Lobster chinois salad recipe

July 9, 10:07 AMDC Food ExaminerBenjamin Cadmus

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Summertime is always fun for light afternoon get togethers and what better than easy but delicious and colorful salad that you can prepare in advance and surprise your guests with. This California style salad is a great way to serve something that is both refreshing and healthy and makes for a beautiful presentation. It combines fresh summer ingredients and it looks elegant when plated with the grilled lobster sitting atop the salad itself.

Lobster chinois salad

Ingredients:

• 6-8 lobster tails
• 3 lemons (zest only)
• 8 ounces olive oil
• 3 ounces cajun seasoning
• 6-8 teaspoons butter
• salt (to taste)
• pepper (to taste)
• 1 head Napa cabbage (julienned)
• 1 head Romaine lettuce (julienned)
• 2 cucumbers (julienned)
• 2 red peppers (julienned)
• 2 carrots (cut finely with a mandoline)
• 1 bunch scallions (cut finely on a bias, leaving 1/4 on each side)
• 2 tablespoons Pommery mustard
• 2/3 cup low-fat mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 1/2 cup toasted sesame seeds
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley (chopped)
• 1 pinch salt and pepper

Directions:

First, fire up your grill to high to make sure it is ready for your lobster tails. Then, begin preparing your lobster tails by cutting your them in half down the middle, ensuring to not cut all the way through, keeping the tail as one piece. Then, fold each tail open, so that the flesh is exposed, butterflying it. Season the flesh of each of your lobster tails with your 8 ounces of olive oil, zest of 3 lemons, 3 ounces cajun seasoning and salt and pepper to your liking. Remember that the cajun seasoning already has some salt so make sure you don't over-salt your lobster. Once your lobster tails are ready, move them to the grill, first grilling the flesh side down, rotating once to create a cross hatch effect on the flesh. Lower the heat of your grill and turn the lobster tails over. Add one teaspoon of butter to each lobster tail and let it melt over the flesh. Remove your lobster tails from the heat and set them aside.

To prepare the salad, take all of your julienned vegetables, your carrots and scallions, and gently toss them in a large bowl. Once the salad ingredients have been evenly distributed, set this bowl aside.

To keep this salad light and refreshing and to not over-power the lobster, we will make a honey mustard dressing. To do this, add to a medium sized mixing bowl your 2 tablespoons Pommery mustard, 2/3 cup low-fat mayonnaise, 1/4 cup honey, 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar, 1/2 cup toasted sesame seeds, 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Whisk these ingredients together to evenly incorporate them and then pour this dressing over your bowl with the salad ingredients before you are ready to serve.

To prepare for serving, gently toss your salad ingredients with the honey-mustard dressing. Once your salad has been evenly coated, add the grilled lobster tails to the top.

To keep things light and refreshing, this salad should be prepared with a white wine such as the 2007 MacRostie Winery Chardonnay Carneros that has a gentle balance of both fruity and spicy undertones. This will highlight the flavors of the mustard in the dressing and the light vanilla notes will be a perfect accent to the entire dish. You can typically find a bottle of this for around $20.00 at any local Total Wine & More store.