How to Kill a Lobster

Unless you're boiling or steaming a lobster, you'll need to kill it before preparing it for cooking. Because there is debate about whether or not lobsters can feel pain, you'll want to conduct the process as quickly as possible. Read on learn how to kill a lobster efficiently and humanely.

• A fresh lobster is a live lobster. Unlike other meat and seafood that come to our kitchens ready to be prepared, we need to kill a lobster ourselves before cooking and eating it. The process can be done quickly and humanely with either a sharp knife or a pot of boiling water.

Lobsters need to be killed immediately before baking or grilling (Creative Commons photo by Bethany King)

• Animal activist groups, such as PETA have long maintained that lobsters feel pain when thrust into boiling water. A 2005 study by Norwegian researchers, however, backs up previous research done by the University of Maine which concluded that the primitive nervous system of a lobster doesn't have the capacity to feel pain.MSNBC: Do lobsters feel pain? Debate heats up (February 14, 2005)

• Bring a pot of water to boil, making sure you have enough water to cover the lobster. If you have a small pot, you can kill the lobsters one at a time, bringing the water back to a full boil each time.

1. Bring the water to a full boil.
2. Place the lobster in the water headfirst.
3. Boil for two minutes.
4. Remove the lobster with tongs, and proceed with your recipe.

Start with fresh live lobsters. (Creative Commons photo by Bethany King)

• You can also kill a lobster by severing the spinal cord with a knife.

1. Make sure the lobster still has the rubber bands around its claws. If they've already been removed, you'll want to kill it by boiling.
2. Flatten the lobster out on a cutting board, and hold it firmly by pressing down on the tail.
3. With your other hand, take a very sharp chef's knife and position it at the point where the head meets the body. This is about 1-1 1/2 inches below the eyes, towards the tail.
4. Make sure that the blade of the knife is pointing away from the hand holding the tail down.
5. Push the point down, severing the spinal cord.
6. Turn the knife and slice the head in half.
7. You can now proceed to prepare the lobster for cooking.