A Seafood Platter is such easy upscale party food and it makes the perfect addition to a traditional brunch spread!
When serving a seafood platter as an appetizer or as a meal your guests will have an amazing time indulging in the display. And will never guess that it was just as easy to throw together as a traditional cheese plate, if not easier!
Easy party food idea
This cold Seafood Platter, also called a ‘seacuterie board’ is a delicious display of various seafood appetizer recipes.
With chilled crab, lobster, and prawns as well as a variety of dipping sauces all presented on an icy cold platter set atop an ice filled basket. Add some chilled baby potatoes and lemon asparagus spears and this seafood board becomes a well rounded meal.
Serve this buffet style party food anytime a for brunch, New Years Eve, Valentine’s Day or as a fun date night dinner at home!
Ingredients
- Colossal shrimp
- Fresh lobster tails
- Whole cooked lobsters
- Smoked salmon
- Asparagus
- Potatoes – bite sized potatoes, like small baby medley potatoes, are best for serving chilled for dipping.
- French bread
- Butter
- Garlic
- Parsley
- Lemons
- Dipping sauces – cocktail sauce, tartar sauce, toum garlic sauce, creamy lemon dressing, garlic butter, garlic aioli, green goddess dip, whipped feta dip, chimichurri sauce, etc.
Step by step instructions
- Broil lobster tails. For even cooking and the best presentation cut the shell and pull the lobster meat out and back down to rest on the shell to cook. Then place on a baking sheet lined with parchment and brush with melted butter and your preferred seasoning (salt, pepper, garlic, red pepper, parsley, etc,) and broil until evenly opaque, 10-15 minutes. Then serve warm or refrigerate to chill until ready to use, up to 2 days in advance.
- Prepare Lemon Herb Shrimp Cocktail.
- Lastly blanch both potatoes and asparagus just until each is evenly cooked and flash chill in ice water, drain, dry and chill until ready to use.
- When ready to serve fill a large baking sheet with ice and add small plates and dishes. Display the chilled vegetables, lobster tails, shrimp, whole lobster, smoked salmon and whatever other seafood dishes you desire. Alternately, you can fill one large sheet pan with crushed ice and top with another of the same size. Then fill the top pan with seafood.
- Garnish with lemon wedges and slices and fresh herbs.
- Add dipping sauces and toasted French bread.
- Serve
- Enjoy!
Seafood platter menu
In addition to the chilled lobster, shrimp and vegetables you can include other seafood dishes like Smoked Oysters with Miso Butter, tuna poke, crab legs or crab dip, shrimp aguachile or ceviche, insalata di mare, or whatever other cold seafood dishes you like!
Chilled vegetables and toasted french bread make great seafood platter sides. And lots of dipping sauces make this the best seafood platter to mix and match.
How to make ahead
All ingredients can be prepared and chilled up to a day in advance. Simply refrigerate separately then combine on the chilled platter over ice before serving. The chilled platter helps keep the seafood cold for as long as possible but once served it should be consumed as soon as possible and discarded after 2 hours.
Ingredients
- 3 pounds jumbo shrimp peeled and deveined, tail-on precooked
- 4 whole lobster tails
- 2 whole lobsters cooked
- 1 pound smoked salmon
- 1 pound asparagus washed
- 1 ½ pounds medley potatoes washed and scrubbed
- 1 loaf French bread
- ¼ cup butter
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 large bunch parsley
- 3 medium lemons
- ½ cup cocktail sauce
- ½ cup tartar sauce
Instructions
- Prepare broiled lobster tails by cutting down the back of the shell, stopping about an inch up from the tail flap. Gently spread the shell apart and loosen the meat from the shell then pull up and out resting the lobster meat back down on the shell to rest. Then place on a baking sheet lined with parchment and brush with melted butter, salt and pepper and broil until evenly opaque, 10-15 minutes. Then serve warm or refrigerate to chill until ready to use.
- Prepare lemon herb marinade for the shrimp. Zest and juice one lemon and add to a large bowl with chopped garlic and parsley.Rinse and drain cooked shrimp and pat lightly to dry with paper towels. Then toss shrimp in mixture and refrigerate to chill until ready to use.
- Add potatoes to a large pot and cover with cold water, bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cook until potatoes are tender. about 15 minutes depending on size. Then drain and flash chill in a large bowl of ice water. Drain, dry and chill until ready to use. Bring water to a simmer and cook asparagus for several minutes until bright green then flash chill in ice the same way.
- When ready to serve fill a large baking sheet with ice and add small plates and dishes then pile on the chilled vegetables, lobster tails, shrimp, whole lobster, and smoked salmon.
- Garnish with lemon wedges and slices and fresh herbs.
- Toast french bread then slice and serve with dipping sauces.
- Serve immediately and refrigerate or discard any uneaten seafood after 2 hours.
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