Last Updated on June 9, 2018
Terri e-mailed the Kitchen Shrink to ask for help in cooking shrimp. She said that no matter how she cooks them, her shrimp seem tough.
Whether you deep fry, sauté, stir-fry, steam or boil shrimp, they cook to tender, juicy perfection very, very quickly and then overcook. Shrimp should be cooked just until they turn color and then removed before they are cooked through. The stored heat will complete cooking them. If shrimp are going to be a part of a mixed dish, it is best to cook them first and remove them from the heat. Then stir them into the finished dish just before serving.
I live in Florida where beautiful pink shrimp is abundant. I Place it in a pan with a bit of salt with the shells intact and barely cover them with water. Bring them to a full boil and remove from heat. Wait 3 minutes and immediately drain and plunge them in an ice water bath. Chill completely before cleaning. I use extra large or jumbo shrimp. Small ones may not take 3 minutes. Let me know how this works.