Lobster Meals & Boxes

FAQs

How much does a lobster cost?

Cornish Lobster has a well-deserved reputation as being one of the best types of seafood available anywhere in the world, and it commands high prices too, driven by supply and demand.

The price of lobster also varies significantly throughout the year, with lower prices (around £50 per kg delivered) in late spring and summer and higher prices (up to £80 per kg delivered to you) in the Autumn and Winter.

There main reason for higher prices in winter is that landings are much lower, for 2 reasons: challenging weather conditions mean that the boats are not able to fish as much; and when the waters get colder, lobsters move around a lot less so the number of fish caught per pot is lower.

You can find much cheaper lobsters available in certain supermarkets, but these are not even comparable:

  • They are much smaller, so small in many cases that it would be illegal to land them in Cornwall
  • They are imported, usually from North America or Canada
  • They are frozen.

We never have and never will offer inferior, undersized and imported lobsters that have travelled halfway across the world.

We support the incredible sustainable local fishermen that land around the Cornish Coast, and in choosing us you are directly supporting them too.

How much weight do Live lobsters lose when cooked?

We humanely dispatch, cook and prepare all of our lobsters to order and when selecting a weight it will be the live weight.

If you select a cooked lobster, then you should expect weight loss of 12-15%.

For example if you choose a 1 kg lobster cooked, you should expect the lobster to weigh approximately 850 - 880 g due to weight loss in the cooking process.

If you select a cooked, split & cleaned lobster, then you should expect weight loss of 15 - 20%.

For example if you choose a 1 kg lobster cooked,split & cleaned, you should expect the lobster to weigh approximately 800 - 850 g.

Can you get fresh lobster in the UK?

We are proud to say that thanks to businesses like ours, the answer is a resounding YES!

In order to offer fresh lobsters it is critical to have direct access to boats and very short supply chains - just 2 reasons why supermarkets are not able to offer this luxury product.

We also only recommend British Lobsters, and we specialise in Cornish of course.

The Cornish lobster fishery is very well managed by the specialist boats that fish around the coast. All of the lobsters we source are pot-caught, which is a very selective and low impact fishing method.

The minimum landing size is larger than other parts of the UK and it is illegal to land berried (pregnant) lobsters. In addition the Cornish Lobster fishery benefits greatly from brilliant conservation work that the National Lobster Hatchery in Padstow does. We are proud sponsors of theirs, supporting their brilliant ‘Buy One, Set One Free’ Project.

Stocks are healthy around Cornwall, which is why it is on the Recommended List by The Cornwall Good Seafood Guide and the Marine Conservation Society.

How do you cook your lobsters?

Before cooking our lobsters we either stun them with our Crustastun or chill them right down in the freezer, which puts them to sleep.

Both methods are much more humane than cooking live or dispatching with a knife just before cooking.

Rather than boil them in water, we steam our lobsters in a special oven that automatically adjusts the cook time and temperature to ensure a perfect cook every time.

We then chill them quickly to ensure they stay as fresh as possible, before preparing and packing to your requirements.

What does lobster taste like?

At Fish for Thought we firmly believe that Cornish Lobster is the very best in the world - with the sweetest and richest flavour of any. It is a luxury shellfish that is perfect for any special celebration and a must for an occasional treat.

Lobster has a sweeter, less ‘fishy’ taste than crab, but has a unique richness to it, so you don’t need much to satisfy you. Thanks to the high amount of muscle in lobster tails, it is firm and more meaty than most fish and crab, most similar to monkfish in texture. The claw meat is the sweetest and has a lighter texture.

This incredible shellfish can be enjoyed a number of ways: from simply grilled with lemon and cracked pepper butter; to lobster thermidor; to a velvety bisque.

If you are after a taste of Cornish lobster, then look no further as we offer the full range of Lobster dishes for you to enjoy.