The Great Lobster Roll Debate

Warm or chilled? Mayo or butter? Lettuce or no lettuce? Here are recipes for a chilled Maine Lobster Roll and a Warm Lobster Roll. Try them both and decide for yourself!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb fully cooked lobster meat
• 4 New England-style hotdog rolls*
• melted butter (preferably clarified butter)
• 4 tbs softened butter
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges

Preparation:

Spread the outsides of each of the hotdog rolls with softened butter. Place on hot griddle and cook until toasted on both sides. Remove from griddle.

Cut or tear the warm lobster meat into large chunks at least 1", preferably 2". Place in a bowl and toss with melted butter so that all pieces are coated. Divide evenly among the hotdog rolls.

Serve immediately with lemon wedges, cole slaw and french fries.

*If you cannot find real New England-style hotdog buns, which are cut on the sides, try buying slightly oversized buns and trimming the crust off of both sides.

This recipe comes from Jasper White, author of "Lobster at Home".

Ingredients:

4 New England-style hot dog buns*

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1 recipe Lobster Salad (see recipe, below)

4 Boston or bibb lettuce leaves, washed and dried

4 dill pickle spears

Potato chips

Lobster Salad

1 pound fully cooked lobster meat or 5 pounds live lobsters

1/2 cup special mayonnaise for lobster or Hellman's Mayonnaise

2 or 3 small scallions (white and green parts), thinly sliced

1 cucumber, peeled and chopped

Kosher or sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

To make the Lobster Salad

If you are using live lobsters, cook them fully and cool to room temp. Remove the meat from the shells and cut into 1/2" to 3/4" pieces.

Place the cucumber in a strainer for at least 5 minutes to drain the excess liquid.

Combine the lobster, cucumber, scallions and mayonnaise. Season with a bit of salt and pepper if needed. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes before serving.

To make the lobster roll

Heat a 10" skillet or griddle over medium heat. Spread each of the hotdog buns with 1 tablespoon butter (1/2 on each side). Place the buttered buns onto the hot dry pan and toast, without moving, until golden brown on one side, about one minute. Turn and cook the other side, about one minute more. Remove from heat.

Open the buns and place in a paper bun holder or on a small plate. Place a lettuce leaf on one side of the center inside the bun. Spoon the lobster salad evenly among the buns. Serve with pickles and potato chips on the side.

*If you cannot find real New England-style hotdog buns, which are cut on the sides, try buying slightly oversized buns and trimming the crust off of both sides.

"Temperature's rising, the surf's pounding, the lobster harvest is at an all-time high. Bring on the lobster rolls! The roll: It must be a stand-alone hotdog bun, rectangular, flat on both sides, coming to a crisp right angle at the flat base. If it's oval or toasted, do not touch it. If it's not buttered, do not even look at it. The meat: It must be fresh and predominantly from the tail. It must be at least three inches wide at the top, extending at least an inch above the crest of the bun. No less than a quarter-pound of lobster per sandwich."

--- "On A Roll", David Shribman, Fortune, 8/13/2001 (p. 198)

Lobster rolls are one of my favorite summertime treats -- freshly cooked chunks of lobster drenched in melted butter, topped with a squeeze of lemon and served up in a grilled New England-style hotdog roll. Heaven.

A few years ago during a trip to Maine, horror of horrors. I had just ordered a lobster roll at a local eatery, and was salivating in anticipation of that Maine lobster goodness. They simply couldn't make the order fast enough.

Our lunch finally arrived and I was dumbfounded. There had to be a mistake. Some kitchen fool had dumped a load of lobster salad into a hotdog roll and was trying to pass it off as an authentic lobster roll. It couldn't be. I mean, there was mayonnaise on my lobster. MAYO! And there was lettuce. You don't serve lettuce on a lobster roll! They even had the audacity to put in scallions and celery... And the lobster was chilled. It was COLD! Dear Lord.

I did finally recover from that tragedy and came to grips with the fact there are some ignorant souls out there who don't know how to make real lobster rolls. I even learned to ignore the few McDonald's that began to put lobster rolls, dubbed the McLobster, on their seasonal menu. I'll pretend it all doesn't exist and live happily ever after with my warm lobster roll.

There is no definitive evidence that shows exactly where and how the lobster roll was created. It is generally accepted that during the 1800's, the wealthy New England women enjoyed serving lobster at their fancy luncheons, but did not want to deal with getting the meat out of the shell. Their chefs tried to come up with lunch-friendly ways to serve the sweet meat, and lobster salads were an obvious choice.

In 1912, the first hot dog buns were commercially manufactured. It was sometime after this that the delectable lobster salads found their way into these buns, and the lobster roll was born.

It is rumored that the original lobster roll was invented in 1966 by Fred Terry, owner of the Lobster Roll Restaurant in Amagansett, New York. He created a recipe that contained mayonnaise and various seasonings and he served it in a heated hotdog roll. This version is quite often known as the Long Island or New York Lobster Roll.

Sometime in the late 1920's or early 1930's, Ted Hale, a regular customer at Perry's restaurant in Milford, Connecticut, requested that warm lobster chunks be served in a grilled hotdog bun, and the Connecticut Lobster Roll was born. Its popularity spread and is now the standard preparation in and around the state.

The Maine version of the Lobster roll is traditionally served with a dill pickle and potato chips. The Connecticut and Long Island versions are normally served with cole slaw and french fries.