Southern Calamari

(Sepioteuthis Australias)

Southern Calamari is a species of reef squid native to oceans off the coast of Australia & NZ. Commonly caught as bycatch by professional prawn trawling fishermen, it is also targeted commercially using the common technique of line and jig.

During their spawning months (spring and summer), Southern Calamari live in large groups, relying on “safety in numbers’”. That said, their lifespan is a short 12 months, though they are capable of reaching 50cm in length during this time (average being 30-40cm).

Commonly found in the clear warm coastal waters (18-22 degrees Celsius), up to 10m in depth, Southern Calamari prefer a part sandy, part seagrass ocean floor, where they can easily hide or camouflage themselves when necessary. 

Our Southern Calamari is delivered to us fresh from the ocean within hours of being caught. The calamari is at highest quality upon arrival, before it’s quickly processed as whole fresh loose for same day distribution, or packed into cryovac bags and frozen onsite for later disbursement.

Fun fact: If disturbed or threatened Southern Calamari may change colour or squirt dark ink, which acts as a decoy, providing opportunity for retreat.

Sustainability

Our Southern Calamari is wild-caught and fished for using the environmentally friendly methods of line and jig, resulting in zero by-catch. There is no minimum size limit for Southern Calamari.

Culinary Notes

With a diet of krill, fish and other squid, Southern Calamari is a very popular choice due to its high versatility and sweet, delicate flavour and Firm white texture. Incredibly tender when properly cooked, calamari is just as at home on the char-grill as it is in a stir fry, or eaten as sashimi.

Available Forms

Frozen-fresh in 5kg cryovac packs
Fresh loose per kilo in foam esky