Last Updated April 27th, 2023 at 09:22 pm by Lisa
A BLT Lobster Sandwich recipe with succulent lobster, thick crispy applewood smoked bacon, golden grilled sourdough bread, and slathered with an easy dill-caper aioli sauce. Oh, and it won a 1rst Place Blue Ribbon at the Orange County Fair during a live cooking competition!
The layers of flavor and crunch are heavenly. It tastes like a bacony lobster roll but is so much more. Is your mouth watering yet? It will right before you take a bite out of this ultimate BLT sandwich...
How To Make A BLT Lobster Sandwich
- Butter Sourdough Bread: Heat a heavy cast iron pan. Butter sourdough bread with soft butter and put the slice of toast in the pan butter side down.
- Grill the toasted bread until it is golden brown and crispy, flip one time just to warm the other side of the bread for one minute, and remove from the pan. Turn off the heat.
- Make/Spread Dill-Caper Aioli: on each slice of bread, leave the brown buttered side as the outside of the sandwich.
- Add looseleaf lettuce leaves, like Romaine or Iceberg lettuce.
- 2-3 pieces of juicy ripe heirloom tomato slices.
- Crispy applewood smoked cooked bacon (get the thick cut bacon).
- Add cooked lobster pieces (cut into bite-size pieces). See below for how to cook lobster meat the easy way.
- Place another slice of bread on top slathered with aioli. Slice and serve!
Easy, Fast, 4-Minute Dill Caper Aioli Recipe
A real French aioli takes an effort to make by hand. It achieves a thick emulsified texture that no mixer can possibly achieve. However, this is how real aioli is made:
- a mortar and pestle
- a lot of time and "elbow grease"
- fresh garlic, sea salt, egg yolk
- usually adding Dijon mustard
- and drizzling in lots of olive oil one pour at a time while stirring
BUT, honestly, it takes A LOT of elbow grease to mix it in a mortar and pestle, plus your time. So, today I am introducing an easier way to make aioli in 4 minutes flat. Here are the ingredients you need.
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon chopped capers (these are immature flower buds from a Caper plant that are usually pickled)
- 1 tablespoon finely minced fresh dill
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper
In a small bowl, whisk the mayonnaise with the lemon juice, capers, chopped dill, and crushed garlic. Whisk in the extra virgin olive oil in a steady stream and season with salt and pepper. Whisk until well combined, and keep chilled until ready to use.
Cooked Lobster Tips
You will need 1 small lobster tail per BLT Sandwich (or about ½ cup of chopped meat), there are several types of lobsters available in the US and around the world.
Lobsters come large and small, locally in Southern California I find small lobster tails at our local supermarket that weigh 5.2 -5.7 ounces with the shell on.
You can find frozen tails at Costco, or order online from many excellent seafood shop sources. Read on for all the step-by-step instructions to boil lobster tails, and remove the meat.
How To Boil Lobster Tails
- You can buy smaller lobster tails in most grocery stores. These are small, approximately 5.5 ounces each with the shell on. Larger tails are available at gourmet stores, warehouse stores, seafood shops, or online.
- Once the water boils, they take 10 minutes to cook. Simmer, uncovered, for 8 to 10 minutes or until shells turn bright red, the meat is not translucent, and the tails will curve. For larger or smaller tails, adjust the cooking time as needed.
- Keep your heat on high. The water will foam, which is normal. If it comes close to the top of the pot, lay a wooden spoon across the pot and the foam will magically drop down.
- Once the tails are cooked, let them cool down for about 15 minutes on a plate. It helps to hold the tail in a clean kitchen towel while using kitchen scissors (or curved seafood scissors) they can be used on shrimp as well. Cut down the center of the lobster shell tail outer shell.
- Cut down the center of the underside of the shell.
How To Remove Lobster Meat From The Shell
- Once you cut down the middle of both sides of the shell, hold in the kitchen towel, and crack it open by pushing holding on to each side.
- Pull out the lobster meat.
- Place your thumb under the meat down by the tail, and push the meat out of the shell. Be careful of the sharp points of the lobster shell.
- Discard the empty shell and any grey "sand vein" from the cooked lobster that runs down the tail. Also, check for any small pieces of shell and discard them.
Romantic Lobster Dinner Recipe
My wildly popular Lobster Ravioli recipe is great to serve for celebrations like birthdays, the holidays, or for romantic dinners. The limoncello lemon butter sauce is absolutely incredible...
How to make crispy bacon for a BLT?
STOVETOP METHOD: Heat a skillet, place the bacon and cook until done approximately 10 minutes.
Pros: Fast and easy, the old-fashioned tried and true way to cook thin cut or thick cut bacon.
Cons: Your stovetop gets messy and a cast iron pan to clean.
PRO TIP: Use a splatter screen for 2 reasons. One it helps keep the stovetop cleaner (but it isn't perfect) and second, it keeps the bacon cooking in the pan from popping hot grease on you! It can be put right in the dishwasher and cleans easily.
OR...
OVEN METHOD: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Lay the bacon on a wire rack over a sheet pan covered with heavy aluminum foil and bake for 15-20 minutes until the bacon is really crispy. Place on paper towels to drain grease and cool. Once the bacon grease is cool, simply toss the aluminum foil and bacon grease.
Pros: Works well, but the pan and rack are more work to clean than just a skillet. You can cook a large amount of bacon this way in a short amount of time.
Cons: You must wash the sheet pan and rack, which are more work to clean than just a skillet.
Lobster Sandwich Swaps, Adds, & Variations
- Keep it simple with toasted white bread, and swap in cooked diced chicken in place of lobster meat, with a little mayo, paprika, and onion.
- Add some turkey bacon in place of regular bacon
- Put some sliced cheddar cheese or sliced avocados for some extra creaminess.
- Some people love a fried egg in their version of the best BLT sandwich.
- Fresh basil will be really nice with the lobster or chicken salad mixture.
Blue Ribbon Lobster Sandwich Recipe
In 2018 I was asked to enter a live on-stage cooking competition at the Culinary Arts of the OC Fair in Orange County, California.
A BLT sounded like a classic recipe idea, since the contest required bacon as a key ingredient, and I knew the aioli would be a delicious addition. So I created this Ultimate Lobster BLT Recipe for the competition and practiced this recipe over and over.
In front of a live screaming audience full of my friends, it was a nerve-wracking 20 minutes to cook and assemble the BLT on stage and present to a panel of local So Cal Chef judges. This sandwich was a big hit with them and they mentioned my entry was very reflective of California Food.
What a thrill to win my first blue ribbon at the fair. It was the first and only time I have been on stage cooking in front of a live audience. I will never forget how terrifying and exciting that day was, and how joyful, grateful, and blessed to be a winner...
More Sandwich Recipes
There is nothing like Roast Beef Sandwiches made with this roast beef recipe, slathered with creamy balsamic horseradish sauce, long shaves of parmesan cheese, and crisp lettuce on a crusty baguette. Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Sandwiches made with pork loin is so juicy, top with coleslaw, pickle chips, and tangy BBQ sauce all on a golden bun.
Pulled Pork Sliders are an easy dinner ready in under 30 minutes, with melted swiss cheese, pulled pork, Black Forest ham, and pickles. Yummy Picnic Food is easy with Pressed Italian Sandwiches that are both neat to eat and hold. You can make these a day ahead, they keep very well overnight in the fridge.
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BLT Lobster Sandwich Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
dill-caper aioli
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon chopped capers
- 1 tablespoon finely minced fresh dill
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- pinch salt and freshly ground pepper
Lobster Sandwich
- 2 tablespoon soft butter
- 4 slices sourdough bread
- 4 tablespoons dill-caper aioli spread
- 4 pieces looseleaf lettuce
- 4 slices heirloom tomato
- 6 pieces cooked applewood smoked bacon
- 1 cup cooked lobster meat (boiled or grilled) approximetly 2 small 5.5 ounce lobster tails
Instructions
cook the crispy bacon (pick one method)
- STOVETOP METHOD: Heat a large skillet, place bacon in the skillet and cook until done, approximately 10 minutes. OR...
- OVEN METHOD: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lay the bacon on a rack over a sheet pan and bake for 15-20 minutes until the bacon is really crispy. Place on paper towels, set aside.
make the dill-aioli spread
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk the mayonnaise with the lemon juice, capers, chopped dill, and crushed garlic. Whisk in the extra virgin olive oil in a steady stream and season with salt and pepper. Whisk until well combined, keep chilled till ready to use.
lobster meat
- Put a medium pot of water on the stove, once boiling, add lobster tails and boil. Larger lobster tails will need more time to cook. Boil uncovered on high, for 8 to 10 minutes or until shells turn bright red, the meat is not translucent, and the tails will curve.
- The water will foam, which is normal. If it comes close to the top of the pot, lay a wooden spoon across the pot and the foam will magically dropdown.
- Once the lobster tails are cooked, let them cool down about 15 minutes on a plate. It helps to hold the lobster tail in a clean kitchen towel while using kitchen scissors (or curved seafood scissors) they can be used on shrimp as well. Cut down the center of the lobster shell tail outer shell.
- Next, cut down the middle of the inside of the shell, crack open, and pull out the lobster meat. Place your thumb under the lobster meat down by tail, and push the meat out of the shell. Be careful of the sharp parts of the lobster shell. Discard any grey "sand vein" from the cooked lobster that runs down the tail.
- Chop the cooked lobster into bite-size pieces, this makes the sandwich easier to eat!
assemble the lobster BLT
- Heat a heavy cast iron pan. Butter sourdough bread with soft butter, put in pan butter side down. Grill the bread until it is golden brown and crispy, flip one time just to warm the other side of the bread for one minute, remove from pan. Turn off heat.
- Spread dill-caper aioli on each slice of bread (leave the brown buttered side as the outside of the sandwich), add looseleaf lettuce, 2-3 pieces of heirloom tomato slices, crispy applewood smoked bacon, and add cooked lobster pieces (cut into bite-size pieces). Place other slice of bread on top. Slice and serve!
Jessica Robinson says
Such an amazing post on how to cook and cut up lobster tail!! Your lobster BLT looks finger licking good and our heirloom tomatoes will be perfect for this delicious sandwich! Oh, and how yummy does that aioli sauce saound?! Can't wait to have this with some local lobster tails this weekend!