Our live New England lobster taken fresh off the fishing boats of local lobster fishermen. Remember these are fresh hard-shell lobsters. Soft Shell lobsters are always less expensive. Our lobster may not be the lowest price, but they will be of superior quality. Simple put, these are the BEST live New England lobster available.
Never cooked lobster or seafood? It’s easy. Each live lobster order includes a “How-to-cook-lobster” Cooking Guide.
Lobsters are packed in seawater soaked newspaper or rock seaweed (when available) in our reusable Styrofoam cooler with ice cold gel packs.
To order live lobsters online, start by selecting your size: from 1 ¼ pound lobsters to 5-6 pound colossal lobsters. You can mix and match sizes. Because New England lobster is a wild product, prices fluctuate with supply and demand of the marketplace.
Cooking Lobster
Perfectly cooked lobster is surely one of life’s simplest pleasures. Steaming and boiling are the two most common ways to cook lobsters. In the winter, lobsters have a harder shell and therefore require more time to cook. In the summer, the lobsters have a softer shell and require less time.
Cooking lobster is an art, and if you do not get the timing just right, you might be in for a tough or chewy lobster. Never overcook your lobster this makes the meat tough and stringy. You’ll find plenty of lobster cooking online, but we find most of the times are way too long.
Some lobstermen insist on removing the claw bands before cooking. Rubber bands they say impart an off taste to the water.
New England Steamed Lobster
Steaming cooks whole lobsters more slowly than boiling, so it reduces the chance of overcooking. It also makes less of a mess!
- Use a pot large enough to comfortably hold the lobsters and fill water so it comes up sides about two inches. ( Feel free to use a steaming rack to place the lobsters on or just add directly to the pot.)
- Add 2 tablespoons of salt for each quart of water. If you have sea salt—even better.
- Bring the water to a rolling boil, and put in lobsters, one at a time. Bring water to a rolling boil over high heat. Place lobsters in the pot (head first), cover tightly, return to a boil as quickly as possible and start counting the time.
- Steam a lobster for 7 minutes per pound, for the first pound. Add 3 minutes per pound for each additional pound thereafter. See chart below for approximate cooking times. Regulate the heat if the froth starts to bubble over.
- Carefully remove lobsters from the pot with tongs. Be careful, they are very hot. Set in a large bowl for five minutes to cool before cracking.
If the roe inside a female body is blackish instead of the customary red, it is under cooked. Put the lobster back into the pot until the roe is red.
Steaming Lobster Cooking Times
Lobster Weight: Cooking Time
1 lb.-1-1/4 lbs. 7-9 minutes
1-1/2 lb. 9-11 minutes
2 lbs. 11-12 minutes
2-1/2-3 lb. 12-14 minutes
5 lb. 22-24 minutes
New England Boiled Lobster
For cooking a bunch of lobsters, boiling gives you even fast cooking. However, boiling lobster tends to water-log them.
- Fill a pot (large enough to hold the lobsters) anywhere from one-half to two-thirds full with water. Deep enough to submerge the lobster by about 3 inches.
- Add 2 tablespoons of salt for each quart of water. (If sea water is available, even better. Skip the salt.) Bring the water to a strong boil over high heat.
- Place the live lobsters in one at a time, headfirst, completely submerging them. Pick up the lobster by holding the upper side of the thorax between your thumb and middle finger.
- Cover the pot tightly and return to a boil as quickly as possible. AFTER the water boils start timing, and regulate the heat to prevent water from boiling over, but be sure to keep the water boiling throughout the cooking time. Melt some butter while you wait.
- Carefully remove lobsters from the pot with tongs. Be careful, they are very hot. Set in a large bowl for five minutes to cool before cracking.
Hold the underside of the body away from you, because the lobster have a tendency to flip the jointed tail, splattering water. You can cook more than one lobster in a pot as long as there is enough room and water to cover the lobsters. (If you do not have a big enough pot use two smaller pots or cook your lobsters in batches.)
Boiling Times for Lobsters
1 lb. Lobster… 5-7 minutes
1 1/4 lb. lobster… 7-8 minutes
1 1/2 lb. lobster… 8-10 minutes
2 lb. lobster… 10-12 minutes
3 lb. lobster… 12-14 minutes
5-6 lb. lobster… 18-20 minutes
How to Tell if My Lobsters are Cooked?
Lobster is cooked when the shell is entirely red. When properly cooking lobster, the meat becomes a creamy white color all the way through–no translucent areas. Some chefs say when the antennae pull out easily, lobsters are done, but this is not always the case. It is important to note when you take your lobsters out of the pot they will continue to cook. To stop the cooking process, put your lobsters in a bowl of ice.
If you overcook them, you’re going to be eating tough lobster. If you under-cook your lobster you can always heat them up. The reason many people believe larger lobsters are tough is simply because they overcook them.
Many people will mistakenly boil a two and half pound lobster twice as long as a quarter pound lobster. Another common mistake is adding to the cooking time just because you are cooking more than 1-2 lobsters in the pot. Just remember to bring your pot back to a rolling boil and regulate the heat. Happy cracking!
Handling Instructions
Lobsters can die rather easily if left in the hot sun or exposed to the elements for an extended period of time. Unfortunately we cannot take responsibility for lobsters that have died as a result of being left at your door. Therefore, we highly suggest that someone is present to accept your package
What do I do with my lobsters once they arrive?
It is best to cook your lobsters as soon as they are received. If you plan to eat your lobster later, take them out of the box and place them in your refrigerator’s crisper drawer. Don’t put the lobsters in a bag or leave them in the box. Do not place your lobsters in the freezer
When should I eat my lobsters?
Lobsters should be eaten on the day of delivery. If you do not plan to eat them right away, place them inside your refrigerator’s crisper drawer.
