Canned Lobster Meat

What! You are not using fresh lobster meat for your favorite lobster recipe - you are using canned lobster meat instead?

Oh. Well, that's okay...

Depending on where you live and the time of year, finding fresh lobster can be a challenge.

And, since the cost of lobster varies during the year, it sometimes can quite expensive. So, lobster in a can is often a great alternative.

Why do they Can Lobster Meat?

Due to limitations in technology during the 19th century, live lobsters were very difficult to transport. Specially designed boats needed to be used to provide the fresh ocean water that the lobsters required as they were shipped from place to place. Thus the emergence in the mid 1800's of the canning of lobster meat.

Today...

Lobster canning allows not only for quick worldwide distribution of the most coveted crustacean on the planet, but also provides for easy, last minute preparation of many lobster recipes.

A trip to your grocers frozen seafood section, or an online lobster store, and you will be ready to prepare your next lobster recipe whenever the mood strikes.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Canned Lobster

Although it can be difficult to persuade a true lobster lover - someone like me - that lobster from a can is a viable alternative to fresh lobster, it does have it advantages. It is...

• easy to prepare
• cost effective
• readily available
• versatile, and...

...easily incorporated into many lobster recipes, even if they call for fresh lobster meat.

Canned lobster usually works well with recipes such as Lazy Man's Lobster, Lobster Pie, Lobster Chowder, Lobster Stew, a lobster rendition of Veal Oscar and is easily sautéed for use with other lobster dishes.

Lobster from a can may also be used for lobster rolls.

However...

When fisheries can lobster the meat can lose some of its integrity. It may become less firm, and to a real lobster connoisseur, the meat may taste a bit watery.

Since a big part of the experience of eating a lobster roll is to enjoy the lobster's taste AND texture in its truest form, some people prefer their lobster rolls to be made only from fresh live, or frozen lobster.

Being a New Englander...

...I fall into that category.

In my opinion, using canned lobster meat is great for lobster recipes in which the meat will be complimented by other textures and tastes. If not, I prefer using meat either from a live fresh lobster, or a fresh frozen lobster tail.