Have you ever tried lobster? What does lobster taste like and did you like it?
Think of a fancy food, any kind of fancy food.
Ready?
Did you think of lobster?
If you did, you’re not the only one. Lobster has been popularized by the media as an expensive, luxurious food that can bankrupt you unless you eat it to celebrate a very special occasion, but just how real is this image?
Is lobster that expensive? Can you eat lobster frequently? And what does lobster even tastes like?
Well… keep reading to find out!
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Is Lobster Really That Expensive?
Depends where you’re buying it.
Lobster can be the priciest item in a menu in an expensive restaurant but in certain parts of the world it can be as commonplace as chicken and even more affordable.
The truth is that lobster prices depend on two factors: How big were the lobster harvests of the season and how much people are willing to pay for it.
In big, landlocked cities where lobster is considered a delicacy, lobster is expensive, even when the harvests are good.
In small, coastal towns with easy access to lobsters, they tend to be much more affordable. This goes double for islands in warm climates, where lobsters reproduce and grow fast enough to always be readily available.
What Can I Do to Buy Lobster for Less?
If really want to know what lobster tastes like, but nowhere near curious enough to pay loads of money for your little experiment, there are a handful of things you can do to reduce the price as much as possible:
- Cook It Yourself
Forget restaurants. Just go out and buy a lobster yourself. This will easily reduce the price of the lobster by at least half.
- Buy in Season
Believe it or not, there’s such thing as ‘lobster season’ and it’s usually during the summer.
May is, easily, the best month to buy lobsters, particularly live ones, since the offer is high and the demand has yet to kick in in full force. Lobsters are also meatiest this time of the year.
- Buy Frozen
Since fresh lobster is the best lobster, it’s also the most expensive and live lobsters can go for ridiculous prices.
Buying frozen lobster tails can help you save a lot of money, and since the lobster is frozen soon after it’s caught, the quality will still be good.
Sure, this option is still a little pricy, but hey! Cheaper is cheaper, right?
What Does Lobster Taste Like?
So, you now know why lobster is so expensive and what you can do to buy lobster at affordable prices. Maybe you’ve even located a store where they sell them, be it frozen or alive.
But do you really want to buy lobster?
What if you don’t like it?
What if people only pretend to like it because it’s expensive?
No need to worry!
We’re here to help you with that.
Lobster Tastes Like…
A meatier, sweeter version of shrimp.
A sweeter, less fishy version of crab.
It’s always difficult to describe the taste of a food because we all have different taste receptors that makes us experience flavors differently.
Lobster flavor is rich, full and slightly sweet. It’s not particularly fishy, so if you’re expecting it to taste like a really big shrimp, you’re in for a surprise. Lobster is chewier and a bit spongy, thanks to the high amount of muscle you can find in lobster tails.
It’s not a bad texture, but it’s definitely different from crab and shrimp.
It Also Depends on How You’re Cooking It
It comes as no surprise that the flavor of your lobster changes depending on how you cook it.
The most traditional way of cooking lobster is with butter and what doesn’t go well with it?
Butter brings out the sweet flavor of lobster and softens the texture of the meat, resulting in a silky, mouthwatering experience.
While that’s the most popular way of cooking lobster, it’s far from the only one. Lobster can be grilled on an electric grill, broiled baked, boiled and even fried in a pan, the taste and texture changing depending on how it’s cooked.
Grilled lobster will be chewier, with most of its flavor coming from the seasoning. See below video for how to grill lobster:
Boiled lobster has a briny flavor that will remind you of the sea.
Steaming lobster will result in tender, sweet meat that tastes almost nothing like seafood.
And so on.
Final Thought
Yes, lobster flavor might be hard to describe and finding affordable lobster might not be the easiest thing to do, but trust us when we say this famous little water bug is delicious and you should try to have it at least once.
Who knows, maybe you’ll end up loving it.
Thank you for reading! If you found this article useful, if you’ve tried lobster and have a better description or if this article inspired you to try it, let us know!
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