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Oven Baked Lobster Tails are delicious, impressive, yet easy to make. Drenched in a flavorful garlic herb butter sauce, this is an elegant dinner recipe for any special occasion or holiday meal, like New Year’s Eve or Valentine’s Day.
Impress your guests or loved ones with baked lobster tails served with with Roasted Broccolini and Garlic Mashed Potatoes for a classy dinner.
Baked Lobster Tails are super simple and taste amazing dipped in the melted butter mixture. It’s really a decadent dinner that looks like you spent hours on when it really only took you 30 minutes!
The recipe below calls for two lobster tails, however it’s easily scaled to feed as many people as you need.
Table of Contents
Ingredients for Baked Lobster Tails
Grab some pantry spices to make the delicious garlic herb butter to pair with the lobster.
- Lobster Tails – You can buy fresh lobster tails from the seafood counter or thaw frozen tails. An average sized cold water lobster tail is about 6-7 ounces.
- Melted Butter – I recommend unsalted butter and flavoring the butter mixture yourself.
- Fresh Parsley – a little bit of fresh herbs makes a lot of difference.
- Seasonings – Granulated garlic, sea salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, paprika.
- Fresh Lemon – optional, but I love to serve the lobster tails with a baked lemon wedge.
Why We Love It
- Ready in Under 30 Minutes – Lobster tails take only minutes to cut and prep and only 15 minutes to bake!
- Simple Ingredients – Other than picking up the lobster tails from the store, you probably have the other ingredients on hand.
- Stellar Presentation – You can’t beat the presentation of whole lobster tails and I’ll show you how to easily butterfly the tails so they look amazing.
How To Bake Lobster Tails
It takes only 10 minutes to prep lobster tails for baking and it’s super easy to do!
- Preheat – Start by getting the oven preheating to 450 degrees F.
- Butterfly the Lobster Tails – Cut the lobster tails down the center from the top of the shell to the fin. Then pull the lobster meat gently away from the shell and up through the slit. You can retuck any small pieces along the sides so it looks clean and neat.
- Make Garlic Herb Butter – Melt the butter in a small bowl in the microwave. Mix in all of the seasonings and minced fresh parsley.
- Prepare Lobster Tails – Add the prepared lobster tails to a small baking sheet. If you’re using the lemon slices, you can add those as well. Brush the garlic herb butter, generously, over the lobster meat.
- Bake – Bake the lobster tails for about 15 minutes or until the internal temperature is 130 degrees F.
- Serve – Squeeze the baked lemon slices over the lobster tails and serve.
Serving Suggestions
Baked lobster tails are both fancy and versatile! For a Surf ‘n’ Turf dinner, cook up a juicy steak and garlic bread. We also love serving seafood with pasta dishes such as creamy Alfredo pasta. Lobster tails also are great served along a big salad like a Caesar salad or classic garden salad.
Expert Tips
- Don’t Overcook – When lobster is overcooked, it can be rubbery and chewy. Make sure the internal temp doesn’t go over 130 degrees F.
- Cook Time Will Vary – Lobster tails vary in size, so the time can vary depending on the size. A larger lobster tail will take longer to cook. Check the internal temperature for best results.
- Pulling the Lobster Meat – When pulling the meat up through the cut slit in the lobster shell, you might have to get rough with it. Don’t worry, when you start tucking after pulling it all through, it gets prettier. If need be, you can cut a wider channel to make it a touch easier.
- Use Your Hands – Using your fingers is best when pulling the meat up through the slit. No other utensil will do well with this step. You can grab gloves if bare hands aren’t an option.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you’re new to cooking lobster tails, then the idea of butterflying may seem intimidating but I promise it’s easy! It helps pull the meat out and gives a great presentation.
1. Cut the Shell – Cut down the middle of the top shell from the wide end to the fin, but do not cut the fin. It’s best to use sharp kitchen shears to do this.
2. Loosen and Pull the Meat – Use your fingers to gently pull the shell halves apart and use your fingers to loosen the meat away. Pull the lobster meat up and out of the shell, but leave the meat attached to the fin.
3. Clean Up the Edges – Press the shell halves back together under the meat. You can press in any loose pieces of meat so that the edges are neat.
It takes most lobster tails about 15 minutes to bake in the oven. But, the cook time will vary depending on the size of your lobster tail. Bake lobster tails until the internal temperature reads 130 degrees F. The meat should be opaque and solid.
Yes, you can use frozen lobster tails! If you don’t have access to fresh lobster, frozen lobster is a great option. Lobster tails are frozen at their peak freshness. Just make sure to thaw the lobster before baking.
Storage and Reheating
Store the cooked lobster meat in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. I love to eat the leftover lobster meat cold as reheating can make the meat tough. Add it to a salad or sandwich for a classy lunch.
More Seafood Recipes You’ll Love
- Crab Mac and Cheese
- How to Cook Crab Legs
- BBQ Bacon Wrapped Shrimp
- Crispy Beer Battered Fish and Chips
- Broiled Tilapia Parmesan
Baked Lobster Tails
Ingredients
- 14 ounces Lobster Tails fresh or thawed, about 6-7 ounces each
- 3 Tablespoons Butter
- 1 Tablespoon Minced Parsley
- ½ Teaspoon Granulated Garlic
- ½ Teaspoon Sea Salt
- ½ Teaspoon Black Pepper
- ½ Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- ½ Teaspoon Paprika
- 3 Slices Fresh Lemon optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
- Cut the shell down the center of the back with kitchen shears leaving all the way to the fin.
- Using your fingers, gently pull the lobster meat up through the slit and then retuck any randomly hanging pieces of meat along the sides so it looks neat and tidy.
- Place the butter in a small bowl and melt in the microwave for about a minute. Add all the seasonings and minced parsley to the melted butter and mix well.
- Place the lobster tails on a small baking sheet (along with the lemon slices if you’re using them.
- Baste the lobster meat generously with the butter mixture.
- Place the lobster tails in the oven for 15 minutes or until the internal temperature is 130 degrees.
- Remove from the oven, squeeze the baked lemon slices over the top (if you used them) and enjoy!
