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With lumps of lobster, heavy cream, Parmesan cheese and white wine tossed with fettuccine, this lobster alfredo is rich, decadent and delicious.
I'm a big fan of lobster, from lobster fried rice to smoked lobster tails to lobster ravioli.
And while lobster might be most well-known to be served in rolls, pasta might be a close second. Make no mistake, this lobster alfredo is indulgent, but oh so worth it.
Why This Recipe Works
- Simple - as with most traditional Italian pasta dishes, you use a minimal amount of ingredients that generate a ton of flavor. Make no mistake, lobster is the star.
- Quick to prepare - you can have this dish from start to the dinner table in under 30 minutes.
- Flavorful - you get pops of sweet in tender meat from the lobster, saltiness from the cheese and who can forget the cream.
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Ingredient Notes
- Lobster tails - with this dish I just use frozen lobster tails and thaw the night before. You are welcome to use live but that's just not my thing.
- Alfredo sauce - it is a traditional alfredo sauce consisting of butter, cream and cheese but you add a little bit of wine and lemon for some acidity to complement the creaminess.
- Pasta - when I think of alfredo, I think of fettuccine which is what I use. Store-bought is fine but you can always make your own!
Ingredient Swaps
Like any recipe, you can mix up the ingredients you use for this lobster alfredo. Some variations include:
- While I use lobster tails and cook myself, you can get lobster meat without the work of cooking it.
- Parmesan cheese is traditional for alfredo sauce, but Pecorino Romano works too.
- I mentioned above that fettuccine is what I use, but other pastas like spaghetti, bucatini or angel hair all work.
Step-by-Step Photos
Please note full ingredient list and instructions can be found in recipe card below.
Add garlic and butter to a Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add the lobster tails and wine.
Cover and steam until the lobster tails are reddish orange, about 6-8 minutes. Remove the shells from the pan and remove the lobster meat.
In the same pan, make the sauce. Bring to medium heat and add the rest of the butter and cream. Simmer for a couple of minutes before adding salt and pepper. Add 1 cup of cheese, mixing until melted through.
Add the pasta and lobster to the sauce. Toss a few times before adding the remaining cheese and lemon juice, tossing to combine. Serve the lobster alfredo immediately.
FAQs
Cold water has the best texture and flavor. The grocery store usually indicates if it's warm or cold, but you can tell by where it is sourced.
Cold water comes mostly from the the northeastern coast of the US and Canada where warm water in general comes from Florida/Caribbean
The best way to know the lobster is done is inserting an internal thermometer into the meat and cooking until it reaches 140°F.
However if you don't have a thermometer, the exterior shell of the lobster will be red and the meat is white in color.
You use some kitchen shears and cut down the middle of the shell, stopping at the tail. Pry the shell from the meat and pull out.
While heavy cream is best, you can use sour cream, Greek yogurt or cream cheese and mix with some chicken stock or milk to get the right consistency.
Homemade alfredo sauce will clump up when the sauce is overcooked which leads to curdling or a grainy consistency.
You need to remove it from the heat once the cheese has melted and pasta has been tossed in.
It will last about 3 days if stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
My preferred method is placing the leftover pasta in a skillet with a splash of water or milk. Cook on medium-low until heated through.
You can also microwave. Place in a microwave-proof bowl with a splash of water and microwave for 1 minute. Stir and microwave for another minute or until heated through.
Equipment
The equipment you use is important to how the lobster alfredo turns out. What is needed is the following:
- Skillet/Dutch oven - you want something large enough to cook the sauce and lobster.
- Spoon - you want a good wooden spoon to stir everything together.
- Cheese grater - I mentioned multiple time but use a cheese block and grate yourself.
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- Use a meat thermometer so you know when the lobster is cooked.
- Salt the water when boiling the fettuccine so it seasons the pasta.
- Cook the fettuccine until just underdone so you can finish cooking it in the sauce.
- A quality dry white wine like Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay is a must.
- Use freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Never buy pre-shredded Parmesan cheese as it contains wood pulp. Blocks of Parmesan cheese are also cheaper.
- You can also use store-bought alfredo sauce if you want to skip the homemade version.
Other Pasta Recipes
If you’ve tried this lobster alfredo recipe or any other recipe on Chisel & Fork, please let me know how it turned out in the comments below! You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube to see more tasty meals and anything else I'm up to.
Lobster Alfredo
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, divided
- 6 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 (6 oz) lobster tails
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 1 lb fettuccine noodles
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 2 tablespoon fresh Italian parsley, chopped
Instructions
- In a large Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoon butter over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
- Add the lobster tails and wine. Cover and steam the lobster for 6-8 minutes. The shells should be reddish orange and the meat opaque. Remove the shells from pan.
- Use kitchen shears to cut down the middle of the shell. Stop right before you reach the end of the tail. Remove the lobster meat from the shell, and cut into 1 inch pieces.
- Cook the pasta according to package directions.
- While the lobster cools, make the sauce. Bring the same pan back to medium heat and add the remaining butter and heavy cream. Simmer for 2 minutes before adding the salt and black pepper.
- Add 1 cup of Parmesan to the sauce and mix until melted through. Add the cooked fettuccine and lobster to the sauce. Toss a couple of times and add the remaining 1 cup of Parmesan, tossing to combine. Add the fresh lemon juice and top with some parsley.
Notes
- Use a meat thermometer so you know when the lobster is cooked.
- Salt the water when boiling the fettuccine so it seasons the pasta.
- Cook the fettuccine until just underdone so you can finish cooking it in the sauce.
- A quality dry white wine like Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay is a must.
- Use freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Never buy pre-shredded Parmesan cheese as it contains wood pulp. Blocks of Parmesan cheese are also cheaper.
- You can also use store-bought alfredo sauce if you want to skip the homemade version.
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