Angry Lobster with Lemon Rice and Crispy Basil

From the kitchen of Carly

Spiced lobster meets serious heat. Chunks of sweet meat get a cayenne-chili crust, then seared until golden in screaming hot oil. Garlic, red pepper flakes, and butter finish the sauce. Serve over lemon rice with crispy basil for contrast.

Angry Lobster with Lemon Rice and Crispy Basil

Live lobster gets the spicy treatment here, floured in chili and cayenne, seared hard until golden, then finished in a hot oven. The real magic is the garlic-pepper sauce built fast in the same pan, bright with lemon and fresh basil leaves that don't quite wilt. Serve over lemon rice and you've got heat, sweetness, and texture all working together.

Prep
n/a
Cook
n/a
Total
n/a
Servings
4
Difficulty
medium

Ingredients

4 servings

  • 2 cupWondra flour
  • 1/4 cupchili powder
  • 2 tbspcayenne pepper
  • 2 tbspcoarse salt plus more to taste
  • 32-pound live lobsters
  • 1 cuppeanut oil
  • 8 clovegarlic, minced
  • 1 tbsphot red pepper flakes
  • 1 cuplobster or chicken stock
  • 2 tbspunsalted butter
  • 1 tbspfresh lemon juice
  • 1/2loosely packed cup fresh basil leaves
  • 1/2 cupjulienned Oven-Dried Tomatoes
  • 1Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1Lemon Rice
  • 1Fried Basil
  • 1 1/2 tbspolive oil plus 2 optional tablespoons
  • 1/2 cupfinely diced onions
  • 1 clovegarlic, minced
  • 3 cupconverted rice
  • 4 cupchicken stock or water
  • 1 cupfresh lemon juice
  • 1 1/2 tspcoarse salt plus more to taste
  • 1/4 tspfreshly ground black pepper plus more to taste
  • 1 largezucchini, trimmed, seeded, and diced, optional
  • 4 cupvegetable oil
  • 1 largebunch fresh basil
  • 1leaves only
  • 1well washed and dried

Instructions

  1. Combine the Wondra flour, chili powder, cayenne, and salt in a plastic bag. Set aside for the dredging step.

  2. Cut the live lobsters in half. Remove the claws and break the claws open to expose as much meat as possible. Lift the meat out of the lobsters and tip into the seasoned flour. Shake to coat well. Remove the lobster from the flour and shake off any excess.

  3. Bring the oven up to 475 degrees.

  4. Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over high heat until smoking. Lay the lobster pieces cut side down in the pan, a few at a time if needed, and sear for around 4 minutes, until golden brown. Transfer the lobster to a baking sheet, and once all the lobster is seared, slide the baking sheet into the preheated oven and bake for 10 minutes.

  5. While the lobster bakes, prep the sauce. Return the sauté pan to medium heat and add the garlic and red pepper flakes. Sauté for around 3 minutes, until the garlic turns golden brown but doesn't burn. Pour in the stock and bring to a boil. Drop the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Whisk in the butter and pull the pan from the heat. Whisk in the lemon juice, basil leaves, and the tomato julienne. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

  6. Pull the lobster from the oven. Mound a portion of Lemon Rice in the center of each of six plates. Distribute the lobster pieces over the rice. Spoon the sauce across each mound and garnish with Fried Basil.

  7. Serve immediately.

  8. For the Lemon Rice: warm the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Drop in the onions and let them sweat their liquid for 4 minutes. Add the garlic and sweat another 3 minutes. Stir in the rice and sauté for 1 minute. Pour in the stock (or water), lemon juice, salt, and pepper.

  9. Bump the heat up and bring the stock to a boil. Boil for around 15 minutes, until the liquid reduces to around 1 1/2 cups. Drop the heat and tightly cover the rice. (If you lack a tight-fitting lid, cover with aluminum foil.) Simmer 30 minutes, until the rice absorbs all the liquid. Pull the pan from the heat and let the rice steam for 15 minutes. Do not uncover the pan during this rest.

  10. If using the zucchini: while the rice rests, warm the optional 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the zucchini and sauté for 4 minutes, just until slightly softened. Season with salt and pepper to taste. When ready to serve the rice, fluff it with a fork and add the zucchini, fluffing it through.

  11. For the Fried Basil: heat the oil to 350 degrees on a candy thermometer in a large saucepan over high heat.

  12. Standing back from the pot as far as possible and wearing an oven mitt, drop the basil leaves into the hot oil. The oil may bubble and splatter. Fry for around 1 minute, until the leaves crisp. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the leaves to a double layer of paper towels to drain.

Tips from the kitchen

  • Wondra flour is key because it adheres without getting gummy; regular all-purpose absorbs oil and clumps.
  • Get your oil actually smoking before the lobster hits the pan. You want a hard, fast sear that seals the meat, not a gentle sweat.
  • Don't skip shaking off excess flour after coating. Too much will burn in the oil and muddy your sauce.
  • Whisk the butter in off heat and add the lemon juice cold to avoid breaking the sauce; the residual warmth is enough.

Variations

  • Skip the lemon rice and serve over creamy polenta for richness instead.
  • Swap basil for cilantro and add a teaspoon of fish sauce to the sauce for deeper savory heat.
  • Make it a paste by blending the garlic, pepper flakes, and basil with a bit of stock before the liquid reduces, then finish with butter for a more unified sauce.
  • Use shrimp instead for a faster weeknight version that cooks in half the time.

Make ahead and storage

Lobster is best eaten fresh, but leftovers keep 2 days in the fridge in an airtight container; reheat gently in a low oven to avoid toughening the meat. Do not freeze; the texture suffers.