Fill a large pot with water until a little more than halfway full. Stir in all aromatics except lemon (if using), and bring the water to a boil. While you're waiting, fill up a large bowl with ice—this is how you'll cool your shrimp after they boil so they don't overcook.
After adding your shrimp to the boiling water, keep your eye on the pot and don't move on to another task. Overcooking shrimp causes them to take on a tough, rubbery texture. When your shrimp turn pink and begin to curl, you'll know they're done.
Add 8 cups water and bring to a boil over med/high heat. 2. Once water boils, add the peeled and deveined shrimp and simmer until pink, about 2-3 minutes depending on the size of the shrimp. Drain and transfer cooked shrimp to a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking process and let cool.
Overcooking shrimp will cause the shell to start coming off while boiling. The shell separating from the meat indicates that they have been cooked too long and may be slightly less tender but still edible.
Cook the shrimp for 2 to 3 minutes per side, until opaque. Transfer to a serving dish. Finish with fresh lemon juice and salt.
Look at the color of the shrimp
However, after shrimp has been cooked, it should do a 180-degree turn and be white with pops of pink or red. You also shouldn't be able to see into the shrimp anymore. If your shrimp still have a tinge of gray or translucency to them, chances are they are not done cooking.
He said mushiness when cooked up is a sure sign the spot prawn heads were left on too long after it died. He said with heads on, there' s an enzyme that makes the flesh mushy when it dies, so unless you're cooking it very, very soon after death, remove the heads or buy them with heads removed.
Chances are you're overcooking your shrimp — most of us do. Since shrimp can go from raw to tough, dry, and overcooked in the span of a few minutes, it's easy to do. To turn out perfectly-cooked shrimp, look for two visual cues. First, pay close attention to color and opaqueness.
Should I rinse the shrimp? Rinse the shrimp to make sure it is all cleaned off. You can clean shrimp when they're raw or previously cooked. Rinse the shrimp in cold water to remove any loose shell bits or gunk from the inside of the shrimp.
The key is to remove them from the heat right when the flesh is uniformly pink, with no brown or greyish-brown spots. Perfectly cooked shrimp generally curl into a loose "C" shape, while overcooked shrimp tend to curl into a tight "C". Tightly curled shrimp are a sure sign of toughness.
Seafood. Seafood, especially shellfish, gets tough when overcooked. Shrimp, scallops and the like are revived a little if you simmer them in a mixture of butter and lemon juice. Salmon and hearty fish like that will be alright if you add a creamy sauce or brush with butter.
If you boil too long, you risk overcooking the ingredients and ruining the taste. On the other hand, under-cooking will also affect the taste, so make sure the proteins are cooked to 145 degrees and your lobster and shrimp achieve a bright white and pink coloring and are no longer translucent or gray.
Day Dream Kitchen explains that vinegar helps to loosen the attachment between the shell and the meat of the shrimp. They claim it is not 100 % effective, but it does help. Vinegar also helps to add flavor to the shrimp. Live Strong says that adding vinegar enhances the taste of shrimp, and Black Tail NYC agrees.
Go to Recipe This is because when your cold meat comes into contact with the high heat of cooking, the muscle fibers in the meat get shocked by the temperature change, thus they shrink up and start to expel excessive protein and water mix that comes out as the denatured white stuff that you see when you cook meat.
Start With a Brine, No Matter How You're Cooking
It may sound minor, but the combination works wonders: the salt helps keep the shrimp nice and moist as they cook, while alkaline baking soda delivers a crisp, firm texture.
Alkaline baking soda slightly alters the pH of the shrimp, making them as plump and succulent as lobster and resistant to overcooking. The brine also causes the meat to pull away from the shells while cooking, so you get all the great flavor of shell-on shrimp without the hassle.
Cook the shrimp for 2-3 minutes on each side, flipping only once midway. Depending on the size of your shrimp and how many you have in the pan, this will usually take 4 to 6 minutes. Lastly, transfer to a serving dish. Serve seared shrimp immediately with pasta or rice.
If the shrimp is undercooked, simply, bring another salted water to a boil, and cook the shrimp for another 1 minute. Then, drain and let them cool on the colander.
Most chefs agree that cooking the shrimp with the heads and shells on, while annoying to peel, makes the shrimp tastier and more flavorful. If desired, de-vein the shrimp before you place them in the pot to cook. Boil the shrimp until a few start floating on top of the water.
Mix ¼ cup kosher salt with ¼ cup granulated sugar, 1 cup boiling water and 2 cups of ice. Add shrimp into a bowl of brine and let sit for 20-30 minutes for peeled shrimp and 40-60 minutes for your unpeeled shrimp. Rinse well with cold water and pat dry afterward. That's all there is to it!