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How to Eat a Lobster

This week is Mom’s birthday. As is tradition inmy f amily, the birthday celebrant chooses hisor her f avorite dinner. Mom’s has been thesame for years now. Because it is summer andwe can eat outside, she always chooses tohave a lobster f east.

The prep f or this dinner could not be easier.The f irst thing is to choose your lobster. Weusually average 1.5 to 2 pounds per lobster.Much smaller and there isn’t enough meat;much larger and they become too much f oodfor one person. Make sure your lobster is alive when you cook it. If its tail has curled inon itself , it has died and is no longer a valid eating option.

When you are ready, throw the lobsters and some corn still in its husks into a steamerand steam until they are done. While they are steaming, cover the table with brownpaper or old newspapers, melt some butter and put bottles of wine or beer on the table.When they are f inished, put the corn in the middle of the table and a lobster in f ront ofeach person.

Because this is not a dainty meal, don’t wear your Sunday best. Wear old t-shirts andshorts that can be thrown into the washer when you are done.

Clean up could also not be easier. Wrap the corn husks and the lobster shells up in thebrown paper and throw it all into a trash bag and take it directly outside to the bin.

The concern that many have is that eating a lobster can be intimidating. In f act, itcouldn’t be easier and I am going to take you step-by-step through the process. Enjoyyour f east, Mom. Many happy returns of the day.

1. The f irst thing we do in my f amily is admire the beautif ul beast in f ront of us and toastthe birthday girl. Then the f un begins. Start by gently pulling of f the legs with a twistingmotion. Don’t throw these away; they are f illed with meat. Break the legs apart at thejoints and suck the meat out using your teeth to chew down the leg section if necessary.I warned you this was not a dainty meal.

2. Next, take of f the claws, again using a twisting motion. Start at the smaller end,breaking apart the claw at each joint. Clear the meat out of each section.

3. The top end of the claw can be a bit tricky. Use a knif e and wooden mallet to split the

claw and then pry it apart. Using your f inger, push the meat f rom the smaller tip throughthe large opening in the back. You will get a nice bit of meat f rom each clam. Don’tf orget the thumb looking part. There is meat in there as well.

4. Now it’s time to tackle the body. Tear the body away f rom the head and the tail. Manypeople ignore the body, but there is a lot of goodness tucked away f or a minimum ofef f ort. Split the body down the middle with your knif e and go to work.

5. You will f ind some strange looking things in the body. The green stuf f is the lobster’sdigestive track. Some people eat it; some don’t. It ’s completely up to you. If you arereally lucky, you will f ind a lot of red stuf f . This is roe, or the unfertilized eggs of afemale. Save this. It can be used in a myriad of recipes and is delicious.

6. Pick apart the body piece by piece. You will f ind lots of meat tucked away in the tinycrevices that is too good to simply throw away.

7. We’ve saved the best f or last. Take the tail and peel away the small f lippers at thebase. There will be meat in them, so don’t f orget to suck that all out as well. Once all thef lippers are of f , take your f inger and push the tail meat f rom the base through theopening that was next to the body. The tail meat will come out as one gorgeous piece oflobster meat. Enjoy!

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