shells touched the pan and then the top tails had the "meat" touching each other so that the shell is what you see when you lift the lid. That way, the lobster meat doesn't get too steamed and therefore, too mushy.

2. Let the water boil for about 10 minutes or until the shells are bright red. (Keep the lid on the pan!)

3. I let my lobster cool (but not get cold). Then I pull out the lobster meat. If some of it is hard to get, I use a knife and a fork to get the rest out. I put all of the lobster meat into a covered bowl and place in the refrigerator until dinner time. (I like to prep my dinners in the morning when the kids are eating breakfast. It makes dinner time less hectic & stressful for me.)

4. At dinner time, I cut the lobster into large chunks (I think you can taste the lobster better this way) and then melt two tablespoons of butter in a pan on low heat. I add the lobster meat once the butter is melted and saute it for about five minutes or until the lobster is warm (be careful not to overcook the meat---it will get tough). 

5. In a separate pan, I lightly toast the inside of hot dog buns. Like the "with mayo or without" debate, toasting the bun is also a preference that is individual as you are. You can spray the pan with Pam, melt more butter, or toast the bread without anything in the pan at all. 

6. Then it is time to plate your lobster rolls! Spoon the meat onto your bun, dividing evenly among your guests (if you can...or if you love lobster as much as I do, you will heap all of it on your one bun and then tell everyone you accidentally dropped it all on the floor and need to order pizza!). ANYWAY! You can eat your lobster roll just like this or if you prefer a more buttery taste, melt one tablespoon of butter per every 3-4 lobster rolls and spoon the butter over all of your lobster meat on the bun. This will make your bun a little more soppy, but many people like it that way. If you do this, I would definitely toast your bun for this version. 

7. Then it is time to eat! Ohmygosh. My mouth is watering!!! 

This week's dinner was especially lovely because we ate outside on our deck. The weather was reminiscent of Martha's Vineyard where Grant and I just might have had our first lobster roll together!