The Best Broiled Lobster Tails Recipe Ever

Perfect succulent, tender lobster tails butterflied to perfection in your oven in just 10 minutes for a restaurant-quality lobster tail recipe at home that is easy to prepare and totally impressive!

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This super easy Broiled Lobster Tails Recipe is the absolute best way to cook lobster tails at home, ever!

We’re giving these beautifully butterflied lobster tails a slightly smoky flavor with a touch of paprika, as well as a sweet and salty hit of butter and lemon juice to bring out that sweet, delicious clean seafood flavor. If you want a never fail easy oven-baked lobster tails recipe, this is it!

Serve with prime rib, pork tenderloin, bacon wrapped scallops, or buttery soft rolls for a memorable romantic dinner! If you want to try an even easier version, be sure to check out our Instant Pot Lobster Tails recipe or our Grilled Lobster Tails Recipe based off this very recipe!

While making lobster can be complicated, it really shouldn’t be – so we’re breaking down the steps in a way that is simple enough for even beginner cooks to understand and make a show-stopping meal from buying lobster, to opening the shell, and how to broil a lobster tail.

We hope you love this recipe as much as we do.

This guide will help get you perfect broiled lobster tails, every time – from shopping, storing, prep, cooking – and serving!

To make this recipe, you’ll need:

• Smoked Paprika. Paprika has fruity, slightly sweet notes and vivid red color, it brightens the flesh of lobster tails as they cook, and gives a smoky flavor that lightly accents the gently sweet, buttery flavor of lobster meat.
• Lobster tails. Lobster tails have a great flavor that is a bit less sweet than the claws of the lobster, and the meat is a bit firmer. Many people love the flavor of lobster tail the most of all – it is a classic pairing for Surf ‘n Turf, is easy to eat, and gorgeous to present. For the best flavor, look for high quality tails that are fresh-frozen and haven’t been treated with sodium tripolyphosphate.
• Butter. Butter brings a rich, salty, and indulgent flavor to shellfish that is a classic way to enhance lobster meat’s delicate flavor without overpowering it.
• Celtic sea salt. I prefer using a high quality sea salt with less sodium than table salt or salty butters – giving you more control of the flavor of your dinner. Seafood can be salty on it’s own, so using a high quality salt can help you control flavor without it being overpowering.
• Garlic powder. Garlic brings a rich, earthy flavor to lobster tails that is addictive, sumptuous, and enhances a lobster’s delicate flavor. We’re using garlic powder instead of raw garlic in this recipe to minimize some of the “heat” raw garlic can have, as it can overpower the mild flavors of this seafood.
• White pepper. White pepper has had the skin removed, so it is milder and less spicy – giving it a bit of a kick, but allowing you to taste more of the layered earthy pepper flavors without completely overpowering your lobster.

How to butterfly lobster tails. A simple cut down the top of the shell is all you need to peel back your tail for a beautiful presentation – cut it down the middle for a butterflied tail.

• Cut Shell. Use sharp kitchen scissors or a sharp knife to cut the shell, and make a clean cut lengthwise down the tail from the base to the tip so you don’t get any of the shell in the tail meat.
• Place lemon wedge. I also try to remove the lobster meat from the shell where they are connected underneath – both to put a lemon wedge down to prop up the meat as it cooks, but also to make it easier to eat when it is done.

Once your lobster tails have been butterflied, it’s very quick work to season and broil them to perfection!

• Prep Lobster tails. Preheat broiler to high. Mix spices in a small bowl, and then generously sprinkle over lobster tail, topping with a pat of butter.
• Broil. Place lobster tails on a baking sheet in oven on an upper middle rack. Don’t get too close to broiler, or your lobster will burn on top and still be raw on the bottom – we want it to cook quickly with high heat from above, but it should not be placed immediately under broiler, and instead in the upper-middle part of your oven. Let cook until meat is opaque and white, about 8-10 minutes. A digital thermometer will read 140 degrees when lobster is fully cooked – never cook a lobster beyond 140 degrees for the best results.
• Serve with drawn butter. Remove and serve immediately with drawn butter, either still in the shell, or removed from the shell for guests easy eating.

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How to buy the best lobster tails. When looking for a lobster tail at the store, it helps to have a bit of information to buy the best tails! You want a lobster tail with no discoloration on the meat, no fishy smell (it should smell slightly sweet and have a neutral smell), and not look slimy. Lobster tails should not be soaked or rinsed with sodium tripolyphosphate or other preservative chemicals – and should be fresh-frozen if not live or freshly caught.

How lobster tails are weighed and sized. Despite being sold by the pound, a single 1-lb. lobster will weigh approximately 14 oz. when cooked. Lobster will yield 3.5 to 4 oz. of meat when the shell is removed – and this holds true for tails too, as a decent amount of a Lobster tails weight is in the shell (don’t worry you’re wasting that great shell – you can use it in stocks or soups to get great lobster flavor to other dishes!)

How many lobster tails to serve per person. If you’re making lobster tails as the main dish, you’ll want to pay attention to the lobster tail size and weight to be sure you have enough lobster to fill you up. In general, you should plan for about 8-10 oz of cooked lobster tail meat per person if you’re serving lobster tails as your main dish – meaning two lobster tails per person, unless they are jumbo lobster tails.

How to thaw frozen lobster tails. While fresh is always best, fresh-frozen lobster tails are delicious when thawed properly.

• Always let frozen lobster tails thaw fully before cooking.
• Place frozen Lobster tails in the fridge the day before you make these to thaw naturally. We like to let it sit on paper towels to soak up any ice melt.
• Submerge frozen lobster tails under cold water for 20 minutes to 30 minutes to thaw rapidly if you can’t let them thaw overnight.
• Don’t rush the thawing process in the microwave. Defrosting lobster tails in the microwave will make the frozen lobster meat tough.

Where to place lobster in oven. Broil lobster tail by placing on a baking sheet in the middle rack of the oven, underneath a broiler.

Use paprika. For best presentation, brush top of lobster tail with melted butter and sprinkle with paprika and white pepper before broiling, so the butter and paprika can cook into top of lobster creating a lovely golden red hue. I like both smoked or hot paprika – you can pick if you’d prefer a bit of smoky or a bit of spicy.

Plan about 10 minutes of cooktime. This recipe calls for about 10 minutes of cook time – which will vary a bit based on the size of your lobster tail, your oven, and if you preheat the broiler fully before adding lobster tails to oven. If you have a very large lobster tail it will take a bit longer – but smaller tails should be perfect at around 10 minutes, or about 2 minutes + a minute per ounce.

How To Tell When Lobster Tail is Cooked:

• To ensure your lobster tail is perfectly cooked, insert a digital meat thermometer into the fattest part of the lobster tail (take caution to keep the thermometer away from the shell.)
• Fully cooked lobster will be 140 degrees internal temperature.
• Your lobster shell will turn bright white and red when cooked, but look to the meat inside for the most reliable indication.
• If your lobster still looks grey it’s not cooked – if it is white and pink, it’s done.

Do NOT overcook lobster – it will result in tough, gummy meat and a fishier flavor.

Recipe FAQs

Lobster tail can look a little wimpy on it’s own sometimes, so if you’re going for a romantic presentation of your lobster dinner for a special occasion and want to know how to wow guests, I have some great tips and tricks for you!

• Placing lemon wedges to cook under lobster meat also helps make tails look larger and prettier for a better presentation.
• Make sure to have plenty of lemon wedges on the side to squeeze on top for even more lemon juice if you’d like it!
• Brush melted butter over the top of lobster as it cooks for a gorgeous golden red appearance.
• Serve with melted butter, a butter mixture with old bay stirred in, or lemon juice sprinkled on top.

You can this lobster tail with our knockout The Best Easy Prime Rib Recipe, Ninja Grilled Steak, or Pan Fried Ribeye Steaks for a delicious spin on Surf and Turf!

If you’re looking for some delicious side dishes to serve with lobster tail, find our complete side dish recipe archive here, or find some of our favorites below:

For keto side dishes that are bursting with flavor, click here.

And for even more seafood ideas that pair with this lobster tail dinner, see our seafood recipe archives here, or more lobster dinners like our Instant Pot Lobster Brie Pasta and so many more, here.

If you love The Best Easy Broiled Lobster Tails Recipe as much as I do, please write a five star review (just click the stars below), and be sure to help me share on facebook and pinterest!

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