If you want to make a delicious dish out of shrimp, you must first understand how to clean shrimp properly. This is an important step because uncleaned shrimp may degrade the dish’s flavor.
Before preparing and cleaning shrimp, make sure to choose fresh shrimp with high quality. Check the shrimp’s texture, color, and odor. For frozen shrimp, ensure that the body is not easily bent and not slimy, that the color is grayish and slightly transparent, and that it does not have a pungent odor.
Read further: Signs of Fresh and Spoiled Shrimp
If the frozen shrimp you choose fits the above criteria, you can clean it. Read the discussion below to learn how to clean shrimp properly.
How to Clean Shrimp
There are seven steps that you can implement sequentially when cleaning shrimp. The steps below apply to whole shrimp with intact head, shell, and tail.
1. Defrost frozen shrimp
The first step in cleaning frozen shrimp is defrosting it. There are two ways to defrost frozen shrimp, namely quick defrost and slow defrost.
For quick defrost, place the shrimp that is still covered in plastic packaging on a colander then submerge it under running water. Wait until the shrimp has thawed slightly.
Meanwhile, for slow defrost, place the frozen shrimp in a colander and soak it in a big basin of cold water for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, replace it with new, cold water. Then, place the colander with the shrimp back in the basin of new water and let it sit for 10-20 minutes. Finally, drain the shrimp to clean them.
2. Rinse shrimp under running water
After the shrimp have thawed, take them from the package and rinse them one by one under running water. Remove any dirt and slime that is still attached to the shrimp. To keep it from spilling, place the shrimp in a holed container or colander.
3. Remove the shrimp shell and head (optional)
Some people prefer to eat shrimp whose shell and head are removed. If you are one of them, simply cut the head and peel the shell.
When peeling the shrimp shell, hold the tail and pull slowly. If the shell is hard to peel that way, cut the shrimp shell from the head to the tail with scissors and then open it until it is entirely removed.
4. Remove the shrimp legs (optional)
Some people also prefer to eat shrimp whose legs are removed since shrimp legs are quite sharp and may interfere with the enjoyment of eating. If you want to prepare shrimp with their legs off, hold the shrimp legs firmly and pull them toward the tail until they come off. Another option is to separate the shrimp legs from the body one by one.
5. Remove the shrimp tails (optional)
When fried, the shrimp tails can be crispy, enriching the texture of the dish. The shrimp tails, like the shrimp’s shell, head, and legs can be distracting to some people. If you don’t want to cook the shrimp with their tails on, simply discard them with your fingers or cut them with a knife.
6. Remove the dirt from the back of the shrimp
The long, dark dirt or vein along the back of a shrimp is actually its digestive tube or intestine. To clean it, slit the back of the shrimp and pull out the digestive tube with a toothpick or knife.
7. Coat the shrimp with lime juice
This final step is done to eliminate the fishy odor from the shrimp. Allow the shrimp to soak in the lime juice for 10-15 minutes before rinsing under cold water. After that, the shrimp are ready to be prepared for various cuisines.
Conclusion
Now you understand how to clean frozen shrimp properly. To elevate dish quality, follow the steps outlined below when you clean your shrimp.
However, understanding how to clean shrimp is not enough. You should also choose fresh, high quality shrimp to enhance the flavor of your dishes. Therefore, Frosala frozen shrimp is the right choice for you.
Each Frosala frozen shrimp has undergone the same-day freezing process to ensure its freshness. You don’t have to worry because the shrimp you receive are still fresh since they were harvested from the farm. Frosala also offers a variety of frozen shrimp selections, ranging from whole to peeled, allowing you to adjust to your culinary creations.
