Lobster is considered something of a luxury these days, but that shouldn’t stop you from treating yourself every now and then. A few weeks ago we paid a visit to the National Lobster Hatchery at Padstow, to learn about how they’re working to conserve and restore populations of wild lobsters in our coastal waters – the benefit for the rest of us being that there should then continue to be enough lobster to allow some to be caught, cooked, and consumed.
Lobster rolls are a classic summer dish from the North East of America – the coastal states on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean from us, and it’s a great way to enjoy this delicacy. I prepared two different lobster roll recipes overlooking Padstow and the Camel Estuary on a small Pro-Q barbecue, using a lobster from a local fish merchant that was pre-cooked. If you buy live lobster, it’s important to kill them humanely before cooking, and our friends over at Cornwall Good Seafood Guide have published a really good how-to article here.
These rolls can be served hot or cold, but must always be served outside in the sunshine, preferably with a sea view.
PREPARING YOUR LOBSTER
If you’ve picked up a pre-cooked lobster from your fishmonger then follow Cornwall Good Seafood Guide’s instructions on how to humanely kill your lobster. Boil your lobster for six minutes, then remove from the pan and allow to cool. When you’re ready to make your lobster rolls you can then split the body and tail down the centre line with a sharp knife and grill shell-side-down on the barbecue, and crack the claws to remove the meat which you can then pan-fry in a good amount of butter. I also added some nduja to the tail meat (completely optional) as it warmed, for some of that unbeatable spiced pork and seafood flavour.
TARTAR SAUCE INGREDIENTS
- Good mayonnaise
- Gherkins
- Dill
- Tarragon
- Chives
- Dijon mustard
- Lemon – juice and zest
METHOD
Finely chop the gherkins and herbs. Then combine all ingredients together, season and serve.
CUCUMBER SALSA INGREDIENTS
- 1 tomato
- 1/2 cucumber
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 red onion
- 2 tsps red wine vinegar
METHOD
Finely dice all the ingredients, mix in a bowl with vinegar. Season and serve.
ASSEMBLY
Take your roll – I used potato rolls, but a popular choice is a good hot-dog style bun – butter it and toast it on the grill. Then simply load it up with your lobster and either a decent helping of tartar sauce or cucumber salsa, and get stuck in!
