Sunday, September 13, 2009

Another Local Tradition - Lobster Nova Scotia Style

Here's how to eat like a Nova Scotian" and you can find the recipe here for the best Nova Scotian way to cook it.

This summer I was hoping to get to another one of the lobster festivals that Nova Scotia is so famous for. I wrote about Pictou’s fantastic Lobster Carnival last summer and really did want to go back , but it was not in the cards.

Naturally, the best part for me, of any lobster festival is the community lobster dinner. Nova Scotia is famous for them and last year I made it to three of them! Typically, you find them in many coastal villages celebrating the end of lobster season….Don’t panic, you can get delicious fresh NS lobster all year round, but the fishing season does move from area to area around the province. I’m assuming it’s to give the lobsters a chance to grow. And a little trivia for you….it takes a lobster 7 years…yes….SEVEN years to get to be a pound. And just a few minutes for us to devour it. It doesn’t seem right, so the next time you sit down to a lobster dinner, remember to savor it.

Unfortunately, the summer whipped by without me getting to even one community dinner, but I was lucky enough to get invited to a family lobster dinner recently…and with 20 people enjoying the evening, I’d call it a community dinner, wouldn’t you? Please note the "tablecloth"...nothing makes lobster eating easier than a tablecloth made of newspapers (already read, is best) to make clean up a breeze. Just dump all the shells on the table, roll up the paper and...voila...ready for garbage.

First thing to know about NS Community Lobster Dinners for those of you who’ve never eaten them “the Nova Scotian way”…the lobsters are precooked and served cold with lots of potato salad, coleslaw, fresh rolls and some heavenly pie for dessert. Growing up in Montreal and then living in Toronto and Ottawa as an adult, I’m used to eating my lobsters boiled or steamed, served hot and then dipped in melted butter…I’m drooling just writing about it.

But if you think about it….cooking up lobsters for a gazillion people at a time, requires some serious pre-work. I did write about another lobster dinner, so if you’re up for doing it yourself , you can find out how here.

The video is the “how to” to eat your lobster like a real Nova Scotian …not for the delicate and be forewarned …wear clothes you can throw in the washing machine!

Enjoy and don’t forget to invite me to your next lobster dinner.

5 comments:

Suzie Ridler said...

Excellent lobster-destruction tutorial! I love lobster but my husband despises it so I never get to go to one of these lunches, sadly. I hope you get to go again next year!

Ruth Daniels said...

Suzie, I know what you mean...my husband doesn't enjoy lobster either. What you don't see in the video were the eight people eating steak! Silly them. Oh well more for the rest of us.

La Cuisine d'Helene said...

I miss so much the East Coast for the great lobster we were eating.

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

It has been years since I had anything even resembling one of these babies. What a fun way to get together with the family.

Lobster Queen said...

Looks lovely. In New Brunswick we serve lobster boiled, still hot, but we're pretty light on the butter. Lots of salads and rolls, same as NS, though. With a group that large, you need a big outdoor cooker so you can cook more than one or two at a time.