Active Time

　　15 min

　　Total Time

　　30 min

　　There's enough garlic butter here to drench every morsel of lobster meat—you'll want to serve crusty bread on the side to soak it all up.

　　

Ingredients

Makes 2 servings

　　2 small garlic cloves

　　2 sticks unsalted butter, softened

　　1 1/2 teaspoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

　　2 (1 1/4-pound) live lobsters

　　Garnish: lemon wedges; sea salt

　　N/A sea salt

　　

Step 1

Preheat oven to 450°F with a large shallow baking pan in upper third.

　　

Step 2

Mince and mash garlic to a paste with 1/2 teaspoon salt, then stir together with butter and parsley.

　　

Step 3

Plunge lobsters headfirst into a large pot of boiling salted water (3 tablespoons salt for 6 quarts water) and cook, covered, 3 minutes from time they enter water. Transfer with tongs to a plate and let stand 5 minutes. (Lobsters will not be fully cooked.)

　　

Step 4

Lightly crack claws, then split lobsters lengthwise and discard innards from body cavity.

　　

Step 5

Remove tail meat from 1 lobster and cut crosswise into 8 pieces. Spread about 2 tablespoons garlic butter in one empty half shell, then fill that shell with all of sliced lobster and dot with 1 tablespoon garlic butter. Spoon about 5 tablespoons garlic butter into other empty half shell (for dipping). Repeat with remaining lobster.