Décorticage des Crustacés — Shellfish Extraction and Butchery

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Décorticage is the art of extracting meat from crustacean shells with maximum yield and minimum damage — a foundational skill for the poissonnier that determines the elegance of every lobster, crab, and langoustine presentation. LOBSTER: twist the tail from the body (a firm 180° twist snaps the joint cleanly). Crack claws with the back of a heavy knife, not a crusher (crushers create shell fragments). Extract claw meat in a single piece by cracking the knuckle joint and pulling — the entire claw muscle should emerge intact, still shaped like the claw. For the tail, insert scissors along the underside of the shell membrane, cut along both sides, and lift the membrane away — the tail meat slides out as a whole cylinder. Remove the intestinal vein (a dark thread running along the dorsal surface). CRAB: remove the apron (tail flap) on the underside, then twist off all legs and claws. Push the body up and out of the shell from the tail end. Remove and discard the dead man's fingers (feathery grey gills — these are toxic). The brown meat (tomalley) in the shell is scraped out and sieved. Claw and leg meat is extracted by cracking at each joint. LANGOUSTINE: twist the head off, then pinch the sides of the tail shell to crack it, and push the meat out from the tail end — it should emerge in one piece. A skilled poissonnier can extract 24 langoustine tails in under 3 minutes. Yield targets: lobster should yield 35-40% of live weight as meat; brown crab 25-30%; langoustine 30-35%. Below these figures, technique needs refinement.

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