If Maine lobsters and clams steamed on a pile of rocks and seaweed, dipped in melted butter and served with hot corn on the cob sounds good to you, grab a batch of Maine lobster. There are a number of ways to experience this traditional Maine summer meal, from hiring a do-it-yourself caterer to embarking on a Maine shoreline cruise aboard a historic sailboat.
Do-It-Yourself Lobster Bakes – Here’s How
To make your own lobster bake (or more accurately, a “lobster steamer”), you will need a large galvanized bathtub, some rocks, salt water, and seaweed. Place the wash tub on the rocks one foot off the ground and build a wood fire underneath. Place two inches of salt water in the tub and bring to a quick boil.
Add the lobsters (bought fresh the day of the bake from one of Maine’s fresh-caught lobster vendors like the Pine Point Fishermen’s Cooperative in Scarborough), and top with two inches of seaweed. Add the clams and mussels, and top with another thin layer of seaweed. Place the corn on the cob on top, leaving some of the husk on the cobs. Cover with seaweed. Right now, you should have a roaring fire. Place the butter in an empty coffee can, place it next to the fire, and allow it to melt.
Boil everything for approximately 20 minutes. Don’t overcook. Lobsters are done when they turn bright red. The clams and mussels are done when they are opened. A lobster bake is best enjoyed on a beach (make sure you don’t need a fire permit), but it’s easy enough to do in your own backyard.
Maine Lobster Catering Baking
If you want someone else to do the work, consider hiring a Maine-based food service provider. Foster’s Downeast Clambake in southern Maine has served its Downeast Clambakes around the world, including a Congressional clambake served on the White House lawn and a Pentagon clambake. Their famous clambak feature award-winning chowder, farmed mussels, freshly dug steamed clams, Maine lobster, fresh corn on the cob, roasted red potatoes, roasted onions, hot butter, and Maine blueberry crumb cake.
A choice of grilled or vegetarian half chicken can be substituted for lobster, upon request, and a children’s menu is available. Foster’s will prepare and serve a clambake at your or their location – choose from three available locations.
Coastal Critters Clambakes serves basic, standard and deluxe lobster cakes at your choice of location in Maine, New Hampshire or Massachusetts. Standard cakes include whole Maine lobster, steamed clams, smoked kielbasa, corn on the cob, homemade potato salad, coleslaw, fresh bread, fruit, and beverages. They have delighted lobster lovers for over 40 years.
Finest Kind Caterers, based in Yarmouth, Maine, have been featured on Bobby Flay’s Food Nation show on the Food Network, and the celebrity chef’s enthusiastic endorsement makes this vendor a great choice for traditional Downeast-style lobster cakes. They will bring everything to its location and steam lobster, clams, potatoes and corn in a blanket of seaweed over a smoky wood fire.
Hire Cathy’s Lobster Bake and you’ll have an authentic Maine experience. Cathy’s husband, Paul, has been a lobster for almost 30 years. The lobsters they provide are fished daily and their clams are hand-dug. You provide the location and they will provide the delight.
Maine lobster bakes are also provided by:
- Churchill attended events (based in Portland)
- North Sam’s Big Lobster Bake (Portland and Beyond)
- Diamond’s Edge Restaurant (Great Diamond Island)
Nothing better than a Maine Windjammer Lobster Bake
For many Maine travelers, the best lobster feast experience comes while cruising aboard one of the legendary high-mast sailboats that still grace the waters of the state’s rugged coastline. The eight boats that make up the Maine Windjammer Association fleet are different, and the courses they chart are within reach of the winds. But there’s one thing you can count on during every cruise: a traditional Maine lobster bakes on a stunning island. You haven’t really lived until you’ve sat on a beach waiting for pounds and pounds of lobster to turn red and be ready to devour.
These lobster cakes are all you can eat, and when the sun goes down, you’ll wish you had a stomach to back it up.
