1. First, kill the lobster, using one of the following methods: Bring a very large pot of water to a boil. Quickly add the lobster, cover, and blanch for 1 minute. Immediately take the lobster out of the pot. Or, place the lobster on a cutting board. Hold it firmly with your left hand (if you are right-handed) where the tail meets the head. With your right hand, hold a large knife vertically over the lobster, with the tip at the point where the vertical and horizontal creases in the lobster head intersect. Firmly and quickly thrust the knife straight through the head until the knife tip meets the cutting board, then cut downward, through the center of the head. The lobster will be dead immediately, though it may still move.
2. Twist off the claws where they join the body. Twist the tail away from the head (save the head and legs to make stock, if desired). To keep the tail straight, run a metal skewer lengthwise through the meat, slightly off center, nearest the underside of the tail. Wrap the tail very tightly in plastic wrap.
3. Bring several inches of water to a boil in a large, wide pot. Add the lobster tail (in the plastic wrap) and poach for 2 minutes. Add the claws and poach for 4 minutes more. Drain and set aside to cool.
4. To extract the lobster meat, twist apart the 2 sections of each claw. Hit the larger part of each claw against a work surface a few times then stand one on its side, with the jagged underside facing up. Strike the side of the claw with a large, heavy knife to crack it, then twist sideways with the knife until the shell splits open. Pull out the meat. Repeat with the other claw.
5. Use heavy kitchen shears to cut open and extract the meat from the smaller section of the claw. Cut off and discard the pink, fatty tip of the claws.
6. Press firmly on the back of the tail until you hear it crack. Cut through the shell on the underside of the tail and pull it apart to release the meat. Wrap the lobster meat in plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.
TIP: To clean the shells for stock, split them in half lengthwise with a knife. Pull out and save the coral (the ovaries and egg sac, which looks like a long, thick green-black vein), if desired. Some female lobsters will have no coral, depending on the season. Coral must be used the same day. Discard the tomalley (liver) and grain sac. Use shears to cut up the shell and legs into 1 1/2- to 2-inch pieces.
Reprinted with permission from the Le Bernardin Cookbook by Maguy Le Coze and Eric Ripert, © 1998 Doubleday, A Division of Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc.