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Shrimp


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I was down in Seabrook yesterday; it is just north of Galveston and is home to several fresh seafood stores, most of which have their own shrimp boats. I bought three pounds of headless 16-20s for $6.35/pound, but I didn't take advantage of the 50cents/pound price nreak for over 6 pounds. Their quality is top notch. They have medium headless shrimp for $3.50/pound--perfect for gumbo or shrimp creole. Lump crabmeat is $8.55/pound; this is heaven if you like fresh seafood. I gew up in western Kansas and thought shrimp only came in 5-pound frozen blocks, and tuna or salmon only came in cans. :rolleyes:

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Our local farm market grocery store has been carrying fresh Gulf Shrimp lately. Yesterday we did a simple test. Fresh shrimp vs. the stuff you can buy frozen in bags. Both were served as shrimp cocktail...

The result: it wasn't even close. The fresh Gulf shrimp had the taste and texture I remember all shrimp having years ago. The frozen bugs had that translucent mealy texture and just about zero flavor.

The lesson: From now on its fresh wild shrimp or nothing...

I'm not sure what you mean by "fresh" here. The Gulf shrimp was certainly frozen if it made it all the way up north. It might have been frozen onboard the boat.

The only way to get fresh shrimp is to live in an area where day shrimpers work. I'm pretty sure that any boats that stay out longer than a day will be freezing their catch. They may put some on ice the last day, but that would have to be sold in the area.

I paid $4.50 a pound last week for beautiful, head-on fresh shrimp at my local farmers market. The truly fresh shrimp are a wonder, and I bought them directly from the family that caught the shrimp.

The shrimp were labeled fresh. All other shrimp (as well as some tuna) were labeled previously frozen. I brought home some fresh shrimp from New Smyrna when I visited my dad a few years ago. If I can get it up north, I'm sure some company can do the same...

"It's better to burn out than to fade away"-Neil Young

"I think I hear a dingo eating your baby"-Bart Simpson

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This is an interesting distinction, as I see the same labels at fish counters in my area. Are these labels not to be trusted?

Thank God for tea! What would the world do without tea? How did it exist? I am glad I was not born before tea!

- Sydney Smith, English clergyman & essayist, 1771-1845

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I think mislabeling is pretty common. I seem to remember a NYT articles about widespread mislabeling of farmed salmon as wild salmon.

From all I've read there are two issues. It's not just that shrimp is perishable, but there is very little never frozen product. Most large, commercial shrimpers stay out several days and flash freeze the shrimp on board. The day shrimpers who don't freeze their products are literally mom and pop operations. With the double hit of Katrina and Rita, a lot of them are still struggling to resume operations.

I'll say up front that I'm not a shrimping expert. I could be wrong about how widely non-frozen shrimp travels. I sent an email to a friend who knows a lot more about the industry. I'll let you know what she says.

Todd A. Price aka "TAPrice"

Homepage and writings; A Frolic of My Own (personal blog)

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I think mislabeling is pretty common. I seem to remember a NYT articles about widespread mislabeling of farmed salmon as wild salmon.

From all I've read there are two issues. It's not just that shrimp is perishable, but there is very little never frozen product. Most large, commercial shrimpers stay out several days and flash freeze the shrimp on board. The day shrimpers who don't freeze their products are literally mom and pop operations. With the double hit of Katrina and Rita, a lot of them are still struggling to resume operations.

I'll say up front that I'm not a shrimping expert. I could be wrong about how widely non-frozen shrimp travels. I sent an email to a friend who knows a lot more about the industry. I'll let you know what she says.

I hear you loud and clear. As I am not an expert in shrimping either, I wouldn't bet my house on this issue. However, this retailer is one of the few good guys out there, and I tend to trust what he puts out. He is also quite adept at sourcing, so I think if anyone in this area would have a hard to find, perishable item, it would be this place.

But, again, I wouldn't bet my house on it...

"It's better to burn out than to fade away"-Neil Young

"I think I hear a dingo eating your baby"-Bart Simpson

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I think mislabeling is pretty common. I seem to remember a NYT articles about widespread mislabeling of farmed salmon as wild salmon.

From all I've read there are two issues. It's not just that shrimp is perishable, but there is very little never frozen product. Most large, commercial shrimpers stay out several days and flash freeze the shrimp on board. The day shrimpers who don't freeze their products are literally mom and pop operations. With the double hit of Katrina and Rita, a lot of them are still struggling to resume operations.

I'll say up front that I'm not a shrimping expert. I could be wrong about how widely non-frozen shrimp travels. I sent an email to a friend who knows a lot more about the industry. I'll let you know what she says.

I hear you loud and clear. As I am not an expert in shrimping either, I wouldn't bet my house on this issue. However, this retailer is one of the few good guys out there, and I tend to trust what he puts out. He is also quite adept at sourcing, so I think if anyone in this area would have a hard to find, perishable item, it would be this place.

But, again, I wouldn't bet my house on it...

Yeah, I've learned time and again that many things are both unlikely and completely true. Food and everything else sometimes gets distributed in ways that you would never expect.

Todd A. Price aka "TAPrice"

Homepage and writings; A Frolic of My Own (personal blog)

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  • 12 years later...

Bumping up this old thread with a question.

 

I bought a pound and a half of jumbo shrimp at a market that is known for the freshness and quality of its products. They bagged them along with a bag of crushed ice. I put bags and all in the fridge last Wednesday, with plans to cook them the next night.

 

They were not frozen, though I expect they had been flash frozen on the boat, as most are these days.

 

Life intervened,  and I have not cooked them yet. Have not checked them for smell, as they are in the auxiliary fridge in the storage room.

 

Are they still good? For how much longer? The market gets shrimp from the coast every other day.

 

Don't ask. Eat it.

www.kayatthekeyboard.wordpress.com

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1 hour ago, kayb said:

Bumping up this old thread with a question.

 

I bought a pound and a half of jumbo shrimp at a market that is known for the freshness and quality of its products. They bagged them along with a bag of crushed ice. I put bags and all in the fridge last Wednesday, with plans to cook them the next night.

 

They were not frozen, though I expect they had been flash frozen on the boat, as most are these days.

 

Life intervened,  and I have not cooked them yet. Have not checked them for smell, as they are in the auxiliary fridge in the storage room.

 

Are they still good? For how much longer? The market gets shrimp from the coast every other day.

 

 

 

I wouldn't eat them. Seafood is one of the most common sources of food poisoning. For me freshness, is paramount. Fortunately, unlike most, I get my shrimp live.

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I'm very squeamish about seafood. And I have a very sensitive nose, which is often a liability, but nothing I can ignore. My strict rule about shrimp and all seafood is that I eat it the day of purchase. We buy wild gulf shrimp here in the Bay Area and I assume it has been frozen once; the price is embarrassing but the farmed shrimp that's available isn't appealing.  It would be very exciting to live somewhere with shrimp day boats!  

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24 minutes ago, Katie Meadow said:

 

  It would be very exciting to live somewhere with shrimp day boats!  

 

I've become a fan of frozen Argentine red shrimp - wild. Just a kiss of heat is all they require. Trader Joes and Kroger carry them (for me Kroger = Ralphs)  I've bought live Santa Barbara spot prawns and wow expensive when up in Morro Bay but that is a huge indulgence. They tend to be full of roe as well.  https://santamonicaseafood.com/seafood/santa-barbara-spot-prawns

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I have not seen this thread before.  In Oz we have many types of prawn, including fresh water. All different and at different times of the year the same prawn will change. Still good all year round.

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44 minutes ago, Captain said:

I have not seen this thread before.  In Oz we have many types of prawn, including fresh water. All different and at different times of the year the same prawn will change. Still good all year round.

 

OK so we can add "mudbugs" to the equation. Gotta love crayfish.  https://nola.eater.com/maps/best-boiled-crawfish-new-orleans-nola

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