Spiny Lobster Tails

Unknown

I always seem to overcook the outside of the meat to get the inside done and subsequently, it's tough. I realize they're not Maine, but are they supposed to be this tough?[p]My cook last night went as follows:
- 2 tails thawed with underbelly cut to the end
- slight cut in the meat
- butter / garlic / pepper / seasoned salt on the meat
- preheated LGE to 425 (20 minutes at that temp before meat went on)
- meat side down 5 minutes
- meat side up 6.5 minutes
- brought inside and determined they weren't cooked thru
- cooked an additional 5 minutes[p]I'm thinking about taking the whole shell off next time, but every pic I've seen leaves the shell on. Anyone have any ideas? Thanks.

stike

Frank in LR,
you splitting them?

BigT

Frank in LR,[p]I remove the membrane and split mine in two lengthwise, cook them hull down direct, and flip them onto a buttered piece of foil (cooking "indirect" for second half of cook.[p][p]This is how I prep 90% of my lobster tails.[p]
[p]These were cedar planked @400 for 12 minutes, but the foil "browns" the lobster in similar fashion.[p]Last piece of advice- if the tails are big enough, a little surgery to remove the orange layer of "skin" on the shelled tail will work wonders. This layer seems to be the chief offender in tough tails.[p]hth
BigT

Unknown

stike,[p]Not sure what you mean by split...I am cutting the "underbelly" of the tail from the exposed meat down to the end and making a small cut in the meat along that same line.

Unknown

BigT,[p]OK, I understand what Stike said about splitting now. Just haven't seen it done before. Thank you for the pictorial. I will definitely do that next time.

stike

Frank in LR,
lengthwise, cut in half. tail laying flippers down, split vertically down the midsagittal plane. down the middle, like along the sopine, if it had one.[p](i googled that "midsagittal ". just to look smarter than i yam!)[p]if you don't split them, i dunno, seems like cooking a dense tube of meat. if they are cold or frozen in the middle, just askin for trouble. lobster is easy to over cook. [p]for example, a whole lobster, boiled, say 1-1/2 pound is maybe 15 minutes tops. that's at 212.[p]trying to grill thru the shell... i think that'll toast the exterior before cooking the interior.[p]

Celtic Wolf

Frank in LR,[p] Spiney (Caribbean) Lobster have a somewhat thinker shell then the guys from Maine. They don't have the claws to protect them. The carapace has spikes all over them. They'll tear up a divers hands if you aren't wearing gloves.[p] As was said cut them in half top to bottom length wise. Place on the grill shell down. Cook them till the meat just turns white. They will cook fairly fast. Anything longer then that you might as well turn them into lobster salad. I like them served with drawn butter and a lemon wedge.

Unknown

Frank in LR,
Boil the lobster! Dry heat will dry out the surface of the tails and toughen the meat. Plus, I don't care for enen the hint of smoke, much less the garlic in some recipes, messing with the delicate taste of lobster (which is what you paid $30 pound to be tasting!). Eggs can make a lot of things better, lobstah ain't one of them IMHO.

BigT

Frozen,[p]A boiled lobster is a boring lobster IMHO.[p]Regards,[p]BigT