Can anything GOOD be done with those frozen precooked shrimp from the supermarket?

[Richard Steele]

I'm currently staying with some friends who aren't exactly "foodies",
to say the least.
(These are full-grown adults who have never owned a CUTTING BOARD! :wow:)


Anyway, when they first agreed to let me crash here for the winter,
I volunteered my services as cook. The house "grocery shopper" asked
me a few questions about what items I'd like on the "wish list" area
of the grocery list (the "wish list" is stuff we can only afford if
it's on sale)

I mentioned shrimp...and the grocer shopper, not knowing any better,
bought a FREEZER FULL of those frozen pre-cooked shrimp rings when
he saw them at $2 apiece.

To be fair: even as crappy as this shrimp is, that was still
a hell of a good price.

But I'm running out of things to try to make this stuff edible.
Thawed and eaten as intended, they're bland. I've tried thawing
them in a marinade- limited success. Frying, they fall apart into mush.

The only DECENT result so far has been when I sauteed some in garlic butter
and used the resultant shrimp/butter mush to season a big bowl of rice
to accompany a heavily-ginger-based chicken stir-fry...that was pretty darned tasty.

But I can't make that every night, and I've got a dozen more suppers' worth
of this shrimp to work through.

Any recipes (or even vague notions) y'all might have will be very well recieved, Itellyawhut!

Richard

[TreasonousBastard]

1. I would throw it away immediately unless you have access to...

a lab that can test it.

Back in the 80s when I was researching "rejection" insurance as an additional coverage to cargo insurance I came across a scam where importers brought in Indian Ocean shrimp and the shipboard refrigeration failed, they were packed improperly, or something else caused them to go rotten. They were rejected at a US port and insurance paid the claim. They stayed on the ship and made it to the next port of call, having changed owners (on paper only) and new insurance purchased, and were rejected again, with the claim again paid. This went on for as long as they could get away with it, and eventually the lot was sold to a pet food factory in Mexico.

The Mexicans cleaned the stuff up with formaldehyde and some other gunk, repackaged it as Mexican frozen shrimp and trucked it across the border.

Now, here's a more recent shrimp scam involving newer players, with the bad guys not being Indian or Mexican, nor even Chinese, but good ol' American small businessmen:

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1370/is_n3_v31/ai_19312310/pg_2

(I haven't bought frozen shrimp since 1982)

[Warpy]

3. I'm afraid all shrimp are frozen shrimp

unless you live on the Gulf coast or buy the little salad shrimp in Maine.

[TreasonousBastard]

7. Well, even there they've been on ice in the boat for...

a while. In fact, just about all "fresh" seafood you buy in a market has been "frozen" by sitting on ice for up to a week. Or more.

I used to buy at the Fulton Fish Market and the "fresh" stuff there was sitting on ice in the boat for days waiting to get to the docks in Boston or Tampa. Then it spent a couple of days getting trucked up to New York where it sat in the wholesaler's chill rooms. Finally, it got picked up at 4AM by a restaurant or fishmonger to be put on ice again where you bought it as "fresh." Properly prepared frozen fishy things (and held at 30 degrees for a day before actual freezing) can't be told from these commonly sold "fresh" fish, and are often superior.

But, if something has no taste and literally falls apart when cooking, I am extremely suspect. Even more so when it's at a bargain price.

(Even the guys I knew at Fulton Market tried to sell me bad fish every time they had the chance-- the scams there were legendary and you had to know, and care, what you were buying.)

[Warpy]

13. I used to go to a wholesaler

or buy it right off the boat in Boston. The wholesaler thought I was nuts, but I've never minded scaling and gutting my own fish. At least a look at the eyes told me how long it had been sitting there.

The exception was monkfish. Those things are so butt ugly they behead them right there in the boat.

[TreasonousBastard]

18. Dunno if it's still a problem, but some of the boats...

used to make Boston the second stop if they couldn't get their price elsewhere. They never learned that the Boston dealers knew the fish was a day older. There are boats that go out for the day, and others that go out for the week, or until their holds are full. Around here, there are boats that go out daily, and dealers that have fish traps in the bay. Their fish are usually as good as those I catch myself.

The whole "fresh" thing drives me nuts. I usually bought only fillets at the market because I could sniff and taste them before buying, knowing the only guaranteed "fresh" fish were the ones I caught myself. If they were stored properly and the quality was there, I didn't care how old they were.

It's become pretty standard for the head- and charterboats out here to fillet everything and have most of the fish go into this huge bucket of skeletons for the trash. (Something to do with the guys liking fishing but not cooking, and their wives OK with cooking the fish, but it better not look back at them) If I can be sure the fish are OK, I prefer the whole fish, and not just because the eyes have it. Dressing the fish is messy, but the whole fish can be cooked and baked in so many marvelous ways without the waste of filleting. Even if I end up filleting them for the freezer, I make fishhead stew so as not to waste that excellent meat in the cheeks and "neck."

(The reactions of people who have never seen fishhead stew before are even better than the stew.)

[Richard Steele]

15. Remind me to start calling you "My little ray of sunshine" first thing tomorrow, won't you? nm

[TreasonousBastard]

19. Hey! You asked. Would you want I should tell you to..

eat all that raw spinach a while back?

[Richard Steele]

23. Lol! Yes, maybe I would WANT that....

Hey, I -want- to hear that everything will always be OK,
all the time, forever...

Sadly, what I WANT is not always what's best for me. :(



After reading your post, I now feel the need to do something
EXTRA special with this shrimp...because I may not ever eat
shrimp again after this batch has been dealt with.

That's some scary info you gave me there. Seriesly. :scared:

[Warpy]

2. I'm afraid the best use for those things

is shrimp salad. You might also cut them into small pieces and do them in tomato sauce, but that's also going to give you that cruddy cooked-frozen-thawed-recooked texture.

Seriously, thawing, draining, pressing, and then cutting up for salad is the best you can do with those things.

I know, I made the mistake when I was still to blind to tell the difference inside a frosted package between raw and cooked.

[Richard Steele]

4. Hmmm..that's actually a very helpful post. Thanks!

"Shrimp salad" is a simple idea...so simple it never occurred to me.

And it's a very USEFUL thought at the moment, because one of my
current housemates has some complicated dietary restrictions
that make it hard to cook a single dish that he can eat alongside
everyone else. (he's on some meds that have a whole bunch of
"negative food interactions", and the stuff he needs to avoid
is a VERY long list that has few consistent commonalities)

But I could make a "shrimp salad" that he could eat, and everyone else
could tolerate.
Heck, I could make SEVERAL very different shrimp salads like that!
Ideas are already crowding into my pointy little head!

Thanks, Warpy- I owe you one !
(one more than I've owed you since last time, lol!)


Richard

(eddittid fer spellin)

[Tangerine LaBamba]

5. There's only one thing to do with something

that sounds so awful. Ewww.

But, there is hope!!!

Shrimp toast. You have to grind or mince the shrimp, so, ultimately the texture isn't very important.

I mix the shrimp with minced water chestnuts, a hit of soy sauce, some rice wine or dry Sherry, and an egg with some cornstarch to hold it all together. Cut some cheap white bread into triangle quarters, put a dab of the shrimp mixture on each triangle, and carefully fry it up in some nice, hot peanut oil.

These things are a real family favorite.

[hippywife]

6. You can make what I refer to as

reverse scampi. Cook the pasta first, then melt butter with minced garlic and in a deep skillet. Throw the pasta and the thawed schrimp in at the same time and toss until the shrimp heat up. Toss in a little parsley. Serve with parmesan cheese. You'll never taste 'em.

[grasswire]

8. isn't shrimp very high in cholesterol?

And a few other things that someone with dietary restrictions shouldn't eat too much of?

This sounds like a risky regular menu item. I would bury those things under the nearest rose bush. The circle of life.

[pengillian101]

9. isn't shrimp very high in cholesterol?

I wonder also. And then the food network healthy gal who cooks healthy -- healthy -- shows up. She says shrimp is high cholesterol, but it doesn't count. She says family health matters more. I surely don't know.

A local nutrients says "forget about about seafood being bad."

Seafood and fish. Best ever. Throw in a potato with sour cream alongside a vegie in the microwave.

Good meal to me.

[Gormy Cuss]

10. They're okay in a seafood chowder or Mediterranean -style soup.

Emphasis on "okay" -- not great, but you have to use them up. Buy some fish and make a chowder or soup using any recipe that suits you. After it's completely cooked, shut off the heat and add some shrimp. Let them steep in the warm broth until heated through.

A Chinese style stir-fry would work too -- use garlic, scallions, bok choy or broccoli and season with some soy sauce and vinegar or hot sauce. Add the shrimp at the last minute.

[hippywife]

12. Stirfry

was going to be my second suggestion. Anything where the overall flavor drowns them out. :hi:

[grasswire]

11. egg fu yung?

bean sprouts, diced celery & bell pepper, scallions, soy sauce, eggs, chopped shrimp.

Mix, and fry in patties in vegetable oil.

[The empressof all]

14. You also can make shrimp patties or croquettes

Just mix the shrimp with some flavored bread crumbs and a few eggs. Form into patties, stick them in the fridge a while to cool and firm up, then give a quick coat in flour before pan frying. Served with a really garlicy aioli or even just some cocktail sauce and lemon wedges.

[Richard Steele]

17. That idea might -could-be a big hit here- Shrimp Burgers!

There's a grill on the patio that gets little use, but
we've been discussing firing it up for an "anti-cookout"
to commemorate the year's first snowstorm- shrimp burgers
might be a GREAT new item to make for such an event!

I can give the troops a choice of the garlic aioli or ketchup;
that should please almost everyone.
Thanks! :thumbsup:

[The empressof all]

21. Be careful on that grill

These patties will be very tender and need gentle cooking. If you must grill them outside use a flat-top on the grate. If you put them directly on a grate I think they will not only break but stick as well.

[Richard Steele]

22. Yes indeedy. I believe there's a large cast-iron plate that fits one side of the grill...

Using that will definitely be the way to go.
Get that nice and hot, drizzle on some seasoned oil
and then get the patties on fast before the oil
starts to burn...ideally, that should give them
a nice brown crust that will help them hold shape,
and look pretty as well.

I suppose that's more like "frying" than "grilling",
but as long as it tastes good I reckon no one will care
to split hairs over terms and definitions.

[sandnsea]

16. Shrimp gumbo

They're okay in soups and chowders, like gormy cuss said above. I also give them a quick stir in a little olive oil and lemon. Thaw them under cold water, pat with a paper towel, then toss them in. They definitely aren't the greatest for most cooking. But at $2, I agree, what a deal.

[frickaline]

20. My first choice would be stuffed mushroom caps or any kind of 'stuffed' recipe

The loss in texture won't be a problem for stuffing.

I'd be tempted to try a baked shrimp casserole, but only if the texture can withstand it. Depends on how limp they are.

[hippywife]

25. Good thinkin'!

Stuffed portabellas! :9

[Texasgal]

24. You could mince it finely

with some garlic and herbs and make a paste. Take your shrimp paste and slather it on bell peppers or crackers.

[japple]

26. Cat food n/t