June 15, National Lobster Day

Suggestions on how to Eat Lobster to stay
Healthy and Avoid a Mess (or make a mess)

*No Butter and No Cream
*Ask for Lemon, Olive Oil and Dijon Mustard 

and Make Your Own Dressing.

*Wear A Bib

Lobster Facts
From Atlantic Offshore Lobstermen’s Association (AOLA)

The difference between a hard shell and soft shell lobster.  Lobsters will periodically shed their shells as they grow. This can happen as many as 25 times before they are 6-7 years old; then males shed every year and mature, females every two years. When lobsters become very large molting is less frequent. After they shed they have a paper thin shell, which can take up to two months to harden, and are called soft-shell, new shell or shedders. The debate goes on as to which is most tasty, though the soft-shell are definitely easier to crack!

Lobsters do not have vocal chords. They do not scream when being cooked.

The teeth of the lobster are in its stomach. The stomach is located a very short distance from the mouth, and the food is actually chewed in the stomach between three grinding surfaces that look like molar surfaces, called the "gastric mill".

Besides the greenish-brown colored lobsters, there are also rare blue, yellow, red and white ones. Except for the white ones, they all turn red when cooked.

A 2-pound female lobster usually carries approximately 8000 eggs. A 9-pound female may carry more than 100,000 eggs. The female carries the eggs inside for 9 to 12 months, and then for another 9 to 12 months externally attached to the swimmerets under her tail.

When the eggs hatch, the larvae will float near the surface for 4 to 6 weeks. The few that survive will settle to the bottom and continue to develop as baby lobsters. From every 50,000 eggs only 2 lobsters are expected to survive to legal size. It takes 5 to 7 years for a lobster to grow to legal size in the ocean. A lobster at legal size will weigh approximately 1 pound.

Grilled Lobsters with
Southeast Asian Dipping Sauce
located at Epicurious. Click the title to go to the recipe.

Original Recipe
Nutrition Analysis per one serving:
Calories (kcal) 237; Fat (g) 2.6; Saturated Fat (g)  trace;
 Cholesterol (mg) 115; Sodium (mg) 1551

Lower Sodium Variation, This will save 898 mg of Sodium!

Substititue 1/3 cup Asian fish sauce with

1/4 cup Low Sodium Soy Sauce and
Increase the lime juice to 1/2 cup.

Nutrition Analysis per one serving:
Calories (kcal) 241;  Fat (g) 2.6;  Saturated Fat (g)  trace;
Cholesterol (mg) 115; Sodium (mg) 653

Learn to Prepare, Cook and
Eat Lobster with LX.com's Shira Lazar.



The Lobster and the Beer,
A Story of Survival