Why Isn't Lobster Cheap?

[FunnyJohn]

Here's the answer:

"Studies have shown that people prefer inexpensive wines in blind taste tests, but that they actually get more pleasure from drinking wine they are told is expensive. If lobster were priced like chicken, we might enjoy it less...."

[Barbara]

Giant is having a 4-day sale (today thru Monday)--until they run out--on lobsters (1-1.25 lbs.) for $4.99/lb. I managed to get two 1.5+ lb lobsters for the same price at the Columbia Heights store.    They are in the fridge, packed in damp paper towels and newspaper, and getting ready to be turned into Lobster Risotto--the recipe from 1990 I was able to track down with the help of the good folks on this board (Hi, Squids!).

[Toogs]

Lobster is pretty cheap if you compare it to meat and poultry at farmer's market prices.

[Poivrot Farci]

Lobster is pretty cheap if you compare it to meat and poultry at farmer's market prices.

Not when you compare the yield.  And then there is hard shell vs soft shell.

Chefs respond to annual "cheap lobster" stories saying no one talks quality

SEAFOOD.COM NEWS [ABC - Good Morning America] By Joanna Prisco - August 22, 2013 - 

A New Yorker article on the cost of lobster caused a stir among seafood lovers and skeptical diners this week, positing that restaurant prices do not reflect the current glut of crustaceans -- now selling for as low as $2.20 off the boat in Maine -- but the implied prestige of eating them.

Several vocal chefs have defended their prices, however, saying there are myriad reasons for the markups.

Whether the cost of transport, cooking labor or the type of lobster, the combined price of what appears on your plate is more complicated than boat hauls and psychological associations, said New York City chef Marco Canora (Hearth, Terroir Wine Bar) who fired off a fuming tweet earlier this week in response to the media flurry.

"Here we go again: annual 'cheap lobster' article is out and once again no talk of Hard vs. Soft shell lobsters #makesnosense," he wrote.

During the late summer, Maine lobsters molt their hard shells by dropping some weight and wiggling out. The creatures then begin to create a new shell in a much larger size, filling the gap between their bodies and their soft-shell exterior with water as they continue to grow. This can be misleading when it comes time to purchase.

"The weight is there [because of the water], but you yield less meat from it," said Canora. "Every year, this kind of article comes out and every year no one talks about it."

The reduced meat per shell means restaurants have to order just as much, if not more, to continue preparing dishes like lobster rolls, lobster bisque or lobster mac 'n' cheese, some chefs have attested.

Alternatively, however, buyers can still source lobsters from further north, where they aren't shedding their shells yet.

"[The media] try to make it sound like restaurants are ripping people off," said Canora. "The fact of the matter is, when I call my guy for lobster I make sure I'm getting a hard shell, because I'm not going to charge $38 for a whole lobster entree and then have you crack open a claw for a piece of meat the size of your thumb."

Susan Povich, founder of Red Hook Lobster Pound in Brooklyn, N.Y., and the supplier for its Washington, D.C., offshoot, told ABC News that, in contrast to the reports of a glut, her own costs have gone up over the last few years.

"I have fresh-picked meat sent down to me from Maine," said Povich, who uses the pre-picked flesh in her popular rolls. "I only use the claw and knuckle because I personally feel it's the best part of the lobster. In the past, it was subsidized because the cost of tails was so expensive. But over the last few years it has become more popular and the cost has increased by 30 percent."

Povich also transports whole lobsters down from Maine, which carries its own financial risk.

"I lose 20 percent of my soft-shell lobsters when they travel because they die; they're too fragile for all of them to make the trip," she said.

Povich is currently selling whole soft-shell lobsters for $6 to $7 per pound and hard-shell lobsters for $11 to $12 per pound.

In addition to the price differences, many attest that the type of lobster shell influences the taste of the meat. Soft-shell lobsters tend to be a little more tender and a little sweeter than their hard-shell cousins, according to most chefs. Meanwhile, hard-shell lobsters are often lauded for their brininess, salinity and oceanic flavor. Both have their attributes, but the hard-shells are not as forgiving of novice home cooks.

To determine whether an unlabeled lobster is a hard-shell or a soft-shell, ask your local seafood purveyor to take it out of the case to feel for yourself. A squeeze will give you a sense of how much meat is inside and the toughness of the shell, said Canora.

Sam Talbot, a native of North Carolina and a "Top Chef" alum, offered other visual cues for choosing a choice crustacean: The tail should be strong and naturally curl under the belly when you pick it up. They should also look alert.

"If it's half dead, it will taste half dead," he said.

That is, unless you buy into the argument that a lobster's taste depends upon its price.

[Barbara]

Not when you compare the yield.  And then there is hard shell vs soft shell.

My first thought, exactly. The rest of the article is interesting.  I've never heard of soft-shell lobsters, although I've eaten an ocean's worth of soft-shell crabs at Corduroy.

The risotto recipe I have requires one to boil the lobsters in a water flavored with stuff.  Then, you remove the cooked meat and put it away while the shells and whatever effluvia is thrown back in the pot to cook.  This becomes the broth to make the risotto. If there's any interest in this, I will be happy to weigh the actual amount of meat I extract from the lobsters and report back.  Although, in this instance, the shells and innards have a lot of value as well.

[monavano]

Giant is having a 4-day sale (today thru Monday)--until they run out--on lobsters (1-1.25 lbs.) for $4.99/lb. I managed to get two 1.5+ lb lobsters for the same price at the Columbia Heights store.    They are in the fridge, packed in damp paper towels and newspaper, and getting ready to be turned into Lobster Risotto--the recipe from 1990 I was able to track down with the help of the good folks on this board (Hi, Squids!).

Would love the recipe. A trip to the Giant may be in the cards today

[Barbara]

Would love the recipe. A trip to the Giant may be in the cards today

3.07 lbs. of whole lobster yielded 9.5 ounces of usable meat--proving Poivrot Farci's point. And, several cups of broth (haven't measured it yet cuz it's still reducing).

The recipe is listed in News and Media under "Old Copies of Bon Appetit" from squidsdc:

Attached Files

•   Bon Appetit_Nov 1990.pdf   774.04KB   39 downloads

[ScotteeM]

3.07 lbs. of whole lobster yielded 9.5 ounces of usable meat--proving Poivrot Farci's point.

That's in line with the info I had, that a 1.25 lb lobster should yield about 4 oz of edible meat. I can't for the life of me remember where I picked up that fact. Good thing I remember the important stuff!

[DonRocks]

That's in line with the info I had, that a 1.25 lb lobster should yield about 4 oz of edible meat. I can't for the life of me remember where I picked up that fact. Good thing I remember the important stuff!

Jeff Heineman?

[Ferhat Yalcin]

I`ve tried the softshell lobsters last year. They are also referred as `firm shell`. Exact comparison of 10 pieces of soft shells versus 10 pieces of hard shells(all pound and a quarter in weight). Difference is huge for me. I got 12 orders from the soft shells and 18 orders from the hard shells. 

[Toogs]

I didn't realize the yield was that low, I figured around half at least for a hard shell.  Soft shells I get it.  I am going to have to do some testing!  I have trouble believing that that the nice chunk of tail that comes out of a 1.5er is < 3 ounces but I am obviously wrong.