How to Boil Shrimp?
If you do not know how to boil shrimp, you will ruin the meal for everyone. If you are going to cook shrimp, you first need to choose the right type of shrimp. You should buy shrimp that still has their shells on. Most of the shrimp that you buy in the supermarkets are frozen, so, you need to thaw them first.
It is important to defrost shrimp properly for even cooking, and to ensure that any harmful bacteria are killed during cooking. Another option is putting the shrimp in waterproof package/s and immersing them in cold water. One pound defrosts in about one hour. You can also use warm water for this. Most microwave ovens have a thawing feature, which makes work easier.
An important tip on how to boil shrimp is that the shell is important in that it captures the flavor and it protects the meat. When boiling the shrimp, you can do it with the shells on and remove them after cooking or you can remove them before boiling. If you want to boil the shrimp with the shell on, you should pull off the heads and wash it in cold water. If you want to boil the shrimp without the shell, start by removing the heads and the peel and de-vain it. In both cases, you should leave the tails intact. To boil shrimp, all you need are a cooking pot, a stirring stick, salt, water, shrimp-boil spices, and ice.
The next step on how to boil shrimp is to put water in a pot. The water should cover all the shrimp. Do not add too much water because it will overflow once you add the shrimp. If you so wish, you can add shrimp-boil spices as the water begins to boil and then stir the mixture. These spices are readily available in grocery stores. Next, add salt to taste – the salt should be enough so that the water gets a sea-water taste. The salt also makes it easy to peel off the shrimp and it gives the shrimp flavor. Once the water attains a rolling boil, add the shrimp. You should add all the shrimp at once and as you do this, you should stir frequently.
The shrimp should boil until they get a pink color. Pink is an indication that they are cooked through. The boiling time should be three to four minutes, but this depends on the intensity of the heat. An important tip when learning how to boil shrimp is that overcooking will make the shrimp hard.
The next step in how to boil shrimp is draining the boiling shrimp. Next, chill the shrimp because it is best served chilled. This can be done in either of two ways. You can put the shrimp in the refrigerator or you can put it in a bowl-full of ice. The chilling should go on for at least an hour, but you should first check to make sure it is chilled to everybody’s satisfaction. Once you have served the boiled shrimp, you will need to peel them off their shells before eating. Boiled shrimp is best served with a sauce.
