{"id":5181,"date":"2018-07-18T12:45:01","date_gmt":"2018-07-18T17:45:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/micuisine.com\/lunapiercook\/?p=5181"},"modified":"2019-07-30T14:57:44","modified_gmt":"2019-07-30T19:57:44","slug":"maines-lobster-roll-authenticity-plus-a-shack-with-a-view","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/micuisine.com\/lunapiercook\/?p=5181","title":{"rendered":"A Recipe For Maine’s Lobster Roll, Authenticity, plus A Shack With A View"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a>
\nThe overstuffed fresh lobster roll at Five Islands Lobster Co., Georgetown, Maine, on July 5, 2018.<\/em><\/p>\n

I had first attempted to eat lobster in May of 1991 at a popular seafood restaurant on the east coast. I won\u2019t say which restaurant, as it\u2019s still open at the time of this writing and they\u2019re still serving lobster as they always have to happy customers. But to say that I was sorely disappointed is an understatement. I had no idea how to open the thing as it didn\u2019t come with instructions, and the meat was not only a bit tough but rather rubbery as well. The flavor seemed “off”, not being anything like any crab I had ever eaten of any variety, including Chesapeake Bay blue crab, Opelia, or King. I decided lobster is nothing more than an expensive way to eat melted butter.<\/p>\n

I wasn\u2019t about to give up though, and as time went on I attempted to enjoy lobster every chance I got. I rarely got back to the Atlantic shores very much so most of the lobster I tried was in the midwest. The classic preparation in the Michigan or Ohio is that of grilled lobster tails. They\u2019re rarely fresh there, being processed and frozen raw on the coast before being shipped to frozen food distributors. At larger gatherings and restaurant buffets where they offer a “lobster bake” the lobsters arrive already boiled, packaged in individual nylon nets. They\u2019re then thawed, the nets are removed, and the whole lobsters are boiled quickly for about another four minutes before serving.<\/p>\n

Lobster cooking techniques and presentation in the midwest can also end up being rather far off the mark. In 2018 this was one area restaurant\u2019s Lobster Roll:<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nThe New England Roll Special with Tarragon on Brioche at a restaurant in the midwest, as seen on Facebook on July 6, 2018.<\/em><\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t a New England Lobster Roll, regardless of what the Chef says. What this does is disrepect the lobster as the main ingredient, elevates the roll itself to a bread New Englanders wouldn\u2019t use, and confuses people who don’t know what a real New England Lobster Roll is by presenting an inaccurate version of the dish to those patrons who have yet to experience the authenticity of the New England Lobster Roll.<\/p>\n

This kind of situation is why I hadn\u2019t yet been able to enjoy the real article.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t until we ended up in Maine for six months beginning in April of 2018 that I finally had the opportunity to try fresh local lobster that had been cooked in a kitchen specializing in northern Atlantic seafood. The first full day we were there we ended up at the Taste Of Maine<\/a> restaurant in Woolwich, where our daughter proceeded to order two whole lobsters.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nOur daughter’s two whole lobsters at the Taste Of Maine restaurant in Woolwich, Maine, on April 21, 2018.<\/em><\/p>\n

With a lot of their patrons being from out-of-town or out-of-state the restaurant\u2019s placemats give detailed instructions on how to break down a whole lobster. Once we followed the instructions, along with some good hints from our server, we all tried it.<\/p>\n

The difference between any other lobster I\u2019ve tried and the meat from those two animals from Maine waters that had also been cooked nearby in a Maine restaurant was rather eye-opening. The meat was sweet and moist, very tender, and had a rich flavor that I felt had been missing in all the other dishes I\u2019d attempted to enjoy for almost thirty years.<\/p>\n

The cuisinologist<\/em> in me hadn\u2019t given up on multiple preparations of this same or similar dishes, and my determination was firm in continuing the quiet mission of trying to find out what was wrong, why I hadn\u2019t been able to enjoy such a popular meal. And it paid off, right here in Maine.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nFive Islands Lobster Co., Georgetown, Maine.<\/em><\/p>\n

As the summer progressed I enjoyed lobster rolls in a number of restaurants and, more importantly, at roadside lobster shacks where things have generally been done a certain way for a very long time. The first lobster roll I had was at Red\u2019s Eats<\/a> in Wiscassett on May 2nd during the stand\u2019s 80th anniversary year. Red\u2019s has been popular in the area the entire time they\u2019ve been open but have seen even more business since showing up on a food and travel show called \u201cThe Zimmern List\u201d, on the Travel Channel in 2017. Many lobster rolls I had seen weren\u2019t half as stuffed as the one I was served at Red\u2019s. But the one at Red\u2019s was considerably better than I had imagined such a thing could be. It came with sides of mayonnaise and melted butter, and I decided the butter was the way I wanted to go with it. That was definitely a good decision as the butter enhanced the flavor the way it should have on my first lobster thirty years before.<\/p>\n

One of the interesting aspects of the lobster roll at Red’s Eats is that each one includes the meat from one whole tail and two whole claws, along with a literal handful of other picked meat. Detailed in the restaurant’s own book, Debbie Gagnon Cronk, Red\u2019s daughter, the current owner and the face customers see at the shack\u2019s window, was quoted as saying “If you want to cook and pick your own lobster meat, plan on 1 \u2013 1-1\/2 pound hard shell lobster or two to three 1 \u2013 1-1\/4 pound softshell lobsters per roll. (Do not use frozen lobster meat; that is a sin.)” [Cronk, Debbie Gagnon; Wright, Virginia. Red\u2019s Eats: World Famous Lobster Shack. Camden, Maine: Down East Books, 2010, page 25].<\/p>\n

Topping such a great lobster roll is no mean feat, but a couple months (and a number of lobster rolls) later I found the one I believe to be the best. Five Islands Lobster Co.<\/a> near Georgetown, Maine, isn\u2019t too far from Red\u2019s Eats and was also represented on the same episode of Zimmern\u2019s show on the Travel Channel.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nThe setting of the Five Islands Lobster Co., showing one of the three outdoor dining areas. The open ocean is just beyond the islands.<\/em><\/p>\n

Five Islands is probably the freshest lobster shack in the area while also likely being the most fun. Located on a picturesque man-made peninsula in the Sheepscot River, there\u2019s parking for dozens of cars and picnic table seating for at least a hundred diners. Five Lobsters is made up of three buildings. The farthest is the lobster building, where lobsters from the surrounding waters, along with other shellfish such as steamers and mussels, are prepped from live to either direct sale to customers in to go containers or as baskets to eat on-site. The “Love Shack” grill building offers the sweet and overstuffed lobster roll shown in the fist photo above, as well as other seafood preparations, burgers and sandwiches, and many other items. And the ice cream building offers desserts made of local products. Wandering the rocky shoreline nearby is also allowed, it\u2019s only the active boating docks that are private and off-limits. The overall view, past Malden Island, Hen Island and Mink Island to the open ocean, is simply breathtaking.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nA look into the kitchen at the lobster building at Five Islands Lobster Co. Note the bright unmuted color of the lobster’s shell, indicating the live animal’s freshness.<\/em><\/p>\n

The difference between the lobster on the lobster roll at Red\u2019s and at Five Islands is only a matter of what\u2019s probably only a few hours in preparation, but there are enough differences in the characteristics of the lobster meat on the roll that the latter is the one I chose, even though I\u2019ll also enjoy a lobster roll at Red\u2019s Eats any chance I can get.<\/p>\n

Authenticity matters. Recreating a dish like this with a personal flair to make it seem \u201chigh-end\u201d so it fits a restaurant that\u2019s not a lobster shack is disrespectful of the main ingredient, in this case the lobster, and does nothing to create an accurate representation of the named dish. Presenting such a dish the right way is the right thing to do. It\u2019s what people who know the original dish expect, and it teaches accuracy to patrons who are unknowing of the original dish.<\/p>\n

Authentic Maine\/New England Lobster Roll<\/h4>\n

<\/a>
\nFranfurter Buns in Maine in my electric skillet with traditional Maine red hot dogs. This is how the buns should be prepared for lobster rolls.<\/em><\/p>\n

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<\/div>\n\t<\/g><\/svg><\/span> Print Recipe<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n<\/div>\n

Maine Lobster Roll<\/h2>\n
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<\/div>\n
Cook Time<\/span>30 minutes<\/span><\/span> mins<\/span><\/span><\/div>
Assembly Time<\/span>5 minutes<\/span><\/span> mins<\/span><\/span><\/div>
Total Time<\/span>35 minutes<\/span><\/span> mins<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n
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Course: <\/span>Main Course, Sandwiches<\/span><\/div>
Cuisine: <\/span>American, Seafood<\/span><\/div>
Keyword: <\/span>Lobster, Lobster Roll, Maine, Roll<\/span><\/div><\/div>\n
Servings: <\/span>4<\/span> sandwiches<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n

Ingredients<\/h3>