Recipes: Seafood

Lightly Grilled Lobster Ceviche Duo

Author: Russ Faulk, Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet
Servings: 6
Course: Appetizers

One bright and fruity, the other mellow. The ultimate party starter.

The recipe uses quick-quick grilling to highlight the natural sweetness of key ingredients. Prepare the ingredients hours ahead and combine right before serving.

Ingredients:

3 lobster tails (in the shells), ½ lb each, fresh or fresh-frozen

Freshly-squeezed juice of 10 Meyer lemons

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 blood oranges

1 ear fresh sweet corn, husked and cleaned

2 Serrano peppers, finely chopped

Fresh seeds from ½ pomegranate

4 teaspoons fresh cilantro, finely chopped

1 ripe avocado

Extra virgin olive oil

Tortilla chips (for serving)

Instructions:

Prepare the grill for direct grilling at searing temperatures (about 700 to 800 degrees). Combine Meyer lemon juice and chopped garlic in a non-reactive bowl.

Use kitchen shears to cut the top of each lobster shell in half down the center, front to back. Repeat on the bottom sides. Cut with a sharp knife through the meat to finish splitting each tail in half. De-vein and brush the meat with olive oil.

Grill lobsters meat-side down for 90 seconds over searing heat (for more information on searing and other grilling techniques, visit the Recipes & Tips section of www.KalamazooGourmet.com). The tails will be rare, the shells mostly red, and the meat nicely marked. Remove from grill, discard the shells, and cut meat crossways into ¼-inch thick slices. Place the pieces into the lemon/garlic mixture and stir, ensuring the pieces float freely in the juice. Cover and refrigerate for 3 hours, stirring occasionally, until meat is opaque. Drain and discard the juice. Keep lobster refrigerated until final assembly.

Cut blood oranges crossways into 6 equal slices, discarding the end pieces from each to leave 4 slices. Brush corn with olive oil. Grill oranges on one side for about 2 minutes over direct, searing heat until the sugars begin to caramelize and the oranges have nice grill marks. Grill corn over direct heat for about 2 minutes per side until nicely marked.

Use a sharp knife to segment the orange slices. Remove and discard peel. Cut the corn from the cob. Keep oranges and corn in individual air-tight containers until final assembly.

Immediately before serving, place half of the drained lobster meat into each of two non-reactive dishes. For the fruit preparation, add blood oranges, pomegranate seeds, ½ of the cilantro, ½ of the chopped Serrano pepper and stir with enough extra virgin olive oil for a nice, glistening appearance. For the corn preparation, add remaining pepper, cilantro and corn. Cut the avocado into ¼-inch dice and gently stir in along with enough olive oil to glisten.

Serve in individual cocktail glasses or small dishes accompanied by tortilla chips.

Note: It is important to use Meyer lemons, as standard lemons will overpower the flavor of the lobster.

Beverage pairing: Classic Mojitos