- 3 months ago
We challenged chefs of three different skill levels–amateur Onika, home cook Lorenzo, and professional chef Fatima Khawaja–to make their take on a lobster dinner. We then asked expert food scientist Rose to explain each chef's choices along the way. Which lobster dinner do you want to tuck into first?
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00Hi, I'm Onika, and I'm a level one chef.
00:07Hi, I'm Lorenzo, and I'm a level two chef.
00:10Hi, my name is Fatma, and I've been a professional chef for over 10 years.
00:16Lobster dinner is fancy-smancy.
00:19It's like you want to impress your in-laws.
00:21Like, they're not really your in-laws.
00:23You're trying to make them your in-laws.
00:24Outside, at a picnic table, wearing your bibs, letting it get everywhere.
00:29It's always a celebration, a party of sorts.
00:32It's never just a home dinner, though, I can tell you that much.
00:34If it is, lucky you.
00:43I chose lobster tails because that's where all the good stuff is.
00:46That's where the meat is. It's like the junk in the trunk of the lobster.
00:50I love eating a whole lobster.
00:52There's nothing wrong with a tail, but I love everything else in the lobsters.
00:56So I am making a whole lobster dinner with garlic bread on the side.
01:02I'm going to be using a live lobster.
01:04I want to elevate the way that a lobster dinner is presented.
01:08I'm going to focus on the broth that it's going to cook in.
01:11I'm going to add fresh pasta and a delicious beurre blanc.
01:14So I'm going to start with the butter first.
01:16I'm going to use the butter to lather up my tails.
01:20I'm going to make lobster tails and street corn.
01:23It's going to be a little sweet, and it's going to have this kick
01:26that's just going to kick you and then hug you.
01:29Hello, lobster.
01:30This is about the only introduction I do.
01:32I don't want to name you.
01:34This is probably the hardest part a lot of people have.
01:36A lot of people do the freezer thing to make it sleep first.
01:40I like to dispatch it quickly, right away.
01:43Just pull it out.
01:45It looks pretty, pulling it out.
01:47But also, it's going to make for better cooking and less fight.
01:51So now you don't have to fight your way out of it.
01:53It's going to be right there for you.
01:55Brush my butter.
01:56Yeah, she feels like she needs to be greased up a little bit.
01:59I'm going to put it in the oven and I'll be right back, okay?
02:01I have a pot of water that I'm boiling here
02:04and I'm going to make what we call a cord bouillon.
02:06A cord bouillon is a culinary term for liquid
02:10that has aromatics and flavorings in it
02:13so that whatever you're cooking in that liquid
02:16absorbs some of that deliciousness.
02:18This has been boiling and it is steaming, as you can see.
02:23I'm going to add my lobster.
02:25And away we go.
02:27And set my timer for eight minutes.
02:30Okay, wow.
02:31All right.
02:32What a beautiful, beautiful red, orange, semi-cooked whole lobster.
02:38The lobster is looking really good.
02:40It's bright red and the shell has kind of come away from its flesh,
02:45which is giving me a little bit of peek inside.
02:47And I'm going to strain my broth carefully.
02:50So this is going to be a flavor bomb that I'm going to reduce
02:53and then I'm going to add to fortify my beurre blanc.
02:56So now I'm going to have two dipping sauces.
02:58I'm going to have my butter, of course.
03:01And then I'm going to have a spicy mayo.
03:03I'm going to start with my butter.
03:04Butter.
03:05In order to make clarified butter,
03:06you have to basically separate the milk solids from the butter.
03:11Ooh.
03:12Do you hear that?
03:13It's talking to me.
03:14The butter is asking for cayenne pepper.
03:16I'm just going to prep a couple things while this is still melting down.
03:19Let's start with the garlic.
03:21Garlic.
03:22That looks pretty decent.
03:24I can see that foam is forming at the top, which I will get rid of.
03:29I'm going to kind of skim it.
03:30So you can see that that is clear of solids.
03:34And there you go, folks.
03:36We have clarified butter.
03:39On to the herb part.
03:41I am going to add my garlic in here.
03:44For the mayo, I'm going to get a sweet and spicy combo with a little zest.
03:50Zest you, Fleming.
03:51My fun parsley sweet paprika.
03:55She needs a little black pepper, of course.
03:58That's really good.
03:59Then I am going to add my clarified butter.
04:03Butter.
04:04So now my sauces are ready for dipping.
04:07I have my butter sauce and I have my spicy mayo.
04:10I'm going to cut him just right down the center.
04:14I am going to crack the claws of the lobster.
04:18Through the head first.
04:19Just a little crack.
04:20Lobster is messy.
04:22I'm going to split it in half or butterfly the lobster straight down the middle.
04:28And then down the tail.
04:31I'm going to pull out the meat first from the tail.
04:34And I'm going to start working on the claw.
04:36What you see here is the tamale.
04:38I know some people don't like it, but I love it.
04:42This is really like my favorite way of presenting a lobster.
04:46I'm going to use the back of my knife to see if I can get it to crack open in two pieces.
04:52So I have my claw meat here and I have the tail here.
04:56I'm going to cut these up, toss it in the sauce and then use the shell as a vessel to put the meat back in and present it.
05:04Have to add this delicious herb butter.
05:07You know what?
05:08Let's bathe in it, shall we?
05:10Look at that beautiful butterfly lobster.
05:15Remember folks, I already cooked it in the steamer.
05:18So this is just warming through my herb butter.
05:21Here we go.
05:23I'm going to be making a very classic French sauce called beurre blanc, which is made with shallots, white wine vinegar, and white wine.
05:32And you let this reduce until, in French you call it sec, which is until dry.
05:38The way that I'm elevating it is that I'm also going to add my lobster stock, the same broth that we used to poach our lobster in.
05:46Then you want to add your butter in slowly.
05:50And it's crucial that the butter be very cold.
05:53It was already kind of warm and already very softened.
05:56Then as you add it in, it's just going to melt and not emulsify.
05:59And you can see here that we have a really beautiful silky buttery base.
06:05This is perfectly seasoned.
06:06And I'm going to keep it warm while I boil my pasta.
06:09So I'm having street corn with my lobster because I'm giving it a summertime feel.
06:15So I have corn.
06:16It's in a can because that's the fastest way to get corn.
06:20So my side I'm going to use with my lobster is a French baguette.
06:23But I am going to make it into a garlic bread first using my herb butter here.
06:30I'm going to make fresh pasta to go with our lobster dinner.
06:33So to get started, I have flour here.
06:36And I'm going to make a well in the center of the flour.
06:39So now I put in my corn.
06:41You would never know that this is corn out of a can.
06:43Who could tell?
06:44I feel like I'm just going to put a little bit of chili powder while it's cooking.
06:48First, let's lather.
06:50This is not a time to be shot.
06:52You've got the herb butter, so use it.
06:56I have five eggs that are going to add nice richness to my flour.
07:01And then I can use my hands to start to bring everything together.
07:05I'm going to put a little bit of Parmesan in here now.
07:10So now my corn is all cheesy and buttery and peppery and ready to go.
07:15I'm just going to pour into this bowl.
07:17We have herb butter slathered on a beautiful French baguette.
07:22I am going to put it in the oven and bake it off.
07:26And out comes garlic bread.
07:29I feel pretty good about where my dough is now.
07:32I'm going to let this rest a little bit.
07:34That will allow the gluten strands to relax, allowing it for it to be more malleable and softer so that we can pass it through our pasta maker.
07:43A little mayo.
07:45More Parmesan.
07:46Little lime.
07:47Chili powder.
07:48We have to be a little careful with this.
07:50Boom, boom.
07:51It's all in the wrists.
07:52Get a little cilantro in the building.
07:54Now this is street corn.
07:55Look at that.
07:56The dough is rested.
07:58So I'm going to do a third at a time.
08:01My pasta machine is set to zero, which is the widest setting.
08:06I'm going to roll this out just so it's a little bit thinner, making it easier for it to go through the wheels.
08:13I like to go with the first few passes a couple of times just to get the dough a little bit even.
08:23I'm going to be adding fresh herbs to my pasta.
08:26It's going to add a little bit of that green element that is traditional in a lobster dinner.
08:30I'll try to see if I can seal it.
08:33And you can really see how the herbs have stretched out along with the pasta.
08:37Once you pull it in, you kind of want to hold it from the other side so the noodles don't fall apart.
08:42And you get this beautiful bundle.
08:44My pasta is here looking beautiful.
08:47What's great about handmade fresh noodles is that it only takes a few minutes.
08:53And what you're looking for is for the pasta to float and to spend a few minutes in the boiling water.
09:00And that's done.
09:03I got a nice bite of the tarragon, which will be so nice for the bar blanc.
09:06My lobsters are ready! Look! Aren't they pretty?
09:10Look at that!
09:13Forget you tongs. I'm just going to take you as is.
09:18Ooh! Beautiful. Beautiful, beautiful.
09:22So I have my beurre blanc here, add my pasta ready, and then I have my lobster shell.
09:28I'm going to add my lobster meat and give that a nice toss.
09:32So I feel like she is our star. Let's stagger them.
09:36One night only!
09:38I am going to place the butter at the head of the table.
09:42And then I'm using the shell as a plating vessel so that you just have to go in with a fork, not even a knife,
09:51and just pick up these beautiful sauced morsels of your lobster dinner.
09:56Then the corn. I feel like the corn should be at their feet, bowing down. Bow down!
10:02Hello, garlic bread. I have a knife, but who needs a knife? Are you joking?
10:10And now for the pasta, I'm just going to take out one portion.
10:13The vibrant green is going to be a really beautiful contrast with the white sauce.
10:18And the dipping sauces. Okay. Okay. Go Onika!
10:26One last thing to do is a squeeze.
10:30And even in the clarifying burner.
10:32I'm going to bring over my beautiful lobster.
10:35I think having the claw there is super beautiful and kind of an ode to the way a traditional lobster dinner is had.
10:42And to take this up to the next level, I'm going to finish with caviar.
10:46Caviar is going to give a beautiful salinity and it's also going to add complexity and texture.
10:53This is my lobster, butter, mayo, and street corn.
10:57Voila! My crustacean celebration lobster dinner served with garlic bread.
11:04And here you have my version of a traditional lobster dinner.
11:09I'm really excited about the caviar on top and a classic Leur Blanc. You can't go wrong.
11:18Enough talking! I need to try it.
11:20Eeny, meeny, miny, moe, but I'm going to do this.
11:25It's delicious.
11:26Forget about it, you guys.
11:28Absolutely soft and succulent. It's sweet.
11:32It's the right blend of spicy, citrusy.
11:35The lobster meat is so fresh.
11:37It is so tasty.
11:39The lobster is cooked perfectly.
11:41And the sauce has this perfect coating.
11:43This is, to me, my dream lobster dinner.
11:47Let's see how each of our three chefs made their luxurious lobster dinner.
11:51Onika baked lobster tails.
11:56It feels like this is a dinosaur and I get to cut away a dinosaur.
12:00Lorenzo steamed his whole lobster.
12:02Steaming is really the best way.
12:05It'll make the meat very soft.
12:07It's delicious.
12:08It won't dry it out.
12:09Proteolytic enzymes in the lobster have to be inactivated quickly by heat.
12:13Otherwise, the lobster can get mushy by too much protein breakdown.
12:18Plunging the lobster into boiling water will definitely do it.
12:21And so will steaming the lobster.
12:23What a beautiful...
12:24Oh, it turned into a crab.
12:25Just kidding.
12:26Why?
12:27I saved these things.
12:28Fatima boiled whole live lobster in seasoned water.
12:31Notice that the color turns bright red almost immediately.
12:34The lobsters have red-orange carotenoids like astaxanthin attached to protein molecules.
12:40The pigment and the protein split apart when heated,
12:43so the carotenoids are free to express their beautiful and vibrant red color.
12:47Onika made spicy garlic butter with Old Bay.
12:54Mmm.
12:55That was a little too much.
12:56A classic seasoning that includes celery salt, peppers,
12:59and various other additions like cardamom, ginger, mustard seeds, and paprika.
13:04Ah!
13:05Ah!
13:06Okay, stop!
13:07Lorenzo made clarified butter.
13:08Of course, mine's herb butter, but it's clarified herb butter.
13:13When butter is heated, water evaporates and the milk solids precipitate and collect at the bottom.
13:18The concentrated golden milk fat is clarified butter.
13:21Delicioso!
13:22Fatima made a classic beurre blanc, an emulsified sauce made by whisking cold butter into a white wine and shallot reduction.
13:30Emulsions are inherently unstable.
13:33There is a certain amount of technique that goes with it.
13:36And if you add too much butter too quickly, the oil droplets from the butter that are surrounded by water from the vinegar and wine start to compress and the sauce breaks.
13:45Onika served her lobster tails with corn elote, roasted in a skillet, and seasoned with mayonnaise, paprika, chili powder, and parmesan.
13:56It's getting hot in here.
13:57It's getting hot in here.
13:58It's getting hot in here.
14:00That's the corn singing, not me.
14:01The subtle sweetness of the corn from the hexanel and dimethyl sulfide complement the slight sweetness of the lobster meat.
14:08Now this is street corn. Look at that.
14:10Lorenzo kept it simple and delicious with garlic bread.
14:13Oh my, oh my, oh my.
14:16He crisped it in the oven for a nice textural component.
14:19Fatima served her lobster with handmade pasta.
14:22She laminated parsley and tarragon between two sheets of pasta and then cut it into fettuccine.
14:28This added an herbal flavor and a beautiful visual aspect.
14:32Kind of twirl it around to make it really elegant.
14:34She topped her lobster dinner with caviar, a decadent composition of amino acids, sugars, phospholipids, with a saline finish.
14:42Caviar is definitely a level three elevation.
14:45A really beautiful elevated dinner with caviar, minus all the mess.
14:51Next time you're making a special and indulgent lobster dinner for one, two, or a whole crowd, we hope you'll take some of these tips from our three wonderful chefs.
15:01Let's get started.
15:02Let's see everyone.
15:03Let's say one.
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