Creamy Lobster Pasta
This creamy lobster pasta recipe is simply delicious and the perfect dish to serve for a dinner party or when you have something to celebrate.
Lobster is a real celebration-ingredient to me. We only ever serve it when there’s a special occasion and this pasta, packed with lobster flavor, is a delicious recipe that is as suitable for date-night at home as it is for a chic dinner party.
Because lobster is expensive, I like extracting as much of the flavor out of the meat and shells as I possible can. Infusing the cream with the lobster shells, garlic, peppercorns and onion ensures a sauce that is deeply delicious. It’s a slight labor of love, but so absolutely worth it.
Ingredients Needed
- Lobster. Any crustacean can be used for this recipe. Shrimp, prawns, crab, crayfish etc. will all work.
- Heavy cream/whipping cream.
- White wine. I used Sauvignon Blanc but any dry white wine can be used. If you’d prefer to keep this recipe alcohol-free, substitute with fish stock/chicken broth and add a generous squeeze of lemon juice.
- Fresh garlic cloves.
- Fresh herbs: I used bay leaf and dill. Other fresh herbs like thyme, parsley and chives are also delicious with seafood.
- Onion/shallot.
- Butter.
- Fresh lemon juice.
- Salt and black pepper.
- Pasta. I used Spaghetti but any long pasta shape will work. Linguine, tagliatelle, fettuccine and pappardelle are all delicious.
How to make lobster pasta
Start by infusing the cream. Combine the cream, white wine, onion, smashed garlic cloves, fresh herbs and lobster shells in a large saucepan with a generous pinch of salt and pepper. (In the image above I added the whole lobster tails but decided to remove the meat from the shells before poaching to prevent the meat from over-cooking). To remove the lobster meat from the shells, cut down the back of the lobster tail with a sharp pair of kitchen shears then carefully release the meat from the shells. If using whole lobster, crack the claws and carefully remove the meat. Bring the cream to a simmer then cover and allow to cook for 10 minutes. Turn down the heat and allow to infuse for another 20 minutes before straining out the solids and reserving the liquid.
To make the pasta sauce, heat a tablespoon of butter in a large frying pan or skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the minced garlic and cook for 30 seconds before pouring in the cream. Add a pinch of red pepper flakes/chilli flakes if you want a bit of heat. Add a squeeze of lemon juice then allow to simmer for 5 minutes. Cut the lobster tail meat into chunks then add to the sauce and allow to poach for 3-5 minutes until just-cooked. Cook pasta in a large pot of salted water until al dente, reserve 1 cup of pasta water and drain. Season the sauce with salt and pepper and another squeeze of lemon if necessary then toss with the drained pasta and a few tablespoons of pasta cooking water. Serve garnished with finely chopped chives/dill/parsley.
Can I make this ahead?
The cream can be infused the day in advance but the lobster is best cooked right before serving. Leftovers can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Shellfish Recipes
Creamy Lobster Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 lb / 500g lobster tails
- 2 cups cream
- ⅔ cup white wine
- ½ onion
- 4 whole garlic cloves smashed
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 sprig fresh dill
- ½ tsp peppercorns/black pepper
- 1 tsp salt
For the lobster pasta sauce
- 1 tbsp butter
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 lb/500g pasta
Instructions
- Start by infusing the cream.
- To remove the lobster meat from the shells, cut down the back of the lobster tail with a sharp pair of kitchen shears then carefully release the meat from the shells.
- Combine the cream, wine onion, smashed garlic cloves, fresh herbs and lobster shells in a large saucepan with a generous pinch of salt and pepper.
- Bring the cream to a simmer then cover and allow to cook for 10 minutes.
- Turn down the heat and allow to infuse for another 20 minutes before straining out the solids and reserving the liquid.
- To make the pasta sauce, heat a tablespoon of butter in a large frying pan set over medium-high heat.
- Add the minced garlic and cook for 30 seconds before pouring in the cream.
- Add a squeeze of lemon juice then allow to simmer for 5 minutes.
- Cut the lobster meat into chunks then add to the sauce and allow to poach for 3-5 minutes until just-cooked.
- Season the sauce with salt and pepper and another squeeze of lemon if necessary then toss with al dente pasta.
- Remember to reserve some of the pasta cooking water to add to the sauce while tossing with the pasta before serving, garnished with finely chopped chives/dill/parsley.