Shrimp and prawn as food

As with other seafood, shrimp is high in protein but low in food energy. A shrimp-based meal is also a significant source of cholesterol, from 122 mg to 251 mg per 100 g of shrimp, depending on the method of preparation.^[7] Shrimp consumption, however, is considered healthy for the circulatory system because the lack of significant levels of saturated fat in shrimp means that the high cholesterol content in shrimp actually improves the ratio of LDL to HDL cholesterol and lowers triglycerides.^[8]

Shrimp are high in levels of omega-3s (generally beneficial) and low in levels of mercury (generally toxic),^[9] with an FDA study in 2010 showing a level of 0.001 parts per million, analysing only methylmercury.^[10]

Preparing shrimp for consumption usually involves removing the head, shell, tail, and "sand vein". A notable exception is drunken shrimp, a dish using freshwater shrimp that is often eaten alive, but immersed in ethanol to make consumption easier.^[11]

To shell a shrimp, the tail is held while gently removing the shell around the body. The tail can be detached completely at this point, or left attached for presentation purposes.

Although the head and shell are generally removed before consumption, they are edible when cooked.^[12]

Removing the "sand vein" (a euphemism for the digestive tract) is referred to as "deveining". The sand vein can be removed by making a shallow cut lengthwise down the outer curve of the shrimp's body, allowing the dark ribbon-like digestive tract to be removed with a pointed utensil. Special deveining tools are sometimes used but knives, skewers, and even toothpicks can be used to devein.^[13][14] Alternatively, if the tail has been detached, the vein can be pinched at the tail end and pulled out completely with the fingers. On large shrimp, the "blood vein" (a euphemism for the ventral nerve cord) along the inner curve of the shrimp's body is typically removed as well. The shrimp is then rinsed under cold running water. Removing the vein is not essential, as it is not poisonous and is mostly tasteless.^[15] Deveining does slightly change the flavor and makes it more consistent.^[16] Shrimp also sometimes consume small amounts of sand and the vein might thus be gritty.

Shrimp and prawns are versatile ingredients. Common methods of preparation include baking, boiling, frying, grilling and barbequing. They are as delicate as eggs with regard to cooking time. When they are overcooked, they have a tough and rubbery texture.

 

Recipes using shrimp form part of the cuisine of many cultures. Strictly speaking, dishes containing scampi should be made from the Norway lobster, a shrimp-like crustacean more closely related to the lobster than shrimp. Scampi is often called the "Dublin Bay prawn", and in some places it is quite common for other prawns to be used instead.

Wet shrimp is commonly used as a flavoring and as a soup base in Asian cuisines while fried shrimp is popular in North America. In Europe, shrimp is very popular, forming a necessary ingredient in Spanish paella de marisco, Italian cacciucco, Portuguese caldeirada and many other seafood dishes. Shrimp curry is very popular in South Asia and Southeast Asia. Shrimp are also found in Latin and Caribbean dishes such as enchiladas and coconut shrimp. Other recipes include jambalaya, okonomiyaki, poon choi and bagoong. Shrimp are also consumed as salad, by frying, with rice, and as shrimp guvec (a dish baked in a clay pot) in the Western and Southern coasts of Turkey. In the subject of Japanese sushi, shrimp has long been valued as the "king of sushi-dane", as its composition can be either raw or cooked, and its latter preparation has often been considered a good introduction or choice for those unfamiliar to eating sushi, especially dishes involving raw fish.

Shrimp could also be fermented into shrimp paste in South East Asia and China.^[17]

Shrimp are marketed and commercialized with several issues in mind. Most shrimp are sold frozen and marketed based on their categorization of presentation, grading, colour and uniformity.^[18]

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  Shrimp chilled with ice in a market
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  Split raw shrimp
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  Frozen shrimp

Many various dishes are prepared using shrimp as a primary ingredient. Ebiko, or shrimp roe, sometimes translated as "shrimp flakes", is used as an ingredient in the preparation of sushi.^[19] There also exists popcorn shrimp, garlic butter shrimp, and breaded or battered deep-fried small shrimp.

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  Thai seafood set, shrimp soup, shrimp salad and deep fried shrimp
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  Drunken shrimp
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  Tom yum goong, a Thai prawn soup
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  A bowl of boiled shrimp
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  Sashimi

There is a growing food fraud concern in Asia–Pacific where non-food grade gels are injected into shrimp and prawns to increase their weight and visual appeal. ^[20][21]

In 2022, Cambodia seized 7 tons of shrimp that had been injected with carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) gel.^[22] Three grams of CMC can be used to make 50 kilos of gel, which can be used for one tonne of shrimp.^[23]

To combat food fraud, NIST offers Standard Reference Materials: Wild-caught Shrimp (RM 8258) and Aquacultured Shrimp (RM 8259) for testing.^[24]

External videos
Peeling and Deveining Shrimp - YouTube

• Crayfish as food
• Culinary name
• Eating live seafood
• Fish as food
• Pain in crustaceans
• Seafood
• Shrimp fishery

•   Media related to Shrimps or prawns as food at Wikimedia Commons
•   Shrimp at the Wikibooks Cookbook subproject