By Alex Beleaev | Caviar & Gourmet, London | beleaev.com
You can buy proper langoustines and wild prawns online in the UK and have them delivered frozen, no trip to a specialist fishmonger required. The skill is reading the size grade so you choose the right shellfish for the dish, and then cooking it briefly enough to keep the sweetness. This guide covers both.
Beleaev ships cold-water langoustine tails and wild Australian prawns across the UK, frozen to protect the texture. Below: what we carry, which grade suits which plate, and the plain method that does them justice.
Key Takeaways
- Choose by size grade: 5/8 tails are large and premium, 8/12 are versatile, 16/20 prawns are big and sashimi-grade
- Langoustine tails run from around £53; whole wild prawns from around £36 per kilo
- Shellfish arrives frozen to hold the texture, delivered on a cold chain
- Defrost slowly in the fridge; cook fast and hot
- Start with the Beleaev gourmet collection
Which Langoustine or Prawn Should You Buy?
There's no single best choice. There's the right size grade for the dish and the number of people you're feeding.
For the showpiece: Langoustine Tail Pure 5/8
The Langoustine Tail Pure 5/8 is the top grade we carry, large premium tails where each piece is a proper mouthful. These are the ones you grill simply with garlic butter and serve as the heart of a special meal. At 200g of pure tail meat, a pack gives two people something memorable.
For everyday cooking: Langoustine Tails 8/12
The Langoustine Tails 8/12 are the versatile choice, raw, sweet and firm, slightly smaller and easier to spread across a dish. Grill them with garlic butter, drop them into a bisque, or arrange them on a plateau de fruits de mer. A 120g pack is the size you reach for when the langoustine is one element of the plate rather than the whole event.
For whole wild prawns: Spencer Gulf 16/20
The Spencer Gulf Prawns from Ferguson Australia are wild-caught in cold South Australian waters, graded 16/20, meaning sixteen to twenty large prawns to the kilo. Clean enough to eat raw as sashimi, they're equally happy on a hot grill or split for the barbecue. A full kilo serves a table.
| Product | Grade | Size | Best for | From |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Langoustine Tail Pure | 5/8 | 200g | Grilling, showpiece | £97 |
| Langoustine Tails | 8/12 | 120g | Bisque, platters | £53 |
| Spencer Gulf Prawns | 16/20 | 1kg | Grill, sashimi, sharing | £36 |
| Squid Tubes | cleaned | 700g net | Frying, braising | £14 |
Not sure where to start? The 8/12 tails are the easiest first buy. The 5/8 are for when you want the langoustine itself to be the talking point.
How They're Delivered
This is where a lot of online shellfish goes wrong, so it's worth being specific.
Langoustine flesh softens within hours of being landed, so freezing at the peak protects the texture far better than a long "fresh" supply chain. Our langoustine tails and Spencer Gulf prawns are frozen for exactly that reason, then held cold and shipped on a temperature-controlled courier, so the shellfish you defrost is close to its just-caught state.
We deliver across the UK. You don't need a trade account, and you don't need to buy a whole catch to get restaurant-grade shellfish to your kitchen.
How to Defrost and Cook Langoustines and Prawns
Two rules carry the whole job. Defrost slowly. Cook quickly.
Defrosting. Move the pack from freezer to fridge and leave it overnight. Slow thawing protects the firm flesh you paid for. Don't rush it under a hot tap or in the microwave, and don't refreeze once thawed.
Cooking langoustine tails. Brief and hot is the rule. A couple of minutes in a hot pan with foaming garlic butter, basting as they turn from translucent to opaque, and they're done. Overcook a langoustine tail and the sweet, firm flesh turns dry and woolly in seconds.
Cooking whole prawns. Split them down the back or leave them whole, then grill or pan-sear hard for two to three minutes until the shells colour. The shell carries flavour, so cooking them whole rewards you. Or, since the Spencer Gulf prawns are sashimi-grade, serve a few raw with a squeeze of lemon.
Cooking squid. Fast and hot or long and slow, never in between. Slice the Squid Tubes into rings and flash-fry for a minute, or braise them gently for forty. The middle ground is what makes squid chewy.
A wedge of lemon, good bread, a glass of something cold and dry. Delicate shellfish doesn't want a heavy hand in the kitchen.
What to Serve Alongside
Keep it light and let the shellfish lead. Crusty bread to mop the garlic butter, a sharp green salad, a bowl of aioli for the prawns. The classic French move is a tiered plateau de fruits de mer: langoustines, prawns and ice, served cold with mayonnaise and lemon.
For something more involved, langoustine shells make the finest bisque you'll taste, so save them. A crisp white (a Picpoul, a good Muscadet) or a glass of chilled Champagne is the natural partner. If you're building a fuller gourmet spread, the Skrei Cod Cheek, a prized Arctic cod cut with a scallop-like texture, makes an elegant second course.
Why Buy Seafood from Beleaev
We're a London caviar and gourmet house, and we handle the shellfish the way we handle the tins: sourced with provenance, kept on a strict cold chain, and described honestly. The langoustines are cold-water North Atlantic tails; the prawns are wild Spencer Gulf stock from a respected Australian name. If you want to understand the difference between langoustines, scampi and prawns before you buy, our companion guide explains langoustines vs prawns vs scampi.
FAQ
Where can I buy langoustines online in the UK?
Online, from specialists who state the size grade and the origin. Beleaev delivers cold-water langoustine tails and wild Spencer Gulf prawns across the UK on a temperature-controlled courier, frozen to protect the texture. Look for a clear grade like 5/8 or 8/12 so you know the size you're getting.
How much do langoustines cost in the UK?
It depends on the grade. Our versatile 8/12 langoustine tails start from around £53, the premium 5/8 tails from around £97, and whole wild Spencer Gulf prawns from around £36 a kilo. The grade, the origin and the careful handling set the price.
Are langoustines and prawns delivered fresh or frozen?
Frozen, and that's the better choice here. Langoustine flesh softens quickly once landed, so freezing it at its peak protects the texture more reliably than days of "fresh" transit. Everything travels on a cold chain across the UK.
How do I defrost langoustines without ruining them?
Slowly, in the fridge, overnight. Avoid hot water and the microwave, and never refreeze a thawed pack. Slow thawing keeps the firm, sweet flesh intact, ready for a brief, hot cook.
Can I eat Spencer Gulf prawns raw?
Yes. They're wild-caught in clean, cold South Australian waters and are sashimi-grade, so a few served raw with lemon are a fine way to start a meal. Defrost them slowly in the fridge first, and keep them cold until the moment you serve.
Order Cold-Water Shellfish Worth the Occasion
The right grade, delivered frozen, cooked fast and hot: that's all there is to serving langoustines and prawns well at home.
Browse the Beleaev gourmet collection, from the everyday Langoustine Tails 8/12 to the premium Langoustine Tail Pure 5/8 and the wild Spencer Gulf Prawns. Frozen to hold the texture, and delivered across the UK.
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