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This pasta with lobster sauce is your easy date night go-to dish. Think of it like a spin on lobster carbonara, with a creamy lobster sauce filled with garlic, bacon, and big chunks of butter poached lobster. It's a decadent and absolutely gorgeous dish that your special someone will swoon over no matter the special occasion!
Valentine's season is upon us, y'all! Which means that you shouldn't go out and book a table at the overbooked restaurants, you should instead impress your boo with a delicious home-cooked pasta dish made with love. And heavy cream and butter poached lobster. And bacon. Who's going to resist that? No one reading this post, that's for sure. 😉
Look, I know that sounds kinda intimidating, but I promise: it's incredibly easy to make and I have the step by step on how to break down and butter poach the lobster tails, which is honestly the 'most difficult' part. If by 'most difficult' you mean cutting the lobster meat out of the tail shells and then gently cooking them in salted butter...
Anyway, this lobster pasta sauce is so decadent, so creamy, so good, I can't wait for you to make this. You're going to impress any person you serve this elegant lobster pasta recipe to.
Okay, so earlier I said this is like a spin on lobster carbonara, with the egg yolks and fatty pork (in this case, bacon), it's really reminiscent of my Americanized decadent carbonara recipe. So authentic Italian? Not at all. Don't come after me, nonnas!
This recipe makes for two very hearty dinner plates of pasta or three to four modest plates of pasta, just in case you want this as a side dish to another luxurious main dish.
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Ingredients for Pasta with Lobster Sauce
Pasta. You can, of course, use your noodle of choice but for this recipe I chose bucatini. It's a thick, hollow spaghetti that has a hole running through the center, a great place for all that creamy lobster pasta sauce to get into. Boil the pasta in a pot of water until al dente, then toss it with the sauce before serving.
Cold Water Lobster Tails. Make sure they are cold water. Cold water lobsters and warm water lobsters (spiny lobsters) are not the same creature, they're not even the same species, and they do taste different and have different textures. So make sure you are getting cold water lobster at the grocery store, in the US they're usually from Maine or Canada.
Bacon. Use your favorite bacon, or go full carbonara style with guanciale if you can find it! Pancetta also works really well. Crisp it up to your preference in a little of that poaching butter with the lobster flavor in it... *chef's kiss*.
Heavy Cream. Makes this sauce really just luscious and rich, creamy pasta dish, coating all of the pasta with all those delicious flavors.
Egg Yolks and one Whole Egg. Carbonara style, remember? Not only do eggs help emulsify the sauce, but they give it another aspect of creamy richness.
Yellow Onion or Shallots. Obviously for flavor! Nothing better in a savory dish than sautéed onions and shallots, especially with garlic.
Lots of finely minced Garlic Cloves. We are serious garlic lovers and it really gives so much great flavor. Not a garlic lover? Use only a clove or two, but you'll miss it if you skip out on it all together!
Parmesan Cheese. I say it every time parmesan cheese shows up in my recipes (which is a lot! I think food blogging really opened me up to my love of parmesan cheese. It could be a drinking game.) buy a wedge of the real stuff, not the dust in the can.
It's really affordable, can be used in so many dishes, and is so tasty. Get a wedge, buy a microplane grater to make it nice and finely grated, and change your life!
Butter Poaching Lobster Tails
To make this lobster sauce recipe the first thing you need to do is butter poach the lobster. Sounds intimidating, but it really isn't! Let's walk through it.
Removing the meat from the shells
You'll want to start off with cold water lobster tails. Their flavor is light, sweet, and delicate that pairs perfectly with butter! They do look very different from the warm water lobster tails: they're usually smaller, around 3-5 ounces each, and they tend to be a deep brown color. Warm water lobster tails are much larger, lighter brown/beige in color with ringed white spots. These do have a different flavor and texture, they're not what you're looking for!
Now to get the meat out. Use a very sharp set of kitchen scissors or poultry shears to cut the underside of the lobster shells. The top of them are way harder to cut through, so it's easier to pull the meat out from the bottom.
Just be careful about any sharp edges, lobster use their tails for defense so the points of their plates often have sharp areas. Use a kitchen towel to help you crack the shells (I pull the sides of the bottom apart while putting pressure on the top to help crack them and get the lobster meat loose).
Pry the meat from the little tail-end flaps if you can, there's a small amount that is in there. Then check the top of the lobster tail meat for a digestive tract, just like in shrimp. Hopefully it got removed when the tail was separated from the carapace, but it never hurts to check.
You'll see in the picture the tract is not deep, and you'll most likely see it through the translucent flesh if it's there. A swift cut with a paring knife to open the tail and remove it is all you need to do. If it's not there, you don't need to cut the top.
Butter Poaching
You'll want to use remember that we are cooking these babies nice and gently, over medium low heat in a large saute pan so we end up with juicy, tender lobster meat. Go over medium heat and you'll end up with tough, rubbery lobster.
Next step is melting the butter. I use salted butter, but always make sure to taste your cream sauce before you season it with salt because of this. Not being in control of your own salt means you need to know exactly how your butter tastes when cooking with it. Unsalted butter is a safe choice here, as well as ghee or clarified butter. Clarified butter is butter that has had the milk solids and water taken out so it's all fat, which is great for cooking with.
Melt down the butter in a large frying pan and cook the little lobster tails for two to three minutes on each side. The lobster will be opaque when it's ready! See? Not hard at all. You'll be putting the chopped lobster tails into the sauce later.
You know what? If you want that lobster flavor really infused into the butter for later use (like using in the sauce, maybe?), cook the lobster tail shells in the butter after you poach the fresh lobster tail meat. This will infuse the butter, much like when you make a lobster stock, for seriously layered flavor. And I always tell you it's all about the layers of flavor in food.
How to Make Lobster Sauce for Pasta
So the 'hard' part is done, let's finish the dish!
Get your pot of water boiling for the pasta, and remember to salt it pretty well. Use two or three tablespoons if you're not sure what 'tastes like the ocean' is like. You'll season it, but you don't want to oversalt it, trust me. Add the pasta and let it cook.
While that's going, take your chopped bacon and begin frying it in a large saucepan. Or if you are a total badass who wants to get all those layers of flavor I'm telling you about, fry them in a little of the infused butter you just poached those lobster tails in. Hey, don't let that stuff go to waste, honey!
Once the bacon is halfway done cooking, maybe 3-4 minutes into it, add in the diced onion and cook until they're golden brown and the bacon is cooked to your liking. Not only does this give the onions that delicious bacon flavor, but it's also infused with the lobster butter. Turn off the heat and add in the minced garlic; the residual heat will cook the garlic without burning it.
Now make the creamy part of the sauce! Whisk together the egg yolks, heavy cream and parmesan cheese and add it to the pan with the bacon. Give the sauce a taste and season with some salt and black pepper.
By now your pasta should be ready, so add it in! Use tongs to really get all the creamy sauce to coat the noodles.
Now, gently stir in the chopped lobster meat. It's easily breakable, so gently mix it with your pasta sauce. We want big lumps of whole lobster pieces, not little shreds, right?
Serve it up nice and hot, maybe garnish it with fresh thyme, parsley, or fresh basil, some lemon zest for vibrancy.
It's so delicious with this rich lobster, smokey bacon, the flavor of this creamy garlicky butter sauce...a whole mood, honey.
Variations
You can make different versions of this sauce, especially if you're feeling a little squeamish about raw egg yolks.
Without the egg yolks and bacon, you basically have a creamy alfredo sauce that is just as delicious.
Want a bright, zesty lobster sauce? Why not make a delicious lobster scampi, flavored with lemon juice, maybe a splash of white wine, some red pepper flakes, and plenty of butter. This is a great idea for spring and summer, when you may want a lighter sauce.
Add some tomato paste to the sauce for a delicious tomato and cream, lobster pink sauce. So delish, especially with the bacon.
FAQ
Absolutely! And if you need help, I have a whole post all about cooking and shelling whole live lobsters. Really want to impress someone? Put a whole piece of juicy lobster claw meat as a garnish on your lobster dish. Thank me later.
Yes, you can gently reheat them in butter (it's basically butter poaching part two!), but just long enough to warm the lobster meat up, a couple of minutes at most.
The butter poached lobster can be made the day before. The bacon/onion/garlic can be cooked the day before as well.
When you are ready to eat, warm up the bacon mix in a pan on medium low, then add the lobster until everything is nice and warm. Add in the cream and parm sauce mixture and toss it all together with freshly cooked hot pasta. All ready to eat!
More Delish Date Dishes
- Million Dollar Roasted Chicken. Easy and beautiful with fancy sounding ingredients!
- Warm Butter Lobster Rolls (perfect for a cute little date lunch!)
- Salmon en Papillote, which is a fast and easy recipe that looks SO fancy.
- Lobster Pasta with Garlic Butter Sauce. Another delicious lobster pasta dish with an herbaceous garlic butter sauce.
- How about Reverse Searing a Steak like they do at the upscale restaurants? It takes a little time but it's actually really easy with amazing results.
Tools I Used in this Recipe
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Pasta with Lobster Cream Sauce
Ingredients
- 12 ounces bucatini pasta, or long pasta of choice
- 3 3-4 ounces each cold water lobster tails, shelled and raw
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 ounces thick cut bacon, chopped into bite sized pieces
- ½ yellow onion or shallot, finely diced
- 3-4 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 whole egg
- ½ cup parmesan cheese, finely grated
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
- Fresh Parsley, chopped for garnish
Instructions
- Butter Poach the Lobster Tails
- In a large sauté pan, melt the butter down over medium low heat. Add in the lobster tails and let them cook on one side for 2-3 minutes, or until that side is opaque. Flip and let the other side cook for two minutes, until opaque.
- Remove the lobsters from the pan and place them onto a cutting board, letting them cool slightly before chopping them into bite sized pieces. Set aside for later.
- Make the Pasta with Creamy Lobster Sauce
- Bring a large pot of water to boil. Once at a boil, add the bucatini pasta and cook according to package directions.
- Reserve at least 2 tablespoons worth of the lobster poaching butter and add the chopped bacon to the sauté pan over medium heat. As it gets about halfway done cooking, add the diced onions or shallots, stirring with a wooden spoon occasionally so none of them burns.
- Once the bacon is cooked to your liking and the onions are golden brown, turn off the heat and add the minced garlic, stirring them into the bacon and onions so that the garlic cooks with the residual heat.
- Next, whisk the heavy cream, egg yolks, the whole egg, and parmesan cheese really well together in a medium mixing bowl.
- The pasta should be done cooking by now, so add it into the pan with the bacon. Pour over the heavy cream and parmesan mixture, then use tongs to toss the pasta with the sauce. Want it more saucy? Splash in some of the pasta water.
- Gently stir in the chopped lobster tails. Lobster meat can break apart, so gently mix it into the cream sauce and pasta.
- Garnish with lemon zest, parsley, or more parmesan cheese. Serve the lobster pasta hot.
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