How to Prepare and Cook Shrimps

Despite some biological differences, shrimp types are still interchangeable in recipes. Shrimp are often prepared and processed using a variety of methods; Many people do not wash before processing because they think that the taste of the dish will be more delicious.

Table of Contents

Wash and prepare whole shrimp

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Peel the shell and head of the shrimp to make it easier to eat after processing. You can cook shrimp with the shell on and then peel it off later, and this usually helps prevent the shrimp from drying out during cooking. However, if shrimp is part of a dish like soup, you probably don’t want to use a spoon to search for shrimp shells while eating. Fortunately, washing shrimp before cooking is usually very easy.

If you want to grill or roast shrimp, you should leave the shrimp in the shell.
You can leave the shrimp head on because the dish will have a richer flavor, but many people leave the shrimp head on to make it easier to eat. ^{[1] X Research Source}

Remove the shrimp head by pulling and rotating. Shrimp heads are usually easy to peel off. Place your hand in the position of the shrimp’s eyes and rotate vigorously to pull the shrimp head out. You can remove the shrimp head or use it to make a seafood stew. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Peel shrimp legs. Simply use your hands to grasp those wobbly little legs and peel them off.

Peel the shrimp with your thumb. Starting at the large head of the shrimp, place your thumb under the shell and slide down the tail, peeling off the shell while sliding. Shrimp shell pieces will peel off. You can leave the tails whole, which is often used as a “handle” when you’re eating with your hands, or peel the tail off if you’re using the shrimp to make another dish.

Use a small knife to make a slit along the back of the shrimp. You need to find the long black thread running down the back of the shrimp. This black thread is most visible near the tail, where there is an indentation on the shrimp. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

Peel the black thread from the shrimp. Pull up one end of the black thread with the tip of a knife, then peel it off with your fingers. This is not strictly necessary, but the black thread has a slightly bitter taste so it is better to peel it off. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

You can still remove the black thread while the shrimp is still in its shell. To do this, press the shell with scissors and pull out the black thread, then close the shell. You can also remove all the black thread and still keep the shell if you see the black thread after peeling the shrimp.

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Rinse shrimp under running water and pat dry with paper towels. Residual water on the shrimp will cause the shrimp to not cook evenly. You will wash the shrimp quickly with cold water, then pat dry.

If you do not want to process shrimp right away, you should freeze the shrimp or put it in the refrigerator.

Fried shrimp

Melt 2 tablespoons unsalted butter or heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. If you cook a lot of shrimp, you need to add enough butter to cover the pan. You should prepare enough oil to cover the pan, but you don’t need to let the oil cover the shrimp.

Add any flavoring or aromatic seasoning. Aromatic seasoning is usually a seasoning processed in oil, creating an aromatic flavor for shrimp dishes. You can add some of the following ingredients:

1/2 cup chopped scallions.
3-5 cloves of crushed garlic.
1-2 tablespoons minced ginger.

Place a layer of shelled shrimp in the pan and cook until the underside is pink. It will usually take about 3-4 minutes. While cooking the first side, you will add the seasoning.

Season and stir shrimp while cooking. You need to stir the shrimp so that the seasoning evenly coats the outside of the shrimp, then let it rest until the first side of the shrimp is cooked. Some optional seasonings are as follows:

Mexican Roasted Shrimp: Salt, Lemon Juice, Chilli, Cayenne Pepper, Chili Powder, Garlic Powder (if you’re not using fresh garlic)
Mediterranean Roasted Shrimp: Salt, lemon juice, black pepper, marjoram, garlic powder (if you’re not using fresh garlic). Processed with olive oil.
Cajun Roasted Shrimp: Salt, bell pepper, cayenne pepper, thyme, chili and black pepper, chili powder, onion/garlic powder (if you’re not using fresh ingredients). Made with butter.

Flip the shrimp over and cook until the entire outside of the shrimp is pink. Shrimp lose moisture very quickly so you just need to let the outside of the shrimp cook and turn pink, then turn off the heat. Shrimp will have large pink streaks, not just white when cooked. Serve shrimp in a hot pan so that the dish does not cool quickly.

Boiled shrimp

Heat just enough water to completely submerge the shrimp. Add half a lemon, sliced or finely chopped, 1-2 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning, 1 clove of minced garlic, and 1 teaspoon salt. Let the mixture simmer for 1 minute before adding the shrimp.

Put the shrimp in the pot and reduce the heat. Leave the tail shell intact and make sure the shrimp is submerged in the water. Simmer for about 3 minutes or until shrimp turn pink. Then turn off the stove.

You can leave the shrimp in its shell and head intact or peel it off before cooking. Leaving the shrimp in its shell and head will make the dish more flavorful.

Soak the shrimp in a bowl of ice water to prevent the shrimp from continuing to cook. When shrimp is cooked, strain out the water and put the shrimp in cold water to reduce the heat and the shrimp will not cook further.

You can use shrimp broth to make seafood stew if you want to take advantage.

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Enjoy chilled shrimp. These shrimp are a great addition to the buffet table, often served on large plates and served with a variety of sauces such as cocktail sauce, tartar sauce or avocado sauce.

Boiled shrimp can be a great combination to make shrimp salad with mayonnaise, served with greens or bagels.

Grilled shrimp

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Heat the grill to the highest temperature. Shrimp need to be cooked quickly to retain moisture and still cook evenly so you need the right high temperature. Thus, the shrimp will have a nice brown color, crispy shell with succulent shrimp meat underneath.

Usually, leaving the shell and tail of the shrimp intact helps you to have a delicious grilled shrimp dish. However, this is not really necessary.

Try soaking the shrimp in baking soda to make it crispy. If you like crispy shrimp with a nice brown color, soak the shrimp in a mixture with 1 tablespoon of salt, 1 tablespoon of baking soda, and 1 cup of water for about 15 minutes before cooking. Baking soda slightly changes the pH and makes the shrimp browner. ^{[5] X Research Sources}

Pat the shrimp dry after soaking but do not rinse and clean the baking soda.

Shrimp skewers. You can combine with vegetables and put each type on the skewers in turn. Whichever ingredient you choose, make sure the skewers are tight, leaving no gaps between the shrimp. Thus, the inside of the shrimp will retain moisture and the outside will be brown. ^{[6] X Research Sources}

Soak wooden skewers in water until completely wet. Soak the wooden skewers before grilling so they don’t draw moisture from the shrimp while you grill the shrimp.

Brush the shrimp with olive oil. Use a brush to spread olive oil over the entire surface of the shrimp to make the shrimp cook evenly. Sprinkle a little more garlic powder, if you like garlic, and sprinkle a little more salt.

Arrange the shrimp skewers on the grill but do not touch each other. Gently press down on the skewers so that the shrimp are touching the hot grill.

Bake for 3-4 minutes on each side, rotating the skewers when one side is pink. Note that shrimp cook very quickly and you only need the outside of the shrimp to be pink. With a hot grill, the shrimp will quickly have dark brown lines and you can turn the shrimp to grill the other side. Bake the other side for another 1-2 minutes before removing the shrimp from the griddle.

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Season the shrimp after removing it from the blister. Shrimps with their shells and heads on are seasoned with olive oil or melted butter, and salt and pepper. You can then add any flavor you like:

Mexican Grilled Shrimp: Lemon juice, chili, cayenne pepper, chipotle pepper, chili powder, garlic powder.
Mediterranean Grilled Shrimp: Lemon juice, black pepper, marjoram leaves, garlic powder, parsley.
Cajun Grilled Shrimp: Salt, bell pepper, cayenne pepper, thyme, chili and black pepper, chili powder, onion/garlic powder.

Advice

Leaving shrimp in the refrigerator but not covered for about 1 hour before processing will help dry the surface of the shrimp but still retain moisture inside the shrimp. Try this if you like shrimp with an extra crunch.

Warning

Shrimp cooks very quickly within a few minutes, so you need to pay attention while processing.

Things you need

Tissue
Pan
Grill, grill or oven
Knife

Steps