New England Vs Maine Lobster Dip: What's The Difference?

New England cuisine is best known for its hearty meals. A lot of recipes are simple but delicious, such as the baked bean sandwich. There's also a major use of seafood in most New England cooking, ranging from New England clam chowder to New England clam rolls. One thing is for sure — New England cooking is delicious and filling, making it popular even outside of New England states. The one downside of this popularity is that spin-off recipes are born, which can make things confusing. 

New England and Maine lobster dip is a perfect example of this. They share similarities, such as being made primarily of lobster and cheese and being used for dipping chips or crackers. The biggest difference between the two is the type of cheese used: New England lobster dip typically uses Monterey Jack cheese, while Maine lobster dip uses cream cheese combined with seasonings. If you've ever gotten the two confused, there's no shame in it. Like Manhattan and New England clam chowder, the only indicative difference at first glance is the name, which doesn't say much about how the two dishes are really different. Fortunately, the biggest differences when it comes to New England and Maine lobster dip are mostly types of cheese, extra ingredients, and serving methods.

To understand how these dips are different, let's first take a look at the ingredients. Maine lobster dip is always made with cream cheese. On the other hand, New England lobster dip recipes don't always stick to just one cheese — many call for Monterey Jack but others call for sharp cheddar. The use of different cheeses helps set up the other differences in these two dips.

The cheeses used for New England lobster dip tend to have a stronger flavor while the cream cheese used in Maine lobster dip is plain. As such, recipes for Maine lobster dip include more ingredients to add flavor, such as Worcestershire sauce, hot pepper sauce, horseradish, garlic powder, powdered mustard, and onion. New England lobster dip still has its own set of added ingredients, primarily chopped chives, but little else that isn't also seen in Maine lobster dip, such as lemon juice, mayonnaise, salt, and pepper. The other noticeable difference between the two dips is how they're served. Most, if not all, recipes for New England lobster dip call for it to be served warm, immediately after baking. However, Maine lobster dip can be served either warm or cold.