live lobsters

[Anonymous]

If I buy live lobsters, can I cook them the next day? If so, how do I store them until then? I LOVE lobster but have never ventured to cook one myself.

[Anonymous]

I just keep them in the fridge. no water.

[Anonymous]

Do they move around?

[Anonymous]

Sure. Just fill up your tub with cold water, add salt (measure carefully to match the salinity of the ocean), and dump them in. Warn family members not to take a bath.

Or, you could just cook them the same day you purchase them. Most people do that.

[Anonymous]

Don't store them in the tub (I assume PP was joking about that). Keep them in the fridge in a paper bag, with a few moist newspapers packed around them keep them moist. Usually, you try to cook them the same day, but they can last 36 hours or so. They are pretty sluggish when it's that cold and won't move around much. You should, however, check that they are still alive before you cook them -- they should move around some when you take them out of the bag. Yum!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do they move around?

Put them in a bowl or pot.

[Anonymous]

I would not do the bathtub thing. The lobsters will die quickly if you get the salinity wrong. Just buy them the same day you cook them.

Alternatively, you can mail order lobsters straight from Maine, and schedule their day of arrival to be the day you cook them. They are tastier this way, although more expensive.

[Anonymous]

Don't store them in the tub (I assume PP was joking about that).

Yep, was just joking. Don't do that. Unless you have a 200-gallon saltwater tank like the grocery store does.

[Anonymous]

Wrap them in wet newspapers and put them in the crisper.

[Anonymous]

Thanks, all- I was thinking of cooking for Christmas day, hence my question about buying the day before.

[Anonymous]

Mainer here. I guess I'm spoiled, but I've never purchased lobster and attempted to cook it the next day. They need to be very alive before you cook them. I'm sure they can last in the fridge, but you don't want to end up with dead lobsters on Christmas, or food poisoning.

[Anonymous]

I feel bad for the lobsters sitting in the fridge, just waiting to be boiled. Do it the day you buy them at least....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mainer here. I guess I'm spoiled, but I've never purchased lobster and attempted to cook it the next day. They need to be very alive before you cook them. I'm sure they can last in the fridge, but you don't want to end up with dead lobsters on Christmas, or food poisoning.

O M G. I just bought dead lobster tails from Safeway. Should I toss them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mainer here. I guess I'm spoiled, but I've never purchased lobster and attempted to cook it the next day. They need to be very alive before you cook them. I'm sure they can last in the fridge, but you don't want to end up with dead lobsters on Christmas, or food poisoning.

O M G. I just bought dead lobster tails from Safeway. Should I toss them?

Ha. No, they sell the tails separately and are fine. They were likely previously frozen, which, along with separating the tails from the head, delays the spoiling process.

Lobsters CAN be stored in the fridge as long as, like PPs said, you keep a wet paper towel on them so their gills are moist, but they spoil quickly once they die, which is why cooking them live is recommended.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I feel bad for the lobsters sitting in the fridge, just waiting to be boiled. Do it the day you buy them at least….

yes and give them a chance to kiss their DH and DCs goodbye once more before the excruciating boiling