Hot Buttered Lobster Rolls with Homemade New England Style Buns

These hot buttered lobster rolls, or Connecticut-style lobster rolls, are filled with warm, sweet lobster tossed with melted butter and a little bit of red onion and finished with only a sprinkling of chives. 

Unlike the Maine or New England-style lobster roll, which is filled with cold lobster salad, the lobster in the Connecticut-style lobster roll is served hot and bathed in melted butter before being stuffed into a buttery toasted split-top bun. 

The butter highlights the fresh, sweet lobster meat. As you cook the lobster, the butter emulsifies with the juices from the lobster to create a sauce that seeps into the bun. You will love every bite. 

Serve these lobster rolls with just potato chips and maybe some dill pickle on the side for the traditional experience. For even more decadence, serve them with some extra warm melted butter (for dipping) that has been tossed with the lobster shells for even more flavor. 

Tips for Making the Lobster Rolls:

First, cook the lobster. Be sure to slightly undercook it when you simmer it. After you remove the lobster from the shells, you will then finish cooking it in the hot butter. 

Before you remove the lobster meat from the shells, prepare the buns by buttering both "outsides" and toasting them in a skillet (like you would the bread of a grilled cheese sandwich). 

After that, remove the par-cooked lobster meat from the shells and cut it into chunks while melting a good amount of butter in a skillet. You can use the same pan that you used to grill the bread. 

Finally, cook the lobster in the melted butter for a few minutes, and then spoon it into the split rolls. 

Ingredient Notes:

Lobster: If you can, use live whole lobsters, or as an alternative, you can use frozen lobster tails that have been thawed. Just halve the cooking time. To save time, I used lobster tails (I'm still amazed at how they change from black to bright red while cooking). 

You could also make these with large shrimp. 

Minced shallots or red onions: Cook them in the butter before adding the lobster pieces. While optional, they add a sweetness to the butter. 

Chives: For sprinkling over the sandwiches. 

Butter: Use salted butter, both for toasting the buns and finishing the lobster. 

Salt: For simmering the lobster. 

Lemon wedges: For serving. 

For the Buns:

You can either use store-bought split top buns (some swear by Pepperidge Farm), regular hot dog buns, or make your own New England Hot Dog Buns. I made my own homemade buns. 

This time, I adapted my Hokkaido Milk Bread recipe to my New England-style bun pan, and the resulting buns were amazing. If you want to try it, check out my new recipe. 

The buns were just slightly sweet, and when filled with the extra buttery lobster, tasted amazing. 

The bread, made with an added tangzhong (a mixture of cooked flour and water or milk), was super soft and stayed fresh for a long time. 

This month, the Fish Friday Foodies are featuring recipes for lobster rolls. Be sure to check out everyone's recipes:

• A Lobster Roll Style Debate: Maine vs. Connecticut by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Brown Butter Lobster Roll by Palatable Pastime
• Baked Lobster Roll Dip by Food Lust People Love
• Hot Buttered Lobster Rolls with Homemade New England Style Buns by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Lobster Melt English Muffin Sandwich by Sneha's Recipe
• Lobster Roll BLT by A Day in the Life on the Farm

Hot Buttered Lobster Rolls with Homemade New England Style Buns

Yield: 4 Lobster Rolls

Author: Karen's Kitchen Stories

Prep time: 20 MinCook time: 15 MinTotal time: 35 Min

These hot buttered lobster rolls, or Connecticut-style lobster rolls, are filled with warm, sweet lobster tossed with melted butter and a little bit of red onion and finished with only a sprinkling of chives.

Ingredients

• 3 (1 1/2 pound) live lobsters or 6 (5 - 6 ounce) frozen thawed lobster tails
• Salt
• 8 tablespoons butter, divided
• 4 split top hot dog buns
• 3 tablespoons minced shallot or red onion
• Minced fresh chives
• Lemon wedges

Instructions

1. Bring 6 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Add 3 tablespoons of salt and reduce to a simmer.
2. Add the lobsters and cook, covered, for 10 minutes (for live lobsters) or 4 minutes (for lobster tails). Move the lobster to a plate or cutting board and let cool for 10 minutes. Remove the meat from the lobster and cut into 3/4 inch pieces.
3. Heat a skillet over medium low heat and butter both sides of the outside of four split top hot dog buns. Toast the buns on both sides in the skillet.
4. Remove the buns and add 6 tablespoons of butter to the skillet and let it melt. Add the onions and lobster and cook for about 2 to 3 minutes.
5. Divide the lobster and remaining melted butter in the pan among the buns, sprinkle the lobster with chives, and serve with lemon wedges on the side.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

395.25

Fat (grams)

25.09

Sat. Fat (grams)

14.92

Carbs (grams)

22.04

Fiber (grams)

0.92

Net carbs

21.15

Sugar (grams)

3.45

Protein (grams)

20.09

Sodium (milligrams)

838.5

Cholesterol (grams)

180.22

https://www.karenskitchenstories.com/2022/09/hot-buttered-lobster-rolls-with.html

Karen's Kitchen Stories

lobster, Lobster rolls

Lunch, sandwich

Connecticut

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Recipe adapted from Cook's Country, August/September, 2019