Lobster with Lemon-Shallot Butter | Grilling

Until recently, I'd never grilled lobster; then again, I never realized how easy it was. I was inspired by Kenji's full-court lobster coverage about a month ago, and wanted in on the action. So I procured four Maine lobsters—graciously donated to the cause—and went at it.

Lobster on the grill can be as simple as splitting the crustacean in half and grilling over direct high heat, but since I had about 24 hours from when the live lobsters arrived and when I could grill them, I steamed them first in salt water for two minutes to set the meat. They were then plunged in an ice water bath to arrest the cooking and were stored in the fridge until ready to be grilled.

Each lobster was split in two lengthwise, and the claws removed—I wanted to grill the claws separately since they won't cook at exactly the same rate as the rest of the meat. The exposed meat was then brushed with a lemon-shallot butter and grilled cut-side-down until it just started to turn opaque, then flipped and kept cooking until it registered 135°F on an instant read thermometer. Once done, the bodies were transferred to a serving tray and the claws were thrown over the flames and let roast until finished. Four one-and-a-half pound lobsters took just over ten minutes from beginning to end on the grill.

These lobsters were really fantastic—the meat was tender and sweet, and with an extra brushing of lemon-shallot butter, they had a nice brightness and richness that accentuated the natural flavor of the lobster.