Mini Lobster Rolls with Herbs and Lemon Zest
Ben Hasty is Executive Chef at the Atlantic Grill in Rye, New Hampshire. His focus is on using the bounty of the best seasonal local ingredients.
The price of lobster may be soaring at the moment, but you can make the most of this luxury ingredient by starring it in appetizer-sized mini rolls. Make this lobster roll salad with the classic combination of tarragon, parsley, and chives, or add a twist with pinches of cumin and coriander. Either way, be sure to use warm, freshly-shelled lobster for the best flavor and texture.
Treat yourself with more at-home lobster recipes such as:
Roasted Squash with Scallops & Lobster in Cream Sauce
Lobster and Cauliflower Fungus Ravioli with Saffron Butter and Mushroom Cream
- Servings Makes 4 hors d'oeuvres servings
Ingredients
- 30 ml (2 tablespoons) mayonnaise, preferably homemade
- 15 ml (1 tablespoon) freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 5 ml (1 teaspoon) finely grated lemon zest
- 15 ml (1 tablespoon) minced red onion
- 15 ml (1 tablespoon) minced celery
- 5 ml (1 teaspoon) finely chopped fresh tarragon
- 5 ml (1 teaspoon) finely chopped curly parsley
- 5 ml (1 teaspoon) finely sliced chives
- Small pinch ground white pepper
- Small pinch ground cumin, optional
- Small pinch ground coriander, optional
- 227 grams (8 ounces) fresh picked lobster meat (from two to three 567 grams/1.25 pound lobsters), in large chunks
- 2 hot dog buns*
- Melted butter, as needed
- 1 bunch frisée lettuce, washed and trimmed
- Celery leaves from the center of a bunch
- 4 large pinches fresh chervil, optional.
*Editor’s note: We like potato buns or brioche hot dog buns.
Preparation
- In a mixing bowl, combine stir together the mayonnaise, and lemon zest. Mix in the onion and celery. Add the tarragon, parsley and chives, and season to taste with white pepper, and (if using) cumin and coriander. Add the lobster meat and toss gently to mix.
2. Split the buns lengthwise without cutting all the way through. Warm a sauté pan on medium to high heat with enough melted butter to coat the bottom of the pan. Add hot dog buns inner sides down and toast until golden brown, then turn and lightly toast other sides. Cut rolls in half crosswise and trim off ends to make four small mini buns.
3. Divide the lobster salad equally among the four mini buns. Garnish the rolls with frisée lettuce, celery leaves, and chervil, if using. Enjoy!
Ben Hasty
Ben Hasty, a graduate of the Atlantic Culinary Academy in Dover, New Hampshire, was just 20 when he started his externship with Thomas Keller at the influential Napa Valley, California, restaurant The French Laundry. He went on to work at other highly-acclaimed restaurants in New Hampshire, Maine, and Boston. He is now Executive Chef at the Atlantic Grill in Rye, New Hampshire. Hasty’s focus is using the bounty of seasonal local ingredients, including from his family farm, Breezy Hill.
Courtesy photo
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