Cooking Shrimp: The Best Tips for Selecting, Cleaning and Preparing Shrimp at Home
Posted: Wednesday, June 03, 2009
by Chef Todd Mohr
Web Cooking Classes
Cooking shrimp is something I do all year long, but in the summer it feels extra "right" to be preparing and enjoying this little crustacean. Unfortunately, so many of my friends don't enjoy this delicacy as they should because they are not sure what to do with it. There are a few important steps to master in cooking shrimp and then it is a relatively simple ingredient to use in all types of preparations. As you read this article, I'll explain my best tips for choosing shrimp, cleaning shrimp and preparing both frozen and fresh shrimp for excellent summer dishes that everyone will love. From simple suppers at home to easy potluck to impress, shrimp is a great addition to any meal! Best of all - cooking shrimp is fast, which means you won't have to spend all summer in the kitchen!
Cleaning shrimp is sometimes necessary depending on how you purchase your shrimp. It is also necessary to clean fresh shrimp that you plan to freeze because it is much easier to do this when the shrimp are fresh. My favorite place to eat shrimp is at the beach on vacation. I love going to the local fish market and buying the freshest fish I can find. So - this entails cleaning shrimp for sure! But don't worry - it's easy and a little bit fun, too. Once you've removed the heads from your shrimp, here are the rest of the steps in cleaning shrimp:
- Hold the shrimp by the tail between your thumb and forefinger, legs up, holding the shrimp in place with the rest of your fingers - this takes a bit of practice so don't get frustrated!
- Take your paring knife and run down the legs of the shrimp, scraping them off as you go. You could even use a clam knife here because you don't need it to be sharp. Now it should be easy to remove the shell.
- It's time to take the vein out. Hold the shrimp - vein up - tightly in your hand. With your other hand, make small incision, exposing the body cavity. Now simply pull the vein out.
For another trick on cleaning shrimp, try this simple method for butterflying shrimp. Make an incision and run down the length of the shrimp to open 2 halves. Be careful not to cut the shrimp all the way through. You can poach the shrimp from here for shrimp cocktail or even lay it flat on a tray, stuff it and lay the tails on top before baking it. This method of cleaning shrimp increases surface area - making the shrimp look bigger, helps the shrimp cook more consistently and makes a very nice presentation. Once you've cleaned all your shrimp - don't discard those shells. I freeze them to use later in shrimp stock, shrimp sauce and shrimp butter.
Cooking Fresh Shrimp
Cooking fresh shrimp begins at the seafood market when selecting your shrimp. Always look for shrimp stored on ice with the heads still on. You can be assured that head-on shrimp has not been frozen because the head looks mushy and kind of gross after it's been frozen. Therefore, you won't see it being sold this way. If head-on shrimp is not available and you question the freshness, give it a smell. You should smell salty, ocean - not fishiness. If you smell an ammonia odor, the fish is spoiled. Once you've selected your shrimp, you must handle it correctly from now until you get to cooking fresh shrimp at home. I recommend bringing a cooler to the fish store with you so you can transport the shrimp on ice. It is very important that the shrimp stays at around 34 degrees, to ensure the best shelf life. Therefore, you will probably need to keep it on ice - even in your refrigerator. When you are ready to start cooking fresh shrimp is the only time it should be removed from ice. This will ensure that the product is as close to purchased quality as possible when it gets cooked.
Cooking Frozen Shrimp
Cooking frozen shrimp is often necessary when the fresh variety is just not available. Don't worry - it happens to me too! Luckily, frozen shrimp are readily available and can be tasty in dishes as well - as long as you know my tips for selecting, handling and cooking frozen shrimp. For starters - what does all that terminology mean? "I'll take some 15-20 IQF P & D, please." OK - let me translate. IQF is a term to describe the way in which shrimp is frozen. It means individually quick frozen. If your IQF bag of shrimp has ice crystals or the shrimp is frozen together in a clump, don't buy it. This means the bag has defrosted and been re-frozen. This is something that should generally be avoided in purchasing frozen foods. Shrimp are labeled with a number range (15-20) that refers the the number of shrimp that come in a pound. The larger the number, the smaller the shrimp. Medium is around 15-20; Salad shrimp are 96+. As I mentioned above, it is best to clean shrimp when fresh. The exception to this would be on shrimp boats where they have the technology to immediately freeze the shrimp they catch at very low temperatures (quickly). So - frozen shrimp can be purchased cleaned or not cleaned. If they have been cleaned before freezing, they are called P & D - peeled and de-veined. This means you will be cooking frozen shrimp in a matter of minutes - after defrosting, that is. One last thing - always defrost shrimp before cooking frozen shrimp. The best way to do this is in the refrigerator. If you need to defrost more quickly, you can place the shrimp in a bowl under slowly running cold water to defrost.
Cooking shrimp is a skill that enables you to prepare wonderful home-cooked dishes quickly and easily. Shrimp is a versatile ingredient that can be prepared in so many different ways, you are not likely to get bored anytime soon. By understanding and applying these simple techniques, you will soon be cooking shrimp at every meal. Shrimp omelet, anyone?
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