How to Cook Frozen Lobster

Lobster is a delicacy in many parts of the world. You can sometimes buy frozen lobster in supermarkets. Frozen lobster is also not difficult to prepare, and you have many ways to handle it to ensure that the delicious flavor of the lobster meat is preserved.

Table of Contents

Choose the best lobster

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Buy frozen lobster that has never been defrosted. Make sure the lobster is blanched before freezing and store it at an extremely low temperature, around -18 degrees Celsius.

If you do not want to process lobster right away, you can store it in a sealed plastic bag in the freezer. If vacuum sealed, frozen lobster can be stored for up to 1 year.
Of course you can also buy fresh lobster. When stored on ice in the refrigerator (not in the freezer or freezer), live lobster can be stored for up to several days.

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Choose high quality frozen lobster. There are two different types of frozen lobster – warm water shrimp and cold water shrimp. These two have different quality and taste. You can buy frozen shrimp tails or claws. It is very difficult to find frozen whole lobsters that have not been processed.

Warm water lobster, also known as cotton lobster, is not very tasty because the shrimp meat can be mushy. This shrimp species is native to Latin America, the Caribbean and Florida (USA). The tail of a Caribbean lobster has yellow spots and yellow stripes.
Coldwater lobster, also known as Maine lobster, has a very good taste. Shrimp meat is whiter, sweeter and more tender. Of course, it’s also usually more expensive. Coldwater lobsters come from South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and the northeastern United States. If the store doesn’t know which type is cold water shrimp, you can guess by its price, the cheaper one is usually warm water lobster.
Frozen crayfish has less meat than the tail, so it’s also cheaper. You can find crayfish in the frozen food section of many supermarkets.
Avoid buying lobster tails that have black or gray spots. It is possible that the shrimp died before being handled. ^{[1] X Research Source}
If you want to eat a whole lobster, it’s best to cook it raw if you can afford it.

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Buy enough lobster. It is important that you know how many people a lobster can serve to make sure there is enough food for everyone. Lobster tail is very meaty.

Note that many regions have different culinary cultures that favor different cooking methods. In Canada, for example, lobster is usually cooked longer than in France. Everyone’s taste also needs attention. Remember you can always cook a little more, but if you overcook it, you can’t do it again; so it’s better to take out the shrimp a little early than to leave it for too long.
In general, you will need 500g-700g lobster per person. You can use whole shrimp, shrimp tails or lobster claws.

Prepare lobster before cooking

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Defrost lobster tails. Defrosting is an important step before preparing lobsters, whether whole shrimp, tailed shrimp or crayfish. If you do not defrost, the shrimp meat will usually be very tough after processing. ^{[2] X Research Source}

It is best to defrost lobster for about 24 hours in the refrigerator before cooking, or at least overnight. An effective way to quickly defrost is to place shrimp in a sealed plastic bag and place in a full pot of water in the refrigerator. You may need to change the water at least once.
If you don’t have much time, you can also briefly defrost it in the microwave before cooking. While it’s still better than cooking it without defrosting, it’s not as good as slow defrosting. Lobster should not be defrosted in warm water or at room temperature. ^{[3] X Research Source} Lobster claws should also be completely defrosted before cooking.
Another way to defrost when you’re in a hurry is to put the lobster in a plastic bag and put it in a bowl of cold water. Change the water every 5-10 minutes and don’t soak for longer than 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, you take out the shrimp and continue to defrost in the refrigerator.

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For the lobster tail, you need to cut lengthwise through the shell. After defrosting and before cooking, use scissors to cut through the shell along the center of the tail.

Spleen the nose pulled between the shrimp shell and shrimp meat, cut down the back of the shrimp. Leave the tip of the tail intact. Pull the shrimp meat through the cut opening on the back of the shrimp, and you have a “piggyback” lobster tail.
Another method is to start from the tail, peel off the soft shell underneath the shrimp’s belly. Remove the peeled shrimp shell and take the tail to break the shrimp’s back. If you break some joints in the shell, the shrimp will not bend during cooking.

Choose a shrimp processing method

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Boil shrimp. Boiling is the most common method of preparing lobster. Start by boiling a large pot of water. You need enough water to fully submerge the lobster tail.

Add 1 tablespoon of salt per quart of water. Place the thawed lobster in the water, cover the pot and simmer for 5 minutes for 120g tails (and 1 more minute for every 30g plus)
You can tell the lobster is cooked by seeing its bright red shell and tender flesh when poked with a fork. ^{[4] X Research Source} Shrimp meat when cooked to the right degree will be white when cut. If the shrimp meat is still clear, put it back in the pot and boil for a while.

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Grill shrimp in the oven on fire. Note that grilled lobster on fire is very quick to cook, so you need to be careful to avoid burning.

Place lobster tails on a baking tray. Place the lobster tails on a baking tray, with the shells on top. Bake on high heat for 4 minutes. You should keep the lobster about 12cm away from the heat source.
If the lobster tail is very large, you should split the shrimp lengthwise into 2 servings. Flip the shrimp over and brush the butter over the shrimp. Bake the other side for 5 more minutes. Serve shrimp and enjoy.

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Steamed shrimp. Steaming is a healthy cooking method. Fill the pot with water to a height of about 1.2 cm. Add 1 tablespoon salt and 1 tablespoon vinegar to the water.

Drop the lobster into the pot and cover. If it’s a whole lobster, you need to steam it for 10 minutes for a 500g shrimp or 7-8 minutes for every 500g of shrimp. Lobster tails can cook faster.
You can also steam lobster by placing it on a steamer. Bring about 5 cm of water to a boil in a pot under the steamer. ^{[5] X Research Sources}

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Blanch shrimp. The blanching method is similar to steaming, but the temperature of the water only approaches the boiling point. You can enhance the flavor of shrimp by adding spices and herbs.

Prepare a large enough blanching pot with a lid, add lemon, onion and celery to a little water. You can also use chicken broth or vegetable broth to enhance the flavor. The seasonings can be changed to your liking. You need an amount of water about 3-5 cm to blanch the shrimp. Bring the water to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for a few minutes.
Put the lobster in the blanching water, cover and simmer for 7-8 minutes for every 500g of shrimp. If the water boils, take the shrimp out sooner, but be sure to check if it’s cooked. Try not to let the water boil.
You’ll know the shrimp is done if the shrimp’s antennae and small legs fall off easily when you tug, and the flesh on the tail turns white. If the shrimp meat is still clear, you need to blanch for a few more minutes.

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Grill the shrimp on the grill. Find the diagonal line on the back of the shrimp’s head. Pierce it with a hard knife and cut the shrimp in half lengthwise.

Place the lobster on the grill. Place the shrimp meat side-down on the grill and bake for about 8-10 minutes. No need to flip the shrimp.
Brush the shrimp with butter or olive oil before grilling. You can also skewer a metal grill through the tail of the shrimp and place it on the grill.

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Bake the shrimp in the oven. You can grill lobster tails or try grilling crayfish in the oven. First, preheat the oven to 204 degrees Celsius.

Wrap shrimp claws together. Wrap the crayfish in foil and place in a baking tray. You will bake for about 10 minutes.
When the shrimp is cooked, it will be pink. Many food stores sell frozen lobster claws at the frozen food counter.

Advice

Shrimp processing time is quite fast, only takes about 30 minutes. However, the defrosting time is relatively long, so you need to prepare in advance.
Use sea salt seasoning in boiling water instead of regular table salt to enhance the flavor of the lobster.
The fastest and easiest method of preparing lobster is boiling.

Things you need

Pot or kettle
Freezer food bags
Water
Kitchen tongs and scissors
Baskets
Grill, stove or oven

Steps

Choose the best lobster

Prepare lobster before cooking

Choose a shrimp processing method

Advice

Things you need

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