The best sous vide lobster tails are sweet and buttery, delicate and meaty. In this recipe you’ll learn the best time and temperature for sous vide lobster tails and how to finish them on the grill. Let’s sous vide!
Table of Contents
Why it’s my #1 sous vide lobster dish
- You can’t mess it up! Sous vide seafood is an amazing option for home chef’s new to cooking delicate seafood dishes at home.
- Perfect texture. The texture of lobster cooked sous vide style is somewhere between shrimp and crab. It melts in your mouth and will never be chewy.
- Simple ingredients.
- Ready out of the bag. Unlike sous vide steak, you can serve it immediately.
- Get tips to finish the lobster tails on a grill. I’ll teach you how.
This is a recipe feature from my sous vide cookbook.
Ingredients for sous vide lobster
Here’s what you need to sous vide lobster tails.
- Lobster tails – To make four servings, get about 6 pounds of lobster tails – about 4 tails at 1.5 lbs each. The lobster tails in my photos were cut in half lengthwise then skewered, which makes them easier to grill.
- Salt
- Butter
- Olive oil
- Parsley
- Garlic
TIP: Don’t be fooled by the largest lobsters when purchasing them. Often, the smaller lobsters are the most flavorful.
New to sous vide techniques? Learn why is sous vide so popular.
How to sous vide lobster – step by step
Step 1. Preheat sous vide machine to 130º. Skewer lobster tails and season them with salt. Add lobster to vacuum sealed bag with garlic and butter. Vacuum seal in a flat layer, using multiple bags if needed.
Step 2. Sous vide lobster tails at 130ºF for 25 minutes. When cooking is done, move the vac seal bag to an ice bath for a couple minutes to stop the cooking process.
Step 3. Remove sous vide lobster tails from the bag, keeping them on the skewers, and pat dry. The lobster tails are ready to eat now, or you can grill them according to the next step.
Step 4. Preheat grill to 500°. Lightly brush lobster meat with olive oil. Add lobster tails to the grill directly over heat with the meat facing down. Grill lobster for 1 to 2 minutes, then move lobster meat perpendicularly to create crossing grill marks for another 1-2 minutes.
Step 5. Remove from grill and sprinkle with fresh parsley.
FAQ for this lobster recipe
Yes! Sous vide frozen lobster tail for an additional 30 minutes. This will account for the time needed for the lobster to thaw in the sous vide water bath. Remember to always repackage food in a new ziplock bag using the water displacement method, or transfer them to a vacuum seal bag. Don’t forget to season them prior to sous vide cooking.
Remove the lobster tails from shells and store in a covered container for 2-3 days. Leftover lobster is great in salads the next day.
Some sous vide recipes have a long window of cook time. For example, something like a sous vide filet mignon or sous vide porterhouse can cook anywhere between 1-4 hours. But sous vide lobster tails need to be pulled out of the cold water bath at the exact time mentioned in this recipe. So remove the meat immediately to prevent it from becoming mushy.
In addition to the simple Italian-inspired seasonings for this sous vide lobster recipe, you can season lobster tails with a compound butter with garlic herbs, a sprinkle of Old Bay seasoning, or a sprig of fresh rosemary.
A simple side dish of melted butter and lemon wedges is a good start. Here are a few side dishes to serve with lobster: sous vide corn, broccoli, sous vide asparagus, a wedge salad, garlic dill carrots, sous vide fingerling potatoes, mashed potatoes, or one of these potato side dishes.
Cooked lobster tails work with both red and white wines that are low in acidity. Try a white Riesling or red Gamay.
The most important thing about plating lobster is to keep some element of the lobster’s shell or claw. The bright red color is beautiful on a crisp white plate.
Haven’t tried it, and don’t recommend it. When working with a live lobster, it’s most ethical to quickly put it out of misery. Sous vide water is not boiling water, and so let’s just go with: No thanks.
The Perfect Sous Vide Setup
Everyday I’m asked, “what do you need to sous vide food?”. Here’s my answer.
- A sous vide machine.
Option 1: “stick” models like the Joule, Anova, or Instant Pot Slim.
Option 2: “multipot” models like the SousPreme or InstantPot Duo Evo Plus. - Sous vide container.
If using a sous vide “stick” model, you need something to hold the water the food cooks in, like a bucket or stockpot. - Bags to cook sous vide food.
Keep it simple and sous vide in ziplock gallon bags, or get fancy like me with a vacuum sealer setup. - Nice-to-have accessories for sous vide cooking.
– Sous vide weights to hold down food that floats.
– Mini mason jars for desserts and sous vide egg bites.
– Cast iron skillet to sear sous vide steaks to finish them. - My sous vide cookbook with 100+ recipes.
Are you a foodie, too?
I’m passionate about sous vide cooking, and since publishing my sous vide cookbook, I’ve been on a mission to sous vide everything. Maybe that’s why Sip Bite Go has become one of the most popular sous vide blogs on the web.
Want to see my latest sous vide experiments? Connect with me on Instagram @sipbitego. And check out my latest sous vide recipe videos on the Sip Bite Go channel.
Sous Vide Lobster Tails Recipe (Sip Bite Go)
Ingredients
- 6 lbs lobster tails (about 4 pieces at 1.5 lbs each, cut in half lengthwise)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 cloves garlic diced
- 4 tbsp butter unsalted, cubed
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp parsley fresh, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat sous vide machine to 130º. Skewer lobster tails and season them with salt. Add lobster to vacuum sealed bag with garlic and butter. Vacuum seal in a flat layer, using multiple bags if needed.
- Sous vide lobster tails at 130ºF for 25 minutes. When cooking is done, move the vac seal bag to an ice bath for a couple minutes to stop the cooking process.
- Remove sous vide lobster tails from the bag, keeping them on the skewers, and pat dry. The lobster tails are ready to eat now, or you can grill them according to the next step.
- Preheat grill to 500°. Lightly brush lobster meat with olive oil. Add lobster tails to the grill directly over heat with the meat facing down. Grill lobster for 1 to 2 minutes, then move lobster meat perpendicularly to create crossing grill marks for another 1-2 minutes.
- Remove from grill and sprinkle with fresh parsley.
Video
Notes
- Store leftover lobster tails in an airtight container for 2-3 days.
- To plate lobster tails, keep an element of the lobster shell or claw.
- Wine to pair with lobster includes Riesling and Gamay.
Nutrition
These turned out amazing for Father’s Day. Next weekend the wife and I are attempting your sous vide pulled pork.
These turned out amazing for Father’s Day. Next weekend the wife and I are attempting your sous vide pulled pork.
Are these lobster tails 1.5 lbs each total 6 pounds???
I didn’t realize that the smaller lobsters have more flavor. I love how simple you kept the seasoning so that the taste of the lobster doesn’t get lost.
I love how thorough and informative this post is! My husband loves lobster so I know he’ll appreciate how tender these lobster tails are!