Langostino
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Langostino is a Spanish word meaning prawn but this term is commonly used in the restaurant trade to refer to the meat of the squat lobster, which is neither a true lobster nor a prawn. It is more closely related to porcelain crabs and hermit crabs.
In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration allows "langostino" as an acceptable market name for two species:
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- Cervimunida johni, and
- Pleuroncodes monodon
These two species are both less than three inches long, and weigh about 0.4 lbs or less. They are both very different from the animal traditionally referred to as lobster.
Langostinos should not be confused with langoustes (spiny lobsters).
In March 2006, Long John Silver's garnered controversy by offering buttered lobster bites, advertised with the statement "made with real langostino lobster." The controversy remains due to ambiguity on whether the langostino is a lobster or a crab. Even a Los Angeles Superior Court judge made no decisions in April 2006 on the matter when a class-action lawsuit was brought against Rubio's Restaurants Inc. for selling "lobster burrito" and "lobster taco" that were in fact made with langostino.
