Jaspers Pan Roasted Lobster Recipes

JASPER WHITE'S PAN-ROASTED LOBSTER

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. For each lobster, place it on a cutting board, facing you. Place the front tip of a heavy knife in the center of the lobster, near where the carapace meets the tail. In one forceful, swift motion, split the front half of the lobster lengthwise, which will kill it instantly. Turn it around and repeat this motion, splitting the tail and the lobster in half.
• Pull the head sac out of both halves. Use fingers or surgical tweezers to remove the intestines. Place the tomalley and roe, if there is any, in a small bowl and use a fork to break it into tiny pieces; cover and refrigerate. With a knife, remove the claws and knuckles by cutting the thin sections where the knuckles meet the body. With the back side of the knife, tap the claws until the shells crack. In another swift, forceful motion, cut the tail from the body on both sides.
• Place a heavy 12-inch saute pan over the highest heat possible and heat for 3 to 5 minutes. Add the oil and heat until it forms a film over the bottom of the pan. Slide the lobster sections, shells down, into the hot oil. Using tongs, move the pieces and flatten them to sear all the shells evenly. The claws need to be seared on only one side.
• Add the tomalley and roe and stir; place in the oven for 3 minutes. Remove, return to high heat on the stove top, add the shallots and stir. Remove the pan from the heat and add the bourbon; return to the heat, where the bourbon will probably ignite. Cook until the flames die down, add the wine and cook until the pan is almost dry. Reduce the heat to low.
• Quickly remove the lobster and place shell-side down on warm plates. Return the pan to low heat, add the butter, chervil and chives and stir until the mixture resembles a creamy sauce, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, season with salt and pepper to taste, spoon the sauce over the lobster and serve.

JASPER'S PAN-ROASTED LOBSTER

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Place a lobster on a cutting board, facing you. Place the front tip of the knife or cleaver in the center of the lobster, near where the carcass meets the tail. In one forceful, swift motion, split the front half of the lobster, which will kill the lobster instantly. Turn the lobster around, and repeat this motion, splitting the tail and the lobster in half.
• Pull the head sac out of both halves. Use fingers or surgical tweezers to remove the intestines. Using a knife, cleaver or shears, remove the claws and knuckles by cutting the thin section where the knuckle meets the carcass. With the back side of the knife or cleaver, tap the claws until the shell cracks.
• In one swift, forceful motion, cut the head away from the tail on both sides of the lobster, quartering it.
• Place the lobster tomalley and roe, if there is any, in a small bowl. Using a fork, break the mass into tiny pieces, cover and refrigerate.
• Place a heavy 12-inch saute pan over the highest heat possible, and heat for 3 to 5 minutes. Add the oil, and heat until it forms a film over the bottom of the pan. Slide the lobster, shell side down, into the hot oil. Using tongs, move the pieces and flatten them to sear all the shells evenly. The claws need be seared on only one side.
• Add the tomalley and roe; stir, and place in the oven for 3 minutes. Remove, return to high heat on the stove and add the shallots and stir. Remove the pan from the heat, and add the bourbon; return to the heat, where the bourbon will probably ignite. Cook until the flames die down, and then add the wine and cook until all the liquid in the pan is almost dry. Reduce the heat to low.
• Quickly remove the lobster, and place, shell side down, on warm plates. Return pan to low heat, add butter, chervil and chives and stir until the mixture resembles a creamy sauce, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat, season with salt and pepper to taste, spoon sauce over lobster and serve.

PAN-ROASTED LOBSTERS

Steps:

• Kill the lobsters with a sharp-pointed knife plunged into the body behind the head.
• Remove the bands from the claws. Twist off the tails, and carefully split lengthwise. Twist the claws and knuckles off the bodies; separate the claws from the knuckles. Crack the claws a little using a sharp blow with the back of a knife. Split the bodies. Remove the intestinal tract from the tail meats. Arrange the lobsters in a single layer in an ovenproof baking dish, tail and body shells down. Sprinkle sea salt (preferably from Maine) and black pepper over the lobster meat, followed by a generous dressing with the olive oil.
• Preheat the oven to its hottest temperature setting. (Chef's Note: Our wood-burning oven achieves intensities of over 800 degrees F, but most home ovens don't exceed 500 degrees F.)
• In a non-reacting skillet filmed with a little melted butter, saute the mushrooms over high heat for 2 or 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
• Place the lobsters in the oven, and roast until the shells are almost uniformly red and the meat is opaque, as long as 7 or 8 minutes in a home oven.
• Remove the lobsters from the oven. Add the mushrooms and shallots. Pour the hard cider over the lobsters, and scatter the butter pieces around the dish. Place the lobsters back in the oven, and continue roasting, checking frequently, until the butter has completely melted, about 2 or 3 minutes. Swirl the pan to combine the liquid ingredients into a saucy emulsion. Check the seasonings and adjust with more sea salt and pepper if necessary. Serve the lobsters on dinner plates and spoon the sauce over them.

JASPER'S PAN-ROASTED LOBSTER WITH CHERVIL AND CHIVES

Steps:

• Preheat the broiler or preheat the oven as hot as possible 500 to 550 degrees. Position the oven rack in the upper third of the oven. You may to shorten the cooking time slightly if the broiler rack is close to the heat. Quarter the lobsters, removing the tomalley and the roe if present. Place the pieces of lobster, shell side down, on a plate. Place the tomalley and roe in a small bowl. With a fork, break them into small pieces. Cover. Place a heavy 12-inch saute pan over the highest heat possible. Allow the pan to heat for 3 to 5 minutes until it becomes extremely hot. Add the oil and heat until it forms a film on the surface of the pan. Slide the lobster pieces, shell side down, into the hot oil. Using tongs, move the pieces in order to evenly sear all the shells. Because the lobster pieces are not flat, you will need to hold them with the tongs and press the shells into the hot oil to accomplish this. The claws need to be seared on only one side. When the shells have all turned bright red, which should take no longer than 2 minutes, turn the pieces over. The oil will also have taken on a beautiful red tinge. Add the tomalley and roe into the pan. Place the pan in the oven. If using the broiler, cook 2 minutes. If using the oven, cook for 3 minutes. The shells should be slightly browned, even a bit charred in places. Remove the pan from the oven and return it to the stove at maximum heat. Turn off the oven and put your plates in to warm. This will take only a minute. Warning: The handle of the pan will be red hot and will stay hot until the dish is complete. To avoid burns, wear oven mitts from now until the dish is complete. Add the shallots to the fat in the pan and stir. Add the bourbon and ignite. Shake the pan until the flames die down. Add the wine and let liquids in the pan reduce until the pan is almost dry. Turn the heat to low. Quickly remove the pieces of lobster and place, shell side down, on warm plates. Return the pan to the heat and add the butter, chervil, and chives. Swirl or stir the butter into the pan to create a creamy sauce with the pan juices. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Use very little salt, if any, because the lobster adds its own salt. Spoon the sauce over the lobster pieces and serve at once.