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Steamed Lobster

Steaming is more gentle cooking technique that yields slightly more tender meat. It preserves a little more flavour and it’s more forgiving on the timing front. It’s harder to overcook a steamed lobster.

1 whole lobster

Choose a pot large enough to hold all the lobsters comfortably; do not crowd them. A 4-5 gallon pot can handle 6-8 pounds of lobsters.

Put 2 inches of seawater or salted water in the bottom of a large kettle.

Set steaming rack inside the pot and bring to a rolling boil over high heat.

Add the live lobsters one at a time, cover pot, and start timing.

Halfway through, lift the lid (careful – the steam is hot) and shift the lobsters around so they cook evenly.

Recommended cook time based on lobster weights:

1 Pound

10 minutes

1¼ pounds

12 minutes

1½ pounds

14 minutes

1¾ pounds

16 minutes

2 pounds

18 minutes

2½ pounds

22 minutes

3 pounds

25-30 minutes

5 pounds

40-45 minutes

Cooked lobsters will turn bright red, but that’s not the best indicator of doneness, especially for large lobsters. They may still be underdone when the shell turns red. We suggest cooking the lobsters for the recommend time, then cracking one open where the carapece meets the tail. If it’s done, the meat will have changed from translucent to white.