How to cook defrosted shrimp. How much and how should I cook frozen shrimp? Flavored meat with spices in variations

At first glance, there is nothing difficult in how to properly boil shrimp. You just need to read the instructions on the package and follow it clearly. Practice shows that this may not be enough to get the desired result. When the product is boiled for salad, one approach is needed to it. Shrimp protruding as independent dish, require special handling. Given the fact that in our region it is most often necessary to cook frozen ingredients, this point should also be taken into account when choosing a recipe.


How to choose quality frozen shrimp?

First of all, you need to learn how to choose the right semi-finished product. It doesn't matter whether it goes for a salad or acts as a snack for beer, you should adhere to the following rules:

  1. High cost is not an indicator of quality. You should not choose the most expensive from the offered options, you must first evaluate the products. If frozen shrimp are not sold in transparent packaging and cannot be viewed, we discard this option immediately.
  2. Despite the fact that the main catch of the product comes from Asian countries, European manufacturers pay much more attention to the quality of the product.
  3. You should not buy seafood if the package contains individuals with black heads. This is a sign that animals are infected and the consequences of eating them can be the most negative.
  4. It is also better to refuse headless shrimp carcasses. Firstly, it is difficult to achieve the desired degree of juiciness from such a component. Secondly, the heads could be removed precisely because they gave out a low quality of individuals.
  5. But brown heads belong to pregnant individuals. On the contrary, their meat is very nutritious and healthy.
  6. Small shrimps are ideal for salad. They should be very crisp, as evidenced by their curled tail.
  7. Good quality frozen shrimp should be the same size and shape. It is impossible for them to be presented as a stuck together lump, it is good when each element is separated from the total mass. The bag must be free of snow or ice pieces.
  8. The gray color of the shrimp indicates that they were frozen raw. Pink indicates their preliminary heat treatment. The presence of spots and dents on the shells should alert. You can not be afraid of green heads, this is simply the result of the peculiarities of the diet of individuals.

According to experienced chefs, it is best to purchase preparations for a salad that have not passed any heat treatment... A cooked-frozen product sometimes contains salt or some additional ingredients, which is why the taste ready meal can change.

Do shrimp need to be thawed before cooking?

The controversy on this topic has not subsided for many years and there is still no consensus. Both options have a right to exist, and each culinary specialist must decide for himself what to do. First of all, you need to carefully read the instructions for the recipe you like. The processing procedure for frozen and thawed food can differ markedly, therefore the results in both cases will have their own specifics.

Tip: Despite the fact that today a wide variety of kitchen gadgets have become available to chefs, it is better to boil shrimp in the traditional way, in a saucepan. Steamers, multicooker and microwave ovens are so capricious in terms of modes and timers that they can ruin a quality product.

Shrimp, which will be put into salad, do not need complicated processing, so it is better to boil them frozen. But if you want to cook some kind of semi-finished product unusual dish, you will have to spend a few minutes on preliminary preparation of the component. This can be done in one of the following ways:

  • Take a sealed bag of shrimp and immerse it in cool water for a few minutes. If the product has been frozen correctly, then it will thaw out pretty quickly to the desired state and can be cleaned (when necessary).
  • The frozen shrimp can be doused with boiling water so that the top layer of ice comes off them. Some housewives mistakenly believe that boiled-frozen components after such exposure are allowed to be immediately laid out in a salad. In fact, even if the items are pink and hot on the outside, they are still cold on the inside. So additional processing is required.
  • Finally, the products can be defrosted in a microwave oven. It is better to use profile mode for this. If it is absent, we set the device to the minimum power and send the workpieces into it for a minute. Repeat the procedure if necessary.

There are many options for cooking frozen shrimp. If you wish, you can come up with your own own recipes, you just need to adhere to the basic rules technological process.

How to boil frozen shrimp deliciously?

The shrimp from which it is planned to prepare the salad should be bland and tasteless. To prepare them, it is enough to take boiling water and a colander. We place the product in a colander, filling no more than half. We pour boiling water over them, getting rid of the ice crust. When the water drains, we transfer the workpieces to a saucepan and fill with fresh boiling water. We wait no more than 30 seconds and drain the liquid. The products remain to be cleaned and can be sent to the salad.

If you want something special, you should try these approaches:

  • In spicy water. Take frozen shrimp, plenty of water (twice the weight of seafood), bay leaves, clove buds, black pepper and lemon juice. Fill the main component with water and set on medium heat. As soon as signs of boiling appear, add all the other ingredients and reduce the heat to a minimum. Cooking time under closed lid ranges from 2 minutes for small cooked-frozen shrimps, and 5 minutes for small raw shrimps, up to 15 minutes for raw king prawns.
  • In beer. For 1 kg of shrimp, take 2 liters of light unfiltered beer, a bunch of parsley, lemon and a couple of garlic cloves. Pour the beer into a saucepan, put the container on the fire. As soon as the drink boils, add chopped herbs, lemon juice, chopped garlic to it. After a minute, lay out the shrimps and cook them under the lid after boiling again for 2 minutes for a boiled product and 5 minutes for a raw product.

Of course, products prepared in this way can also be sent to a salad. But in this case, their taste characteristics should be taken into account so that the taste of the final dish does not turn out to be too rich.

What's the best way to boil defrosted shrimp?

The main advantage of defrosted shrimp is that they can be peeled. After that, the product is washed in cold water and processed. It is noteworthy that with such approaches, the broth is an important part of the dish. It does not need to be poured, the product is fed directly into it.

  • Pour a tablespoon of olive oil into the bottom of a saucepan or large saucepan. When it warms up, put the finely chopped half of the onion in it and reduce the heat to medium.
  • When the onion turns golden, add finely chopped garlic and immediately spread the prepared shrimp (no more than 0.5 kg).
  • Pour half a glass of water, add salt and spices. As soon as the mass boils, make a low heat, close the container and cook the product for no more than 2 minutes. Serve immediately.

Also, shrimps are boiled in salted water, milk, white wine. If desired, any of the recipes can be adapted, taking into account the type and quality of the semi-finished product. Usually, such experiments end with the creation culinary masterpieces.

Shrimp, like all other seafood, is quite healthy, as it contains a lot of trace elements and protein. But their taste directly depends on the correct processing and preparation of the product for cooking. Unfortunately, not many people know that the taste and aroma of shrimp depends precisely on their correct defrosting. Improper processing will deprive the product of juiciness. For this reason, every housewife needs to know how to properly defrost shrimp so that the final result of the dish is excellent.

How to defrost shrimp properly?

The current trading network offers customers to buy shrimp in several types: fresh, fresh-frozen and boiled-frozen. We buy the latter most often, so we will pay attention to them.

After purchasing seafood, the main task of the housewives is to cook them in such a way as to preserve all the minerals, vitamins and make it tasty. Unfortunately, not many people know how to cook shrimp properly without losing its nutritional properties.

To properly cook frozen shrimp, first of all, you need to properly defrost them. If you have enough time left, it is best to defrost the shrimp slowly. To do this, you need to extract them from freezer, put in a sieve and refrigerate. Thus, the shrimp will gradually thaw, and the water will drain from them without stagnation. This procedure will take you 8-9 hours, so it is better to do it from evening to morning.

There is a second method for defrosting shrimp faster. Fill a special freezer bag with shrimp and place it in a container filled with warm water. This method of defrosting shrimp will preserve their delicate texture, pleasant aroma and taste, although the previous method is more gentle.

If you do not have time to defrost shrimp at all, then you can dip the frozen ones in boiling salted water, close the pan with a lid so that the water boils and boil them for about 10-20 seconds. Then turn off the stove and leave the shrimp in the hot broth for 20 minutes. You can also quickly cook frozen shrimp by frying them for about 5 minutes for vegetable oil in a highly heated frying pan.

The main mistakes of defrosting shrimp

Many housewives use a microwave to quickly defrost shrimp. However, this should not be done, since seafood not only loses nutrients, but also completely loses its pleasant aroma and juice.

In addition, I would like to note that if you have already thawed the shrimps, then you cannot re-freeze them! Especially if these are large shrimps, like king or tiger shrimps.

Shrimp Cooking Secrets

After defrosting the shrimp, the process of boiling them properly is equally important. To preserve the greatest amount of useful microelements in the pulp, put the shrimp in a colander, rinse with running water and allow excess liquid to drain. After waiting for the water to boil, add salt and your favorite spices, let it boil for about 5-7 minutes, so that the broth gains aroma and taste. Then pour the shrimp with the resulting brine, in which they stand for 2-4 minutes. Only in this case, you will receive delicious seafood, which will be ready for their further use or consumption.

How to cook frozen unpeeled shrimp? To properly cook shrimp at home, no special skills and abilities are required. However, there are some simple tips that will help you avoid annoying cooking mistakes and allow you to get a delicious and nutritious product.

Shrimp is a popular seafood high in protein. Low in calories and healthy. Contains a minimum amount of fat (no more than 2.5 g per 100 g of product). It is used as an independent snack for a foamy drink, it is an additional ingredient for salads and soups.

In this article, I will look at the main points when cooking shrimp and king prawns and some interesting recipes.

3 main rules for cooking shrimp

  1. Frozen seafood should not be immediately put into boiling water after opening the package. This is the most common mistake. Pre-defrost the shrimp under running warm water. Rinsing will speed up the defrosting process and get rid of broken tendrils, claws and other unwanted particles.
  2. The optimal ratio of water to product is 2 to 1. Take 40 grams of salt per liter of liquid when cooking in a shell, and 2 times less when cooking without it.
  3. To speed up the process and preserve the taste, it is better to put slightly thawed shrimp in boiling water to obtain rich broth- in the cold.

How much to cook shrimp


Shrimp meat is very tender, like crayfish meat, so keeping it on the stove for a long time does not make sense. Moreover, overcooked shrimp turn out to be harsh and rubbery, which spoils the overall impression of the snack.

  • Frozen unpeeled regular shrimp should be cooked for 3-5 minutes.
  • Unprocessed frozen king prawns are cooked for about 7 minutes.
  • Ordinary fresh frozen shrimp, which has a gray-green hue, takes 6-7 minutes to cook.

Cooking video

Cooking Secrets for Salad

  1. It is better to cook the product with a lot of spices, including cloves, allspice, bay leaf.
  2. To get rid of the glaze ("ice coat"), rinse the shrimp thoroughly with warm water.
  3. Place the previously thawed food only in boiling water to preserve delicate taste meat, and not give it to the broth.
  4. After boiling, rinse the seafood with cold water to make it easier to remove the shells.

How to cook frozen shrimp for beer


Ingredients:

  • Shrimp - 1 kg,
  • Bow - 1 head,
  • Dill - 1 bunch,
  • Allspice - 2 peas,
  • Bay leaf - 2 pieces,
  • Carnation - 1 bud,
  • Salt to taste.

Preparation:

  1. Thawing shrimp. I wash it with warm water, putting it in a colander. I let the liquid drain.
  2. I pour water into a saucepan. I put spices and salt. I'm sending it to the burner.
  3. I put shrimps in boiling water. I cover it with a lid. I cook for 3 to 5 minutes. I remove it from the stove. I drain the water.

Video recipe

A great beer snack is ready!

Beer brewing recipe

In the preparation, a large number of additional ingredients are used to flavor and give a unique taste to delicate seafood.

Ingredients

Servings: 10

  • shrimps 1000 g
  • beer 700 ml
  • garlic 4 tooth.
  • lemon 1 PC
  • onion 2 pcs
  • parsley 1 branch
  • Bay leaf 6 sheets
  • salt 1 tsp
  • Red pepper 3 g
  • black pepper 3 g

Per serving

Calories: 95 kcal

Proteins: 18.9 g

Fats: 2.2 g

Carbohydrates: 0 g

13 minutes Video Recipe Print

    I wash frozen unpeeled shrimps in warm water... I put it in a dish to defrost.

    I peel the garlic and onions. Finely crumble.

    I take a large pot. I pour the beer and put it on the stove. After a minute, I put bay leaves, ground peppers (red and black), chopped parsley and vegetables into the warmed foamy drink.

    I bring it to a boil. I'm sending the main ingredient to boil. I mix gently.

    After 4-5 minutes, remove the pan from the heat. Close the lid tightly.

    I let the dish brew for 20-30 minutes. Stir from time to time.

    I drain the water and remove the lavrushka, leave the rest of the ingredients in the dish. I serve seafood on the table along with sour cream sauce.

How to cook in a slow cooker


Ingredients:

  • Water - 600 ml
  • Shrimp - 300 g,
  • Salt, allspice to taste.

Preparation:

  1. I slightly defrost the shrimp for more fast food.
  2. I put it in a special thicket for steaming. This method will make the meat juicy and not boiled, preserve vitamins and useful microelements.
  3. I pour in water, put my favorite spices (salt, pepper is required). I turn on the "Steam cooking" program for 10 minutes.

How to quickly cook shrimp in the microwave

Ingredients:

  • Shrimp - 1 kg,
  • Soy sauce - 2 large spoons,
  • Water - 2 tablespoons
  • Lemon - 1 piece
  • Salt - half a tablespoon.

Preparation:

  1. To defrost the shrimp faster, I put the packaging in a saucepan with warm water. I leave it for a while.
  2. I rinse thoroughly with running water. I dry it.
  3. I put the product in a bowl for cooking in a microwave oven.
  4. I prepare a mixture of soy sauce, salt and water.
  5. I fill the shrimp with the resulting composition (if desired, add your favorite spices and herbs).
  6. I put it in the microwave, turn on the maximum power. Cooking time is 3 minutes.
  7. I take it out of the microwave. Shake to mix. I am sending again to prepare for 3 minutes.
  8. I drain the resulting liquid from the dishes during cooking. Sprinkle with lemon juice and serve.

Steamer recipe


Ingredients:

  • Seafood - 1 kg,
  • Onion - 1 head,
  • Lemon - 1 piece
  • Celery - 1 piece,
  • Carrots - 1 piece,
  • Salt, seafood seasoning - to taste.

Preparation:

  1. I start with the preliminary preparation of the shrimp. I rinse in warm water, let the liquid drain. I put it on a plate and pour a special seasoning on top. I put the seafood platter aside to soak.
  2. I am engaged in vegetables. I clean and cut into large particles.
  3. I pour water into the cooking container (pressure cooker) up to the indicated mark.
  4. I put the shrimps on the bottom. I close the top with a "cap" of chopped vegetables and thin slices of lemon.
  5. I turn on the double boiler. I cook for 15-20 minutes for a couple.

Incredibly tender and easy to make sauce made from melted butter with fresh lemon juice will perfectly complement the taste of the dish.

Calorie content of boiled shrimp

Shrimp is a dietary product that contains a large amount of minerals (potassium, phosphorus, iron, etc.) and B-group vitamins.

There are only 95 kilocalories per 100 grams of the product.

The main part is proteins of animal origin (19 g / 100 g).

Do not be afraid to gain weight by eating boiled seafood with the addition of spices and without high-calorie fatty sauces (for example, based on sour cream or butter). It's incredibly delicious and useful product, which can be used as a stand-alone snack or as an addition to soups and salads.

Shrimp are most often sold frozen on supermarket and fish store shelves. But the benefits in such seafood are no less than in fresh ones, in addition, in most cases they are already peeled and sometimes even cooked, which greatly facilitates their preparation.

Shrimp themselves are very useful, it is a pure, easily digestible protein that contains trace elements necessary for the body. This crustacean can be either the main or an additional ingredient in a large number of dishes. It is very easy to quickly cook frozen shrimp, spending a minimum of time and showing a little imagination, you can get a truly restaurant dish.

What methods are used to prepare frozen shrimp

For most of us, shrimp is only delicious snack"Under the beer." They are usually boiled in water and eaten immediately. But this is far from the only and certainly not the most tasty way cooking these crustaceans.

Shrimps are not only boiled, but also fried, marinated, grilled, added to salads, first and main courses. Each method has its own characteristics, because the shrimp meat is very tender and you need to know how to prepare the product and how long to process it so that it does not become rubbery and tasteless. Let's take a look at all the cooking methods.

Cooking defrosted shrimp

How to cook shrimp

First, consider the most popular and quick method... Cooking shrimp has its own subtleties. Like all seafood, they do not require long-term heat treatment; moreover, boiled frozen semi-finished products are increasingly on sale. They differ from raw ones in their color, boiled ones have a pink tint, and raw ones have a dull gray.

It is enough to defrost a cooked frozen product and put it in boiling water for a couple of minutes. But in order to give the shrimp a special aroma, other spices are added to the water in addition to salt - garlic, dill, bay leaf, peppercorns and other seasonings to taste. Shrimp also love lemon juice, which is usually sprinkled on them before serving.

How much shrimp to cook? If the shrimps are raw, they are boiled for a certain time, depending on the size: small ones need 3-5 minutes to cook, large ones 5-7, but for king prawns it takes 7-8 minutes to cook, from the moment the water boils. It is important to remember that unpeeled shrimp take longer to cook.

The finished seafood floats to the surface and changes color, turning pink on the outside and white on the inside. They are removed from the heat and immediately placed in cool water for a few seconds to complete the heat treatment.

Grilled shrimp

Grilled prawns are delicious. But in this way, mainly large species are prepared - tiger or royal. Small ones can be cooked in the form of a kebab strung on wooden long skewers. Another feature is that shrimp must be peeled and marinated before grilling.

To prepare them, grease them with olive oil, sprinkle with spices and grill until they change color, 2-3 minutes on each side.

In the same way, you can bake shrimp in the oven at 170 degrees, but it will take a little longer.

Frying

Fried shrimps are just as tasty as boiled ones. They are cooked in a mixture of olive and butter. Shrimps are placed in already highly heated oil along with garlic and spices, fried for 3-5 minutes, stirring all the time. Coarse and unpeeled seafood takes longer to fry, about 8-10 minutes.

Interestingly, fried unpeeled varieties are recommended to be eaten together with the shell; it is believed that it contains the most useful substances.

Deep fried

Sometimes you can pamper yourself with the most "unhealthy" way of cooking shrimp, namely deep-frying them.

Heat the oil in a deep fryer or deep frying pan, at this time peel the shrimps, dip in milk, flour and fry for 2-3 minutes, they should turn golden. Place crustaceans on paper towels to remove excess oil. You can use any breading - croutons, egg batter, etc.

How to cook frozen shrimp without thawing

All of the above methods assume that the shrimp is initially thawed. If you don't want to waste time on this process, you can use the following methods and devices:

1. Steamer

Pour water into a double boiler, lay shrimp, add olive oil, lemon juice and dill, steamed for 15 minutes.

2. Microwave

Put the washed frozen shrimp in the roasting sleeve, leaving some free space, pierce the sleeve in several places and cook for 12 minutes at 80% power.

3. Multicooker

It is not for nothing that this stove is gaining more and more popularity, because it makes life much easier and saves time.

The easiest way is to put the shrimps in a bowl, pour water over them so that it completely covers them, cook in the "Stew" mode for 20 minutes.

4. Scalding

This is how unfrozen peeled shrimps are prepared. Prepare boiling water with spices, place the frozen shrimp in a colander and pour half of the broth obtained, no ice should remain on the surface of the shellfish.

Place the scalded shrimps in a saucepan and pour over the remaining water, keep in it for no longer than a minute. Drizzle with lemon juice. You can start tasting.

Shrimp dishes

Shrimp prepared in the above ways can already be served as an appetizer, as well as added to salads, for example, with avocados, tomatoes, other seafood and vegetables. These salads are seasoned with mayonnaise, cream cheese, yogurt, soy sauce, lemon juice and olive oil.

Shrimp is cooked delicious soups, prepare the main dishes, these crustaceans are especially "friendly" with rice and pasta, the most popular dishes are paella or risotto with seafood and different kinds paste.

How to defrost shrimp

It is already clear that frozen shrimp is very easy to cook, while the preparatory process also does not take much time. After all, as it turned out, they do not even always need to be thawed and cleaned. But if, according to the recipe, the shrimp should be thawed, then there are several ways to do this.

  1. In water. The easiest way is to put them in a colander and hold them under running water.
  2. In the fridge. It is considered the most beneficial and safest way. Remove the shrimp from the packaging, transfer to a bowl and place on the lower shelf of the refrigerator for 8 hours, while maintaining the taste and aroma of the seafood.
  3. At room temperature... Enough quick way, but the shrimp meat loses its flavor during this procedure.
  4. In the package. Place a hermetically sealed bag with shrimps in a container with cold water.
  5. In a microwave oven. It is not recommended to use this method, as shrimps lose their aroma and taste during defrosting.

As you can see, cooking shrimp is really a very quick and easy process. It remains to find out a few culinary tricks, and this dish will definitely become a frequent guest in your home.

  • To prevent the shrimp from absorbing water back after defrosting, they must be thrown into a colander, allowing excess water to drain.
  • To enhance and saturate the taste of shrimp, they can be cooked in beer, they will become tender, soft and especially aromatic.
  • Be sure to rinse the shrimp before cooking to remove any small debris.

Many tribes living far from civilization on the coast of the seas and oceans eat shrimp and other seafood raw, while living up to 80 years. Of course, it is difficult to imagine that we eat marine life raw, but undoubted benefit these seafood is beyond doubt. On the shelves of our stores, frozen food is most often offered. How to prepare it to keep it nutritious and nutritional value, it is worth telling in this article.

How to choose?

Shrimp is a favorite seafood of many. These nutritious crustaceans not only taste delicious, but they also bring tremendous benefits to the body - and this is not surprising, because they contain a lot of iodine, calcium, protein, as well as healthy omega fats. In this case, the product belongs to the category of low-calorie, therefore, it is often included in the dietary food.

It should be noted that shrimp protein is absorbed a little more difficult and slower than fish protein, but it perfectly satisfies hunger and provides a feeling of fullness for a long time. Science knows more than 2000 species of shrimp, but we, as ordinary consumers, should only know the basics: there are warm-blooded and cold-blooded shrimps. The former are mined in warm seas, the latter, respectively, in cold ones.

Warm-blooded seafood comes to the shelves of our stores from Vietnam and South Asia, as well as from China, Thailand and Malaysia. Relatively recently, farms of Ecuador, as well as Brazil and Nicaragua, began to import their shrimp into Russia. These include the royal and tiger varieties, which reach a length of 20 and even 35 cm. But cold-blooded products are brought from the Baltic States, as well as from Denmark and Norway. Some of the imports are also Canadian seafood.

Cold-blooded shrimp are smaller than warm-blooded and much cheaper, but studies show that they contain much more trace elements and, accordingly, are more useful for the human body.

As a rule, buyers in stores sometimes do not pay attention to the importing country and it is completely in vain. Everyone knows that in European countries, products undergo much stricter quality control, but this cannot be said about Asian manufacturers, therefore there are quite a few complaints about their seafood.

Keep in mind that fresh shrimp cannot be stored for a long time, so if you are purchasing a chilled product, be sure to pay attention to the expiration date.

However, much more often frozen seafood is sold in our country. Usually they are either immediately placed in the freezer after catching, or they are pre-cooked and then frozen.

In addition, shrimp can be sold either peeled or in shells. Many people believe that it is better to buy peeled seafood, which significantly saves both time and money, because for every kilogram of peeled seafood there are about 3 kg of unpeeled seafood. but experienced chefs claim to taste unpeeled shrimp much richer and brighter. The quality experts give the following recommendations on what to look out for when purchasing seafood:

  • look at the information about the supplier indicated on the package - not only the name must be indicated, but also the organizational form, location and telephone numbers for communication; there are usually numbers next to the weight indication - they mean the approximate number of shrimps per 1 kg of total weight in the package, for example, the inscription 100/150 says that in each kilogram of mass there are from 100 to 150 units of seafood; if you buy shrimp without a head, then this parameter is indicated not per kilogram, but per pound, which corresponds to 450 g;
  • high quality shrimp are characterized by a smooth uniform color and have a slightly curved tail; if the tail is unfolded, this means that the shrimp died before freezing;
  • if you notice that the shells look dry, and the meat has acquired a yellowish tint, this indicates that the product is pretty old, perhaps even expired; the same is indicated by black spots on the shell - in this case, the purchase should also be abandoned;
  • if there is snow in the package, then in most cases this means that the products during transportation were thawed for some reason, and then re-frozen, in this case it is possible that they may turn out to be slightly rotten;
  • it is categorically not allowed to eat seafood with black heads - this is a sign of illness, but green heads should not scare you, it happens if crustaceans in their natural environment ate some varieties of plankton, as a rule, they are quite edible and very tasty; Well, if you got individuals with brown heads, eat them with pleasure, these are pregnant shrimps, the meat of which is extremely tasty, appetizing and nutritious.

Important! It is best to purchase shrimp of a grayish-brown hue - these are those products that have been frozen while still fresh, vitamins and minerals are fully preserved in them.

How to choose the best quality and healthy shrimp, described in the next video.

Defrosting rules

To make the shrimp as tasty and healthy as possible, you should first defrost them correctly. However, this is the main difficulty - all traditional options for defrosting at home - in the microwave and at room temperature - are unsuitable for the delicate structure of the meat of these marine life.

Experienced chefs advise defrosting seafood in advance. It is best to remove them from the freezer a few hours before cooking and leave them in a cool place, such as on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator.

If time is running out, and the defrosting process needs to be accelerated as much as possible, then you need to prepare a large container, pour into it cold water and place the unopened bag so that the water covers it completely. Typically, the shrimp can be ready for processing in an hour.

Boiled-frozen shrimps are defrosted in the same way, only the technology of their preparation will be slightly different - these are already boiled products, so before serving them, it will be enough just to warm them up in boiling water for a few minutes. Quite often, shrimp meat is sold in large stores. It defrosts much faster, since the product itself has a more delicate structure, in addition, there are no heads and shells in it.

Cooking recipes

Features of boiling shrimp at home depend on their variety and form of sale. So, if you purchased frozen foods that were not previously boiled, they should be placed in boiling, slightly salted water and kept for about 5-10 minutes. after boiling again. At the same time, the time directly depends on the dimensions of the products. Finished shrimp turn pink-orange and float. You don't need to digest them, in which case they will become tough and inedible. But you can and even need to leave it in a hot broth for 10-15 minutes- so the meat will become more juicy, and the taste will be rich.

If the shrimps are frozen boiled, then after defrosting they are simply kept in boiling water for about 1-3 minutes, since they are already cooked. Some housewives simply put them in a sieve or colander and pour boiling water over them, while others put them in the microwave for 30 seconds.

However, consumers cannot always be completely sure of the quality of seafood, so they boil them for about 2-3 minutes to minimize the risk of contracting intestinal infections.

Already peeled shrimp are often called cocktail shrimps, they are usually completely ready to eat, so experienced chefs do not recommend boiling them, claiming that the effect will be the same as when boiling. crab sticks... It is enough to wash such products with boiled water or dip in hot water for 5-10 seconds.

There are many ways to cook delicious shrimp... For example, they can be lightly fried in olive or sunflower oil with chopped garlic for about 3 minutes. Seafood baked on charcoal and grilled is quite tasty.

Many people boil shrimp not in a saucepan, but in a slow cooker.

  • To do this, they are placed in a bowl, which is used for steaming food.
  • Pour in water, add salt, pepper and any other spices to taste.
  • Cook for 10 minutes in the "steaming" mode.

The dish prepared in this way turns out to be juicy, the meat does not boil over, while all the nutrients are retained in full.

Owners microwave ovens can cook shrimp in this kitchen gadget.

Step-by-step instruction.

  • To do this, they are laid out in a special dish.
  • Pour in a mixture of water and soy sauce, salt, pepper.
  • Cook at maximum power for about 3 minutes.
  • Before serving, it is necessary to drain the liquid formed during cooking and sprinkle with lemon juice.

Shrimps with vegetables in a double boiler are very tasty.

The preparation is pretty simple:

  • put the shrimp in a bowl,
  • season with seafood spices and cover with chopped carrots, onions and celery,
  • season the contents of the bowl with lemon juice,
  • cook for about 20 minutes.

This dish goes well with melted butter sauce with lime juice.

If you are planning gatherings with friends, then fried shrimp can be a good snack.

It's pretty simple to prepare them:

  • peeled and defrosted food should be placed in a frying pan with hot vegetable oil,
  • salt and fry for a few minutes with constant stirring,
  • immediately after that, you need to pour them with tomato and soy sauce, sprinkle with garlic and other seasonings to taste,
  • mix everything thoroughly,
  • keep on fire for about a minute.

Shrimps in lemon-oil sauce are truly delicious.

To prepare this dish, you should:

  • boil the shrimp for about 5 minutes in salted water,
  • peel and prepare the sauce: mix in olive oil, a pinch lemon peel, minced garlic and finely chopped parsley.
  • the resulting mixture should be seasoned with shrimp and can be served for dinner.

Shrimps cooked in a cheese crust can become a real decoration of the table.

  • Products should be cleaned, shells removed and intestinal veins removed,
  • Soak in a marinade made from lemon juice with the addition of dill, garlic and dry pepper, marinating lasts about half an hour.

Try to spread the shrimp evenly in the sauce

  • While the shrimp "reach", you should prepare the beaten egg batter and breading from corn flour with finely grated cheese.
  • When the shrimp has been marinated for a long time, you need to dip them in batter and roll in a sprinkle.
  • Fry in hot oil until golden brown.

This seafood shrimp can be made for a special occasion, usually served with cheese fondue and cranberry sauce.

The experts give three main rules for cooking shrimp.

  1. Frozen seafood should not be put into boiling water immediately after unpacking the package. This is a common mistake, unfortunately. The shrimp should be thawed and washed without fail so that they get rid of unnecessary antennae, claw fragments and other small particles.
  2. It is better to cook water and shrimp in a 2: 1 ratio, while for each liter of liquid you should take about 45 g of salt. If you are cooking foods with shells and 20–25 g if they are peeled.
  3. If you need shrimp for your salad, it is best to use a lot of spices. Best of all, bay leaves, allspice and cloves emphasize the taste of seafood. Unused shrimp are kept in the freezer.

You can watch how to cook delicious shrimp in garlic sauce in the next video.