Friday, December 12, 2008

Luxury (in a Down Market)


Now don't think me too weird for making this suggestion, but how about eating lobster this weekend?

I know it's the holiday season, the short-term economic outlook is bleak, but there's a great reason to indulge - the price. The price of lobster has dropped to a 25 year low, and if you fix them at home your luxe dinner for two of around $40 is much cheaper than anything remotely comparable in a restaurant. As an added bonus to assuade any guilt you might feel while dining like a Rockefeller, the lobster fisheries in the Northeast are in better shape than they have been in many decades, so it's a sustainable luxury.

For those of you so inclined, here is the most humane way to tackle the unpleasantness of butchering your own food:

First put the lobster(s) in the freezer for 15 minutes; this slows their metabolism.

Next put the lobster on its back and slice lengthwise through its soft underbelly. Because lobsters have a decentralized nervous system the tail may still move for a moment more, but the claws will go limp indicating the lobster is dead.

Killing a lobster this way, rather than dumping them in boiling water, has an added bonus, it makes for more tender, less rubbery, meat.

From here you can boil, steam, broil, or even grill your lobsters and eat the succulent meat with the classic drawn butter, or tackle something a bit more adventurous.

For a few recipe suggestions and more information on the current lobster glut check out this recent article from the New York Times.

2 comments:

cotedetexas said...

when I was little, there was an Italian family that I was friends with and they always made fresh lobster - I will never forget that sound of the them trying to get out of the poT!!! oy!!!!!!! haha!! sad to think of really.

Athenaeus said...

Joni - I can't stand the boiling water method, so I've always been an early adopter of the latest method. I just love lobster.

I loved your post on the Jeep Grand Wagoneer, we had a cream one followed by two navy blue ones in the 80s. I love them, except for the ridiculously heavy tailgates they were perfect.