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| On killing a lobster |
The thought of killing a lobster can cause an uneasiness in the minds and stomachs
of many people. The reason to cook the lobster alive is to avoid food poisoning.
All shellfish have a tendency to spoil quickly unless immediately frozen while freshly
dead. If you do decide to use a dead lobster, do not eat it if it smells like ammonia.
Here are some thoughts on killing a lobster that might ease your mind:
> The lobster is a relative of the exo-skeletal fly. How many flies have you
swatted?
> The lobster's pea-sized brain is not capable of experiencing the degree of pain
that mammals do.
> Have you ever watched a lion eat a zebra alive on TV, while the narrator vows
never to interfere? Killing a lobster is nothing compared to that carnage!
> The lobster is already at market. If you don't kill it, someone else will. At least
you know how to do it the right way.
> Chill the lobster first. This will anesthetize it to some degree. Turn it on its back,
holding it down with an oven mitt on your hand, and with the other hand plunge a
knife between its eyes and deep into its head. Although the lobster dies
immediately, its nervous system may continue to flex the claws for a few more
seconds.
A less traumatic method – for you, not the lobster – is to drop it into salted,
boiling water for 2 minutes. If you don’t feel prepared to deal with a live
lobster yourself, you can have the fishmonger kill it, but get it back to your kitchen
and cook the dead lobster as soon as possible
of many people. The reason to cook the lobster alive is to avoid food poisoning.
All shellfish have a tendency to spoil quickly unless immediately frozen while freshly
dead. If you do decide to use a dead lobster, do not eat it if it smells like ammonia.
Here are some thoughts on killing a lobster that might ease your mind:
> The lobster is a relative of the exo-skeletal fly. How many flies have you
swatted?
> The lobster's pea-sized brain is not capable of experiencing the degree of pain
that mammals do.
> Have you ever watched a lion eat a zebra alive on TV, while the narrator vows
never to interfere? Killing a lobster is nothing compared to that carnage!
> The lobster is already at market. If you don't kill it, someone else will. At least
you know how to do it the right way.
> Chill the lobster first. This will anesthetize it to some degree. Turn it on its back,
holding it down with an oven mitt on your hand, and with the other hand plunge a
knife between its eyes and deep into its head. Although the lobster dies
immediately, its nervous system may continue to flex the claws for a few more
seconds.
A less traumatic method – for you, not the lobster – is to drop it into salted,
boiling water for 2 minutes. If you don’t feel prepared to deal with a live
lobster yourself, you can have the fishmonger kill it, but get it back to your kitchen
and cook the dead lobster as soon as possible
