A recipe for the perfect sea vacation includes PEI lobster

A vacation to Prince Edward Island is not a vacation at all without succumbing to the succumbness offered by sea lobster food unlike any you can find anywhere else.

Lobster is not so much a part of Prince Edward Island life as a fact of Prince Edward Island life and a visit to the peaceful island without a lobster feast would be like a visit to the island without giving in to a round of golf. Or visit the island and not walk along miles and miles and miles of endless sandy beaches in shades of white, champagne, pink and red. Or to visit the island without contemplating the many festivals that infuse it with its unique character, charm and, of course, its culture.

There are two lobster fishing seasons on Prince Edward Island; one in the spring and the other in the fall. Island lobsters are available year-round, however, due to being kept in pens or pounds (traditionally large and fenced ocean areas) or, in more recent years, thanks to rapid advances in technology, lobsters they can be enclosed in huge dryland farming facilities, indeed pioneering in Atlantic Canada. In the end, it means that the lobster they serve you is always as fresh as it is refreshing to the palate.

The American lobster or as it is known by its scientific name, Homarus Americanus, can be found most frequently on the Atlantic coast, where it is also known as the North, Atlantic or Maine lobster. The colder waters of Canada are the most common lobster areas, although they can be found as far south as North Carolina.

While it is a highly vaunted delicacy today, in decades past, it has not always been that way. In fact, lobster was once considered very common and farmers on Prince Edward Island used to spread lobsters in their fields as fertilizer. Perhaps that is one of the reasons that Prince Edward Island potatoes have come to have the reputation and flavor that they do.

A live lobster is generally greenish-brown in appearance and color, although it has occasionally been known to appear blue, partially white, yellow, or bright red. These color variations are the result of a genetic defect in the pigments of the lobster shell and are very rare. In fact, for a blue lobster, the chances are one in a million. For a yellow lobster; one in 30 million.

The sight of a red lobster is considerably more common and can be found throughout the island. This is of course due to the fact that it has been cooked and served with butter. It’s here, on the peaceful island, that potato and lobster together are once again a family sight, preferably served piping hot at your new favorite Prince Edward Island restaurant on the water’s edge or on the boardwalk.

This summer, savor the succulence of a Prince Edward Island lobster and all the tradition that goes with it. Enjoy!