It’s the middle of summer here in Australia and there is only one thing that you can have during this time: seafood. In particular… lobster. Why? Because nothing suits the hot weather with fresh and simple ingredients like garlic confit butter lobster tails. Turn the barbeque (or grill!) on and open up some wine and beer – there’s absolutely nothing like gathering around the barbeque and cooking up a storm.
Garlic Confit Butter Lobster Tails
If you’re intimidated by the idea of cooking lobster I’m here to tell you… It’s not that scary! For a shellfish like lobster the secret is to treat it with respect and add simple flavours. Simple is really the best.
Tackling the lobster
Lobster can be overwhelming – I used to also be intimidated by it. It also has a reputation for being expensive. But if you learn how to cut it and cook it properly not much has to go to waste. The shells should absolutely not go to waste as they can be made into a delicious lobster bisque.
If you don’t want to have lobster bisque immediately, you can store it in the freezer for up to four weeks.
I used really large lobsters for this particular recipe. The tails that I got were 800 grams each, so really big. With such large tails you can have them as is or turn them into buttery lobster rolls.
Garlic confit – well, of course!
I know that I use garlic confit in quite a few of my recipes and the reason is simple – it’s delicious! What doesn’t garlic go with? If you are short on time and don’t want to make garlic confit, you can always use fresh garlic! I recommend using 4 cloves of fresh garlic.
For this recipe I think it’s especially good to do garlic confit because having it dripping off the freshly grilled lobster tail? Ooh, I’m salivating just thinking about it!
Herbs, herbs, herbs
What goes with seafood, lemon and garlic? Fresh herbs! I used parsley and chives for this but I think it’s also an open book. Coriander (cilantro!) and dill would also suit this dish. Just bright and summery herbs to add a little something-something to the dish.
Give it a grilling
How do you actually master the lobster tail? There’s a few tips:
- Hot, hot heat – have the grill turned up high.
- Quick! There’s nothing low and slow about this.
- Check the weight of the lobster as this will adjust the cook time. A smaller lobster tail will need less cooking time. The best way to check is to see when the flesh has turned a pink colour and to also give it a feel. If it feels firm then it’s cooked!
- Serve straight away! You want these to be hot off the grill when you serve them.
If you make these lobster tails, please tag me on Instagram, Tik Tok or Pinterest so I can see your wonderful creations!
If you have any questions or would like to leave a review, please do so here! I always love answering your food and recipe related questions and hearing your feedback on my recipes.
Images by Alanna Penna photography.
Garlic Confit Butter Lobster Tails
The perfect summery barbeque food
Ingredients
- 1.5 kg lobster tails 3.3 pounds
- 2 bulbs garlic
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil 250mL
- 250 g salted butter at room temp 1/2 pound
- 30 g chives, roughly chopped 1oz
- 30 g parsley, roughly chopped 1oz
- 1 lemon sliced into 4cm rings
- salt + pepper
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 130 degrees C.
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Separate all the cloves from the garlic bulbs and place into a heatproof bowl. Cover with boiling water for 5 minutes then drain. The skins will become loose and easy to peel off.
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Place the garlic cloves into an ovenproof dish and cover with olive oil. It’s important the garlic is fully submerged in olive oil so it does not burn. Roast for 1.5 – 2 hours. There will be a slight bubble in the oil when it cooks.
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Separate the garlic cloves from the oil. Store the garlic infused oil in a sterilised jar on your countertop and use in any recipe that calls for olive oil.
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In a food processor, combine the garlic confit cloves, butter, chives, parsley and generous amount of salt and pepper. Blend until well combined. This can also be done by hand by placing all ingredients into a large bowl and mashing together with a fork. If making the garlic butter this way, ensure your herbs are finely chopped.
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Butterfly the lobster tails by cutting through the top of the hard shell. Place the scissors between the meat and shell. Using a sharp knife, slice down the middle of the shell, ensuring you keep the tail intact and don’t cut through the wide end of the tail. Season the meat with a pinch of salt and pepper and drizzle with the reserved garlic confit olive oil.
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Preheat the BBQ and set the temperature to high on the grill side. Leave the lid closed to allow the temperature to reach 200 degrees C / 390 degrees F.
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While the BBQ preheats, melt roughly half of the garlic confit butter in a small saucepan on the stove or in the microwave. Depending on how many lobster tails you are cooking, you may not need all of the butter. Reserve the remaining butter in the fridge for up to 4 weeks
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Open the lid and place the lobster tails flesh side down onto the grill side so it cooks on direct heat. Scatter the lemon slices around the lobster. Close the lid and leave to cook on medium / high for 6 minutes or until their flesh has turned pink and they are slightly charred.
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Using metal tongs, flip the lemon slices and lobster tails over and baste the lobster with the melted garlic butter. Close the lid and leave to cook for an additional 4 minutes, basting every minute. Reserve a small amount of butter to drizzle over when serving. Remove the lobster tails and lemon slices from the BBQ and leave to rest.
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Drizzle the lobster tails with the remaining melted garlic butter and squeeze the charred lemon all over. Serve immediately.