P
Corsican
Cigales de Mer Grillées — Grilled Corsican Slipper Lobster
Scyllarides latus (slipper lobster, cigale de mer) is a prized Corsican rocky-coast crustacean, flatter and more delicate than langouste. Split lengthwise, brushed with Olea europaea and Allium sativum butter, then grilled cut-side down over wood coals 4–5 minutes until the flesh is just set and the shell char-marks develop. Turned shell-side down for 2 minutes. The internal flesh is sweet, slightly briny, and more delicate than Homarus americanus. Service: additional Olea europaea, fresh lemon, a sprig of Finochju Salvaticu. The cigale de mer season in Corsica runs April–September; peak August–September. A restaurant-format preparation in port towns (Porto-Vecchio, Bonifacio, Calvi). Not exported — consumed locally due to fragility.
‹Swipe for the next dish›
I
The Market List
The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.
4 × 300 g
Scyllarides latus (cigale de mer / slipper lobster)
live or ice-slaughtered immediately before splitting; peak season August–September
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
60 ml
Olea europaea (olive oil)
for brushing before grilling and at service
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
2 cloves
Allium sativum (garlic)
combined with olive oil as a brush before grilling
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 pinch
fleur de sel
applied at service only
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
At service
1
lemon
halved or quartered, fresh
Your own market
4 sprigs
Finochju Salvaticu (Corsican wild fennel)
fresh
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
II
The Method
1
Prepare a wood-coal fire and allow it to reach an even, glowing heat with no open flame. Gas is not used; the smoke produced by the shells during grilling provides an aromatic basting effect intrinsic to the dish.
2
Split each cigale de mer lengthwise immediately — live or at the moment of ice-slaughter. The flesh degrades rapidly once dead and unsplit; delay at this stage compromises the sweet, briny character of the flesh irretrievably. Combine the olive oil and garlic and brush the cut flesh generously, paying particular attention to the tomalley (hepatopancreas) in the head, which receives an extra measure of oil.
3
This is where the dish lives or dies: lay the cigales cut-side down over the wood coals. The internal temperature must build from the flesh side; placing the shell down first causes the delicate tail flesh to become rubbery before the shell has charred. Grill cut-side down for 4–5 minutes. The cook looks for golden char marks developing across the cut surface and the first signs of opacity reaching the flesh.
4
Turn each cigale shell-side down and grill for a further 2 minutes. Total cooking time for a 300 g specimen is 6–7 minutes. At the close of this period, the flesh is just opaque — not white throughout — and separates from the shell with a slight, clean pull. If the flesh resists or is rubbery, it has been overcooked.
5
Transfer immediately to warm plates. Finish with a few flakes of fleur de sel, a drizzle of olive oil, a wedge of fresh lemon, and a sprig of Finochju Salvaticu. The cigale de mer must be eaten directly from the grill; it is not held.
From the canon — Wild fennel — finochju salvaticu in Corsican, fenouil sauvage in French, Foeniculum vulgare — grows throughout the Corsican maquis from sea level to mountain… Finochju Salvaticu — Wild Corsican Fennel and its Uses →
III
Quality Hierarchy
01
Reserve — Live Scyllarides latus taken from Corsican rocky-coast waters at peak season (August–September), split and grilled within minutes of slaughter; tomalley intact and brushed with cold-pressed Corsican olive oil.
02
Estate — Ice-slaughtered Scyllarides latus, Corsican origin, split immediately on receipt and grilled the same day; good-quality extra-virgin olive oil.
03
Market — Fresh (not frozen) Scyllarides latus from Mediterranean waters outside Corsica, within the April–September season; standard extra-virgin olive oil.
04
House — Frozen Scyllarides latus or substitution with Scyllarus arctus (petite cigale); note that arctus is the smaller species and better suited to bisque — the delicacy of the grilled dish is diminished at this rung.
IV
Sensory Tests
◇Sight. Cut surface shows golden char marks; flesh is just opaque at the centre — not white and set throughout; shell carries char.
◇Touch. Flesh separates from the shell with a slight, clean pull; it neither sticks firmly nor falls away.
◇Where it lives or dies. The cigale de mer must be placed cut-side down first over wood coals: this single decision governs whether the flesh cooks gently to a sweet, just-set opacity or collapses into the rubbery ruin of shell-first cooking.
Pillar V
Cross-cuisine parallels are part of membership.
The dishes this one teaches you, across the cuisines — on every recipe.
Enter · from $49 a year
VI
What to Pour
The pairing
Agave spirit
From British Columbia
Nothing from British Columbia holds against this yet.
Without alcohol
No pour without alcohol holds against this yet.
Why each one works is part of membership — Enter · from $49 a year →
The whole pairingPillar VII
Origin and lineage are part of membership.
Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
Enter · from $49 a year