Saute Shrimp
Shrimp is a nutritious seafood. In fact, 4 oz. (.113 kg) of shrimp has approximately 24 grams of protein with only 112 calories. Shrimp provides selenium, B12 and D vitamins and omega-3 fatty acids. You may buy frozen or fresh shrimp. Sautéing shrimp cooks the shrimp over a medium high heat in a shallow pan with a little bit of fat. For more specific instructions on how to sauté shrimp, start with Step 1 below.
Contents
Steps
Find Shrimp
- Select fresh or frozen shrimp from a fish market or grocery store. Fresh shrimp does not store well, and you should sauté it within 24 hours. Most grocery stores sell frozen shrimp that they have thawed, and these shrimp should be cooked within 2 to 3 days.
- Look for fresh shrimp that has transparent skin and smells like salt water. Unless you are buying tiger shrimp, avoid specimens with dark rings or spots. Dark rings or spots may indicate that the shrimp is going bad.
- Choose frozen shrimp that has not been peeled or deveined. It's more work to peel the shrimp yourself, but when preparing shrimp, you want to preserve the flavor. The shrimp shell encases the full flavor of the meat, so pre-prepared shrimp loses some of its taste.
- Purchase your shrimp. 1 serving of shrimp consists of 4 oz. (.113 kg) to 8 oz. (.226 kg), and 1 lb. (.454 kg) of shelled fresh or frozen shrimp will become 1/2 lb. (.226 kg) of sautéed shrimp. When sautéing shrimp, you will lose some of the weight when you peel the shrimp, and the heat will cook out some of the moisture, shrinking the meat.
- Store shrimp in your refrigerator until ready to sauté.
Prepare Shrimp
- Defrost frozen shrimp. Never use a microwave to defrost shrimp, because it may make the shrimp rubbery. The best way to defrost shrimp is to place it in cold water or let it sit in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 days.
- Decide if you want to devein your shrimp. Deveining a shrimp is removing the back vein. When you are preparing shrimp, it is not necessary to remove the back vein, but some cooks devein the shrimp to make it look better.
- Devein your shrimp by running the point of a sharp knife or a de-veiner along the back vein.
- Hold the shrimp under cold water and take the vein out.
- Shell shrimp by cutting the tails off each shrimp on a cutting board with a sharp knife. When sautéing shrimp, you must remove the tail and the shell.
- Use your fingers to pull the shell from the meat of the shrimp. When you are preparing shrimp, you may want to wear gloves. Shrimp may cause a rash on some people's hands.
- Discard the tails and shells.
Sauté Shrimp
- Place a sauté pan on the stove and turn the burner on to medium-low. A sauté pan is a type of frying pan that is very shallow. When sautéing shrimp, you may use a frying pan if you don't have a sauté pan. Pour a little bit of olive oil.
- Put 1 tbsp. (14.782 ml) butter in the pan and let it melt.
- Mince 2 cloves of garlic with a knife and add the garlic to the butter.
- Place your prepared shrimp in the pan. When sautéing shrimp, you may add other seasonings such as salt, pepper, lemon juice or onions.
- Sauté the shrimp 5 to 7 minutes, until they turn pink, while turning the shrimp over to cook them on both sides.
- Finished.
Things You'll Need
- Fresh or frozen shrimp
- Cold water
- De-veiner or sharp knife
- Cutting board
- Gloves
- Sauté or frying pan
- Stove
- Butter
- Garlic
- Seasoning
