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The Best Brown Butter Lobster Pasta

Brown butter lobster pasta is a delicious, elegant dinner perfect for date night in, Valentine’s Day, Christmas Eve, or summer occasions when you want good seafood. This lobster pasta features tender rich lobster tail sauteed in a nutty and flavorful brown butter white wine sauce tossed with pasta.

2 plates with brown butter lobster pasta
Brown Butter Lobster Pasta
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It’s amazing how one simple little change like cooking butter longer so it browns changes the entire flavor profile of a dish.

Just letting butter brown brings out this complex nuttiness that is so amazingly delicious.

In this case, lobster pasta is already a winner.

But browning the butter for lobster pasta?

OMG, out of this world.

It adds a glorious toasty, more intense butter flavor than regular melted butter.

The lobster holds its own against the rich brown butter.

And tossed with pasta it’s just *chef’s kiss* perfection.

It’s similar to Shrimp Scampi and Easy Lobster Scampi Linguine but at the same time totally different because of the brown butter.

If you are a fan of buttery lobster rolls, this recipe is for you!

When you dig in, you’ll never believe just how uncomplicated this seemingly fancy dish is.

It’s Barefoot Contessa effortless elegance at its finest.

Ingredients and Kitchen Supplies

Ingredients for Brown Butter Lobster Pasta: Lobster Tail, Butter, White Wine, Linguine, Parmesan Cheese, Garlic, and Lemon
Ingredients for Brown Butter Lobster Pasta: Lobster Tail, Butter, White Wine, Linguine, Parmesan Cheese, Garlic, and Lemon

The list of ingredients and supplies for this elegant dish is surprisingly short.

Ingredients you’ll need:

  • Pasta– A package of spaghetti or linguine cooked according to the instructions on the package.
  • Lobster tails– This recipe calls for 2 lobster tails, but you could double the amount depending on your budget. It also has you bake the lobster in the oven, but you could saute the lobster on the stove or choose another way to cook lobster.
  • Butter– There’s a whole stick plus 2 tablespoons of butter in this. You want unsalted butter for best results.
  • Garlic– Fresh cloves, pressed or minced.
  • Lemon– The juice of half a lemon.
  • Wine– Your favorite white wine. Make sure you use a wine you enjoy drinking and not cooking wine.
  • Salt and pepper– To taste
  • Garnish– Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley if desired

Kitchen supplies you’ll need include:

How to Make Brown Butter Lobster Pasta

1. Cook the pasta.

Start by preheating the oven before you start the water.

And then to make the most efficient use of your time, start the water for the pasta and then get the lobster ready.

2. Bake the lobster tails.

Preheat the oven to 425.

Cut the lobsters down the center of the top of their shells to slightly butterfly it.

Cut the shell of the lobster tail down the middle with a pair of sharp kitchen shears.
Cut the shell of the lobster tail down the middle with a pair of sharp kitchen shears.

Place the butterflied lobster tails into an oven safe pan and squeeze on lemon juice.

Squeeze fresh lemon over the butterflied lobster tails.
Squeeze fresh lemon over the butterflied lobster tails.

Divide 2 tablespoons of butter into chunks.

Put butter pieces on top of each lobster.

Crush one garlic clove onto each lobster.

Cover the uncooked lobster meat with pats of butter before roasting it.
Cover the uncooked lobster meat with pats of butter before roasting it.

Cover with tinfoil and roast in the oven at 425 for 12-15 minutes or until the lobster meat is opaque and white.

Roasted buttery lobster tails
Roasted buttery lobster tails

When the lobster is done, remove the tails from the shells and cut them into pieces.

Cut the lobster meat into pieces and toss it with the juices from the roasting pan.
Cut the lobster meat into pieces and toss it with the juices from the roasting pan.

3. Brown the butter.

Brown butter is melted butter that cooks a bit longer until the solids in the butter caramelize and give the melted butter a deeper brown color and rich nutty smell.
What the butter will look like when it’s brown

Melt butter in a large pan over medium heat.

Once the butter melts, stir it consistently.

Brown bits should form and the butter should turn a deep golden brown and smell nutty.

4. Finish the sauce.

Piece of lobster meat in a saucepan with brown butter, garlic, and white wine.
Give the lobster a quick toss with the brown butter.

Once the butter has turned golden brown, pour 1 cup of white wine and 3 crushed garlic cloves into the pan, working a sturdy spoon against the bottom of the pan to loosen any of the butter solids.

Let the wine and garlic cook for about two minutes, stirring consistently.

Add chunked lobster meat and drippings from the pan that the lobster was roasted in.

Remove the pan from the heat and squeeze in the lemon.

Squeeze lemon juice into the pan with the brown butter and lobster meat.
Squeeze lemon juice into the pan with the brown butter and lobster meat.

5. Put the lobster pasta all together.

Tongs tossing cooked pasta with lobster pieces in brown butter sauce
Toss the pasta with the brown butter lobster sauce

Add the cooked pasta to the pan with the brown butter lobster sauce.

Gently toss it together so the sauce coats the pasta.

Finish with fresh parsley, salt and pepper to taste, and Parmesan cheese.

Top the lobster pasta with fresh parsley and Parmesan cheese.
Top the lobster pasta with fresh parsley and Parmesan cheese.

Serve and enjoy!

Storing Leftovers

2 plates with brown butter lobster pasta
Brown Butter Lobster Pasta

Lobster pasta is best enjoyed right after you make it, but if you do have leftovers it would be a shame to waste them!

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.

While you can reheat in the microwave, I highly recommend melting a few tablespoons of butter in a sauce pan and reheating the pasta in the sauce pan with the butter until it’s warmed through.

FAQs

2 plates with brown butter lobster pasta
Brown Butter Lobster Pasta

Is lobster pasta Italian?

There is a dish from Venice called spaghetti all’aragosta, which features lobster meat tossed with cherry tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, and white wine before being served over spaghetti. This version of lobster pasta is more Italian inspired with the reliance on simple ingredients put together the right way.

What is the best white wine for lobster pasta?

Any white wine you like to drink! I recommend a drier Reisling for this though. You could also use Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay if you prefer.

Tips and Tricks

A forkful of brown butter lobster pasta
Brown Butter Lobster Pasta
  • This recipe is not difficult to make, but it does move quickly. You’ll want to have all your ingredients out and ready to use at the start. If you time it right, the pasta will be done right around the same time as the lobster tail and the brown butter sauce.
  • Make sure to add the pan drippings from the baked lobster tail to the sauce.
  • Normally I say measure garlic with your heart, but in this recipe don’t use too much. Too much garlic will overpower the the lobster meat.

Other Italian Inspired Seafood Recipes

Looking for other delicious Italian inspired seafood recipes? Try these:

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2 plates with brown butter lobster pasta

Brown Butter Lobster Pasta

Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes

Brown butter lobster pasta is a delicious, elegant dinner perfect for date night in, Valentine's Day, Christmas Eve, or summer occasions when you want good seafood. This lobster pasta features tender rich lobster tail sauteed in a nutty and flavorful brown butter white wine sauce tossed with pasta.

Ingredients

  • 2 lobster tails
  • 1 16 ounce package of spaghetti or linguine*
  • 1 stick plus 2 tablespoons of butter
  • 5 cloves of garlic
  • the juice of half a lemon
  • 1 cup of white wine
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley to taste

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 425.
  2. Cut the lobsters down the center of the top of their shells to slightly butterfly it.
  3. Place in an oven safe pan and squeeze on lemon juice.
  4. Divide 2 tablespoons of butter into chunks.
  5. Put butter pieces on top of each lobster and spread one crushed garlic clove out onto each lobster.
  6. Cover the dish with tinfoil and roast in the oven at 425 for 12-15 minutes or until the lobster meat is opaque and white.
  7. Melt butter in a large pan over medium heat. 
  8. Once the butter melts, stir it constantly until it turns deep brown and smells nutty.
  9. Then pour 1 cup of white wine and 3 crushed garlic cloves into the pan, working a sturdy spoon against the bottom of the pan to loosen any of the butter solids.
  10. Let the wine and garlic cook for about two minutes, stirring constantly. 
  11. Add chunked lobster meat and drippings from the pan that the lobster was roasted in. 
  12. Remove the pan from the heat and squeeze in the lemon.
  13. Add the cooked pasta to the pan with the brown butter lobster sauce.
  14. Gently toss it together so the sauce coats the pasta.
  15. Finish with fresh parsley, salt and pepper to taste, and Parmesan cheese.

Notes

see post for notes on other ways to cook the lobster tails for the recipe

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 433Total Fat: 8gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 55mgSodium: 292mgCarbohydrates: 59gFiber: 3gSugar: 10gProtein: 20g

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Easy Shrimp Scampi Recipe - Seasoned Sprinkles

Friday 21st of January 2022

[…] brown butter lobster pasta […]

Samantha Moreno

Friday 19th of April 2019

Made tonight and it was great. I forgot to put the parsley on bc I wanted to eat! Lol. I also used 3 cheese ravioli just for a little something extra. It was GOOD.

jfletcher

Tuesday 7th of May 2019

So glad you liked it! And also- the 3 cheese ravioli is a genius addition!! Thanks for sharing!

courtney

Thursday 16th of February 2017

Oh my god that looks so incredible. I LOVE lobster and this is making me crave it so badly.

La Belle Sirene 

Chelsea Pearl

Thursday 16th of February 2017

This pasta looks heavenly! Love me some lobster.

ruthie ridley

Thursday 16th of February 2017

This meal looks like a dream!!!

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