Lobster Diablo (Italian-American Lobster Fra Diavolo)

For Italian-Americans, Christmas Eve meant one thing: Lobsters fra Diavolo. They were the focal point of an elaborate dinner that started with appetizers, which included an insalata frutta di mare, a seafood salad with calamari, shrimp and celery dressed with lemon juice and olive oil. Occasionally there was also a plate of white-fish salad. After the cold appetizers, came a platter of baked clams, which concluded the antipasto portion of the meal. Next, was pasta, which was always linguine alle vongole, linguine with clam sauce, always white, which was then followed by the main course: lobsters fra diavolo. Each person was served an individual lobster, even children. The meal concluded with raw fennel seasoned simply with black pepper and dressed with olive oil and then dessert or more accurately a plethora of desserts. It was just one grand meal.

Sauce:
1 large clove garlic, finely minced
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
½ tsp. dried oregano
sea salt
black pepper, freshly ground
1 jigger brandy/cognac

Lobster:
4 (1¼ lb) lobsters

Stuffing:
1 cup unseasoned dry breadcrumbs
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
¼ cup Romano cheese, freshly grated
2 large cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tsp. dried oregano
sea salt
black pepper, freshly ground
extra-virgin olive oil
lobster coral (make sure to remove any overly dark pieces of the coral)

Make the Sauce:
In a heavy bottomed saucepan, simmer the garlic and pepper flakes in the olive oil over a very low flame until aromatic (~ 5-7 minutes). Don’t let the garlic brown.

Add the crushed tomatoes, oregano, season with salt and pepper and simmer sauce for about 15-20 minutes. After the first 5 minutes, add the brandy. Remove from heat and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C/170°C fan, Gas Mark 5).

Preparing the Lobsters:
Place the lobster shell down on a cutting board. With a sharp knife or cleaver, split the lobster in half without cutting through the shell. Start at the head and slide your knife down to the tail. You may want to use a towel or two when splitting the lobster to avoid any mess and to cushion your hand. Just be careful.

To remove meat from shells, use a pair of cooking shears to cut the membrane on the underside of the tail, along the swimmerette line, on both sides. Do this from open end to the tail fin, then cut the membrane off at the tail fin. From the open end you should be able to slip a finger between the meat and shell to pop the meat out. Set the shells aside as you will be stuffing the diablo mixture into them.

Make the Lobster Stuffing:
Mix the breadcrumbs, parsley, cheese, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper. Gradually add just enough olive oil to moisten the breadcrumb mixture. The breadcrumbs should be just moist enough so they clump when pinched.

Add the lobster coral and mix just until incorporated. If the mixture is too moist, add more breadcrumbs. If too dry, add a little more olive oil.

After killing and slitting the lobsters and removing the sack behind the neck, stuff the lobsters in the cavities in front of the tail.

Add a ladle or two of sauce to each of the baking dishes Place the lobsters in the baking dishes shell-side down. Ladle sauce over the claws and the tail meat, but not on the stuffing. Add remaining sauce to the bottom of each baking dish.

Drizzle the lobsters with a little olive oil.

Place in the oven and cook for about 30 minutes.