Seafood - Part I

As I was reviewing the stats on my blog I noticed a lot of searches were for seafood, which surprised me. After talking to a dear from from IA and visiting other food blogs I started to realize that people HAVE an interest in trying to cook with seafood, but some may be afraid to  try it out. So this made me think what if I were to create a series of postings on how to choose seafood and simple tips on how to prepare it. Let me start by telling you though that I am far from an expert on the matter. We just love seafood and therefore even here in the Midwest we try to eat some about 3 times a week. We are lucky here in the Milwaukee area to have a wonderful seafood market. Empire Fish Company.

Having grown up in a Portuguese family, seafood was a staple for us therefore never even considered it to be overwhelming to buy or cook.

We will start today with one of my daughters favorite: shrimp

We usually buy frozen shrimp here in the Midwest. It is smart to buy when on sale then keep in in your freezer for whenever you want to cook it. If you live near the ocean though, DO buy as fresh as you can.
There are various sizes to choose from. I always tend to buy the bigger size ones. Also I tend to buy with the heads. I know some of you are now going... yuck... well wait. much as any type of fish if you cook with the heads you will be keeping the moisture in. Think of it as grilling a piece of meat. Isn't it so much better to grill it with the fat, even though you may then remove it and not eat it? Well... same idea. If you do not want to eat the shrimp head, fine, but at least TRY to cook with it!

So now that we have shrimps, what are we going to do with them?

Boiled Shrimp

1. Bring a big pot with water, salt (close to ocean taste) and a dry chilli pepper to boil
2. Put the shrimp inside the pot and lower the heat to medium
3. As soon as the shrimps turns pink, turn off the heat
4. Prepare a strainer in the kitchen sink and dump all of the shrimps into it - that is if you are not keep the shrimp broth
5. As soon as all the shrimps are in the strainer turn on the cold water - this step helps with removing the shell much more easily
6. It is ready to eat with cocktail sauce, or peeling it and using it in sauces such as over pasta

Grilling Shrimp

This process can easily dry the shrimp, so make sure to ALWAYS use the larger shrimps or prawns, also use some type of sauce to keep on basting as you are grilling them.

1. In a large bowl mix some fat (melted butter or oil), lemon juice, some salt, pepper and lots of garlic. You can also add some dry chilli peppers if you want some heat
   
2. Pour the shrimps in this sauce and leave them marinating in it for about 1 hour prior to grilling them
3. Place the shrimps on the grill at medium high heat spread apart and not touching each other (about 3/4 inch space between them)
4. Keep on basting them every time you turn them - about every other minute
5. As soon as the shrimps turn pink (about 7 to 10 minutes depending on the size of the clients) they are ready to be eaten

Pan Fried Shrimp

This is a simple way to quickly prepare a last minute appetizer that will have your guests ask for more. For this one you can use whatever size shrimp with or without shell or heads.

1. In a frying pan add a little fat (butter or oil), minced garlic, herbs (I like to use cilantro) and simmer it for about 4 minutes
2. Add a beer or white and let it cook in medium high heat for about 5 minutes
3. Add the shrimps, mix them around the sauce and cover the pan
4. Once the shrimps turn pink they are ready to be served over pasta or simply with some fresh bread

Here are some of my own recipes I love to make:

• Seafood balls with green sauce
• Pasta with shrimps and vegetables
• Portuguese shellfish bread stew
• Chicken, andouille and shrimp gumbo
• Linguini with shrimps and veggies

Meanwhile I found this site that not only has amazing recipes as well as all of the basics about how to buy, clean, devein shrimps.

If you have any question, please feel free to drop a comment and I will certainly respond promptly.