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Easy and elegant, I’m sharing the best way to cook lobster tail for tender, sweet, buttery results. This Baked Lobster Tail recipe is soooo simple you’ll be serving it up at every holiday and dinner party.

Baked lobster tails on a white platter with lemon and parsley.

During any food focused holiday, date night or special occasion, we all want to impress our family with something leaning more towards the swanky side of things with a lobster dinner. So, it was only fitting that I master how to make Lobster Tail at home and you won’t believe how incredibly easy it is to do!

How to Buy Lobster Tail

Lobster tail is expensive so be sure to buy the best you can for perfect lobster tail. Cold water lobster tail, or Maine lobster tail, can be the most budget-friendly.

Warm water lobster can be from the Caribbean or Australia and often has a higher price tag. It has a sweeter flavor and is most often only available frozen.

Check to make sure your lobster tail hasn’t been soaked with sodium tripolyphosphate which can cause the lobster to taste like ammonia. Also, do not buy lobster tail that has meat that’s discolored. This can indicate poor handling or older meat which will cause your lobster tail to be mealy, mushy and flavorless.

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Ingredients for the Best Lobster Tails

  • Lobster Tail – You can buy frozen lobster tail or fresh lobster tail and warm-water lobster or Cold-water lobster. Either works for this recipe.
  • Butter – Salted butter has more flavor and is our choice for this recipe.
  • Seasoning – We season simply with kosher salt and black pepper. You can also use garlic powder, onion powder or smoked paprika, for a smoky flavor, but the flavor of lobster tail is mild so be careful to not overseas.

For the full ingredient list and instructions, see the recipe card below.

Lobster Tails on a white platter with a silver spoon drizzling melted butter over top.

How To Cook Lobster Tail

If using frozen lobster tails, you will have an extra step to take before you start the cooking process. Because lobster cooks quickly, we like to use a high heat to create the most succulent lobster meat.

  1. Start by thawing your lobster by placing them in a resealable bag and submerging them in cold water. Thawing will take approximately 30 minutes.
  2. Remove the lobster from the bag and begin cutting the top of the shell lengthwise with a pair of kitchen shears. This will also create a shallow cut on the top of the lobster meat.
  3. To Butterfly lobster tail – Crack open the shell slightly and begin to pull the meat away from the inside of the shell gently being careful not to crush the shell. Leave the end of the meat attached to the tail and flip the meat up over the top of the shell.
  4. Remove the dark vein from the center and discard.
  5. Place lobster tails on a baking sheet and top with a pat of butter. Fan out the tail fins to help them stand up.
  6. If desired, add about 1/2 cup water to the bottom of the baking sheet to create a little steam. This step will help ensure your lobster stay tender.
  7. Bake the tails for approximately 1 to 1 1/2 minutes per ounce at 425 degrees. Your lobsters are done with they are firm, white and no longer translucent. The internal temperature will be 145˚F on a meat thermometer or instant read thermometer.
  8. Melt the butter in a small bowl.
  9. Serve your baked lobster tails with melted butter, lemon juice and lemon wedges, if desired. Sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley before serving.

Most tails at the grocery store weigh about 4 ounces, so a 4 ounce lobster tail will take approximately 10 minutes to cook. Any tail larger than that you’ll have to tack on another minute of cooking time per ounce for best results.

Overhead shot of three baked Lobster Tails with lemons and parsley on a white platter.

What is the best way to cook a lobster tail?

There are a few different ways you can cook a lobster tail but my favorite way is to bake lobster tail in the oven. Baking lobster with a pat of butter on top yields, tender, sweet, moist lobster meat that’s buttery and perfect.

I prefer baking lobster over broiled lobster tail because the lobster meat cooks evenly throughout instead of the top of the meat drying out before the rest of the meat is cooked through.

How To Cut Lobster Tail Before Cooking

Contrary to what many other recipes say, you do have to cut lobster tails before cooking because they will not cook evenly if closed up in the shell. Plus, it makes them much easier to eat when they’re already cut open. 

To prep your lobster, simply cut down the center of the shell with kitchen shears or a sharp knife ending at the start of the tail fin. Kitchen shears are my preferred method for cutting the tails.

Baked lobster tail on a white platter with lemon and parlsey.

How to Broil Lobster Tail

If you want to broil your lobster instead of baking the lobster, you can do it just as easily by following these steps:

  1. Start by thawing your lobster by placing them in a resealable bag and submerging them in cold water. Thawing will take approximately 30 minutes.
  2. Remove the lobster from the bag and begin cutting the top of the shell lengthwise with a pair of kitchen shears.
  3. Butterflying lobster tail: Carefully crack open the shell slightly and begin to pull the meat away from the inside of the shell gently being careful not to crush the shell. Leave the end of the meat attached to the tail and flip the meat up over the top of the shell.
  4. Remove the dark vein from the center and discard.
  5. Place the butterflied lobster tails on a baking sheet and top with a pat of butter.
  6. Preheat the broiler.
  7. Broil the lobster tails approximately 6-8 inches below the broiler until the lobster meat is opaque and lightly browned….about 5-10 minutes.
  8. Serve the lobster with melted butter, lemon wedges and fresh snipped herbs, if desired.

You can tell a lobster tail is cooked through by cutting into the meat at the thickest part of the tail. If the meat is white all the way through, it is fully cooked.

Serve broiled lobster tails with garlic butter sauce or browned butter for a truly special dinner.

Baked Lobster Tail being drizzled with melted butter.

Best Sides To Serve With Lobster

More Easy Lobster Recipes

And if you’re looking for another option to cook lobster, we LOVE these easy Grilled Lobster Tails!

If you’re looking for even more tasty, easy recipe ideas….be sure to follow us over on Instagram!

Lobster Tail Recipe

4.67 from 9 votes
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
Total: 20 minutes
Servings: 4
The best way to cook a frozen lobster tail at home….Baked Lobster Tail is simple and fool proof. Tender, juicy and sweet…this is the perfect dinner to impress.

Equipment

  • 1 baking sheet
  • 1 kitchen shears
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Ingredients 

  • 4 8 ounce lobster tails, thawed, if frozen
  • 4 tbsp butter
  • fresh chopped parsley and chives, if desired
  • lemon wedges

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
  • Carefully, using kitchen shears, cut the top of the lobster shell horizontally from the front to the tail. 
  • Using your hands, carefully loosen the meat from the shell and lift it up through the top of the shell. Lay the lobster meat on top of the shell and arrange on a baking sheet meat side up.
  • Place 1 tablespoon of butter on top of the lobster meat and repeat with the remaining lobster tails.
  • Bake the lobsters for approximately 10-12 minutes or until the meat is white, firm and no longer translucent. 
  • Drizzle the lobster tails with melted butter and sprinkle with fresh snipped herbs, if desired. Serve with lemon wedges.

Video

YouTube video

Notes

Lobster Tail is best served soon after cooking. Leftovers can be stored refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Nutrition

Calories: 102kcal, Carbohydrates: 0g, Protein: 0g, Fat: 11g, Saturated Fat: 7g, Cholesterol: 31mg, Sodium: 105mg, Sugar: 0g, Vitamin A: 355IU, Calcium: 3mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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20 Comments

  1. Valerie K. says:

    Thank You Kellie !!!!  

    1. Kellie says:

      You’re welcome!

  2. Kim Bowman says:

    I was looking at this recipe when I got sucked down a rabbit hole and started clicking on sooooo many of your recipes above!! You have so many delicious, tempting recipes that I can’t wait to try…I must have printed 20 of them! This lobster tail recipe looks amazing and I would love to try if I can find lobster tails at a reasonable price. Thank you for sharing!!

    1. Kellie says:

      You’re welcome! I’m happy you found more recipes to try and have a great New Year!

  3. C.J. says:

    We get the 24 to 28 ounce tails from Maine Lobster Now,  how long to bake them???

    1. Kellie says:

      Hi! You’ll need to bake for a bit longer, I would add 5 more minutes to the cook time and then assess from there.

  4. Cathi Jefferson says:

    I had such a hard time trying to separate the shelves two of them completely fell apart. I had to piece them back together on the lobster. The lobster did not poo up over the shelves like in your picture. If anything they were shriveled I don’t know if they’re overcooked the thermometer said 130. I took them out And I had a really hard time getting the skin away for the meat away from the shells which I expected to have a little bit of a struggle, but I mean, I had a hard time I even cut my hand from the shell trying to get it apart. I cleaned them Could barely find the digestive track that I needed to clean out. I have really bad experience doing this and I doubt I will do it again. It took me three months to save up for these lobsters, cause I’m on a fixed income, but I wanted you to do something special for my grandkids for Christmas. I don’t know maybe it was because they were frozen not fresh. I just I doubt I’ll ever do this again and I only use two cloves of garlic that I minced and ended up waking my daughter and her husband out of sleep because the entire house smells like garlic. I didn’t understand that but I’m sure your recipe is good. I don’t know what I did wrong. It tasted good. I just don’t know what I did wrong. They didn’t prove they shriveled and I just don’t know.

    1. Kellie says:

      I’m so sorry this recipe didn’t work out for you, Cathi. I have made them with both fresh and frozen lobster tails so I’m not sure what happened with your lobsters to make it so difficult. Wishing you a happy, healthy New Year!

  5. Shelli Gordy says:

    What temp do you bake them at

    1. Kellie says:

      425˚F

  6. lauren says:

    These pictures are making my mouth water! I can’t wait to make this!

    1. Kellie says:

      Ha ha! Thanks!!!

  7. Toni says:

    I loved how tasty this is! Thanks for the tips!

    1. Kellie says:

      You are so welcome!

  8. Cheryl Sousan says:

    I’m excited to make one of my favorite special meals at home now!! Thanks for sharing the recipe + video too!

    1. Kellie says:

      It’s our favorite special day meal, too! And so easy!

  9. Sommer says:

    Thanks for the brilliant tutorial!!

    1. Kellie says:

      Thank you!

  10. Julie says:

    So beautiful! Thanks for the easy step by step instructions and tips!

    1. Kellie says:

      Thanks so much!