Chicken Fried Lobster

A Delicious Way to Prepare a Lobster Tail

A lobster tail is terrific by all by itself. But a chicken fried lobster tail is over the top decadent and delicious. Think fried chicken, but with lobster. Yeah, it's really that good.

Why Use Lobster?

Well, why not? Chicken fried anything tastes great. Why not take the very best the sea has to offer, batter it up and drop it in a fryer?  Chicken fried lobster, incredibly tender and delicious.

How to Prepare the Lobster

The lobster meat used in this recipe comes from the tail.  Claws are just too much work to open and can easily fall apart.  The lobster tail is the way to go, the meat is easy to get out and it handles the heat of frying very well.

Cut the membrane on the underside of the lobster with a pair of kitchen shears along both sides where it meets the shell.  Pull back the membrane, then gently free the lobster tail meat from the shell and separate it from the top of the shell. 

It should come of fairly easily.  Save the lobster shell.

Make the Aioli

Make sure to prepare the garlic aioli in advance. The lobster will cool quickly when it's out of the fryer and you want to eat this dish hot.  Just add all the aioli ingredients together in a small bowl and combine with a wire whisk.

Hey Batter, Batter

The batter for these fried lobster tails consists of both wet and dry ingredients.  The dry flour mixture includes all-purpose flour, a bit of rice flour, some garlic powder, cayenne pepper, salt and black pepper. The rice flour helps give the chicken fried batter a lighter texture.  The wet batter is a buttermilk mixture that includes hot sauce.  The cayenne pepper and hot sauce give the fried lobster tail a bit of kick.  Welcome to Austin!

The lobster meat will first be dredged in the dry batter.  Then, dip the lobster tail in the wet batter.  Finally, dredge lobster in the dry batter one more time.  This will create a tasty coating that sticks.

Fry the Lobster Tails

Heat vegetable oil in a tall 4-quart pot to 350˚F.  There should be enough oil in the pot to cover the lobster tail, about 2 inches.  Canola oil works well for this recipe.  Fry the lobster tails in the hot oil until golden brown. Carefully remove the fried lobster tails from the hot oil and drain them on a paper towel.  Don't forget to deep fry the shell with the lobster tail. The shell will turn bright red and makes a nice decoration on the plate. 

Place the shells on a plate then drape the fried lobster tails over the top of the shell.  Serve with ailoi and lemon wedges.  Yum!

Try Something Different

For a completely different fried lobster experience, try making my other deep fried lobster tail recipe, lobster tempura. The texture of tempura batter is very different from the batter for chicken fried lobster. The chicken fried lobster is heavier and makes a heartier dish. The batter has substance to it. Lobster tempura, on the other hand, is soft and delicate. Both are great and both have their place in a lobster culinary lineup.

For a light, small-bites appetizer, try my recipe for crawfish tempura.  It’s similar to lobster tempura, but the there is a lot more batter per bite because crawfish are so small. 

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