Name: Sous Vide Butter Poached Lobster Tail
Total time: 1 h 5 min
Ingredients: 4 5- to 6-ounce lobster tails; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 3 tablespoons unsalted butter , cut into 3 pieces; 6 sprigs fresh tarragon

Why This Recipe Works

It's hard to believe that lobsters weren't always considered a delicacy. Until the mid-19th century, lobsters were so plentiful that they were held in particularly low regard. In fact, eating them was a sign of poverty. No longer. These days, when you want to cook a meal to impress—and we mean really impress—lobster is your friend. But cooking these crustaceans at home can be a daunting task. Traditional boiling and steaming techniques can lead to overcooked, rubbery lobster. But start with widely available frozen lobster tails and add sous vide? It's a breeze. With sous vide, we are able to cook lobster tails to exactly our preferred level of donness—140°F/60°C—without having to worry about them going over. And by adding butter and fresh tarragon to the bag, we are able to impart even more flavor to our lobster.

Before You Begin

To thaw frozen lobster tails, either let them sit in the refrigerator for 24 hours or bag them up and submerge them in cold water for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Serve with lemon wedges and extra melted butter. For more about sous vide cooking, refer to our sous vide guide.

Instructions

Using sous vide circulator, bring water to 140°F/60°C in 7-quart container.

Using kitchen shears, cut lengthwise through soft shell on underside of lobster tail. With lobster tail cut side up, grasp each side with hands and crack outer shell, opening cut side to expose meat. Lift meat from shell and remove; discard shells. Sprinkle lobster with salt on all sides. Transfer tails, butter, and tarragon sprigs to 1-gallon zipper-lock freezer bag. Arrange tails in single layer and seal bag, pressing out as much air as possible. Gently lower bag into prepared water bath until tails are fully submerged, and then clip top corner of bag to side of water bath container, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag. Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air bubbles, and reseal bag. Cover and cook for 45 minutes.

Transfer lobster tails to plates; discard cooking liquid. Serve immediately.

to make ahead

We don't recommend making this recipe ahead of time, unless using for chilled lobster salad. In that case, lobster tails can be rapidly chilled in ice bath and then refrigerated for up to 24 hours.