How to cook shrimp

[Kitchen Witch]

How to cook shrimp

Shrimp can be eaten hot or cold, raw or cooked. They can add flavor even to plain dishes.
Shrimp can be cooked in a variety of ways. You can boil, steam, grill, sauté, or deep-fry them. Shrimp is cooked very quickly and is easy to cook. But, you should first kno0w how to prepare it.
You may also buy shrimp which are already cooked. All you need to do is add them to your dish a few minutes before the end of your cooking time.


Preparing Shrimp for Cooking

Thawing or Defrosting. Most of the shrimp that you buy in the supermarkets are frozen, so, you need to thaw them first. It is important to defrost shrimp properly, for more even cooking and to ensure that any harmful bacteria will be killed during cooking.
There are many ways of defrosting shrimp. Select the method according to how much time you have.
Get the shrimp out of their packaging and put them in a bowl. Cover the bowl and leave it in the refrigerator overnight. The shrimp will be ready for cooking next morning.
If you have less time, place the shrimp in a waterproof packaging like plastic. Immerse it in a basin full of cold water. You can defrost one pound (lb) of shrimp this way in an hour.
The fastest way of defrosting is to place the shrimp in a bowl with warm water. You just need to replace the bowl of water when it becomes cold. Do so until the shrimp is thawed.

Remove the shell and head. You can remove the shell and head before or after cooking. Many prefer to leave it on first because it adds flavor to the food while cooking. However, the head and shell are easier to remove while the shrimp is still partly frozen. You can also set aside the head and shell to make stock for later use.
To remove the shell and head whether it is cooked or uncooked, nip the head off and pull away the legs. Pull the shell upwards and away from the body while holding the tail. You can use kitchen scissors to cut away the shell through the middle portion.

Remove the intestinal vein. You can de-vein the shrimp before or after cooking. It is safe to eat these black veins, but people don’t like them because they have a gritty taste. You can use the point of a sharp thin knife or cocktail stick to trace the veins and rinse it off under tap water. If the vein does not wash away, pull it out with a knife or a cocktail stick.

The tail is usually left to make the shrimp look nice. You can easily jerk it off if you want to.

If you do not want to go through these tedious tasks, buy shelled and peeled shrimp.


Ways of Cooking Shrimp

Boiling
First you thaw, shell, and de-vein the shrimp following the instructions given above.
Put enough water into your pan to cover the shrimps when you place them there. Add salt, as desired.
Turn the heat on to high and let it boil.
Put the shrimp in the pan and cover them.
Turn the heat on to low and let it simmer for 3 to 5 minutes, depending on the size of your shrimp. Small and medium sized shrimp will cook in 3 - 4 minutes. Large shrimp may take 5 - 8 minutes. Jumbo shrimp will take 7 - 8 minutes to cook.
Observe the color of your shrimp to know if they are already cooked. Cooked shrimp is light pink and opaque.
Once cooked, remove the shrimp from the heat. Run them under cold water to stop the cooking process.
You can now serve your shrimp.


Grilling
First you thaw, shell and de-vein the shrimp following the instructions given above.
Place your shrimp in skewers.
Line the rack inside the grill with aluminum foil. Preheat the grill to high.
When the grill is hot, put the skewered shrimp under it, leaving space between skewers.
Brush your shrimp with olive oil and sprinkle with seasoning. You can also use barbeque seasoning.
Grill the shrimp for four minutes, or until they turn pink, turning the skewers after two minutes.
Remove the shrimp from the heat and serve.
You can follow these steps to bake the shrimp in an oven at 350°F / 175°C. The cooking time will be a little longer.


Frying
First you thaw, shell and de-vein the shrimp following the instructions given above.
Put the shrimp into a bowl of milk to moisten them.
Roll them on seafood breading until they are fully coated.
Place olive oil or vegetable oil in your frying pan and preheat it.
Fry the breaded shrimp in the hot oil. Observe when they turn pink. This means that they are cooked.
Remove the shrimp from the pan. Drain them on paper towels and serve them while they are hot.


You can also fry unshelled shrimp. When fried with seasoning, the shrimp will be very tasty.
It is best to eat shrimp immediately after cooking. But if you cooked them in advance or you have extra servings left, refrigerate them in a sealed bag. They should be eaten within 2-3 days.


FRENCH FRIED SHRIMP

4 servings

1 pound small fresh shrimp in the shell (about 50)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon onion salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 egg
2 tablespoons water
1 cup coarse dry bread crumbs
Shortening for deep frying

Shell shrimp leaving on tails; devein. Rinse and pat dry.
Combine salt, onion salt. pepper, and garlic powder. Blend 3/4 teaspoon of the combined seasonings with flour; set aside.
Beat egg, water, and remaining combined seasonings.
Coat shrimp with flour mixture, then dip into egg mixture; drain well.
Using a small amount of crumbs at a time and adding more as neded, coat each shrimp lightly with crumbs.
Heat shortening to 350ºF in a deep saucepan or deep fryer. Fry 6 shrimp at a time in hot shortening for 3 minutes or until well browned. Drain on paper towels. Let temperature return to 350ºF before frying more shrimp.
Serve with lemon wedges, seafood cocktail sauce, or Tartar Sauce.