Shrimp and prawn as food

See also: list of shrimp dishes

Marinated king prawns

Drunken shrimp

Shrimp and prawn are important types of seafood that are consumed worldwide. In biological terms, shrimp and prawns belong to different suborders of Decapoda, however they are very similar in appearance and in commercial farming and fisheries, the terms are often used interchangeably. However, recent aquaculture literature increasingly uses the term "prawn" only for the freshwater forms of palaemonids and "shrimp" for the marine penaeids.

In the United Kingdom, the word "prawn" is more common on menus than "shrimp"; while the opposite is the case in North America. The term "prawn" is also loosely used to describe any large shrimp, especially those that come 15 (or fewer) to the pound (such as "king prawns", yet sometimes known as "jumbo shrimp"). Australia and some other Commonwealth nations follow this British usage to an even greater extent, using the word "prawn" almost exclusively. When Australian comedian Paul Hogan used the phrase, "I'll slip an extra shrimp on the barbie for you" in an American television advertisement, it was intended to make what he was saying easier for his American audience to understand, and was thus a deliberate distortion of what an Australian would typically say. In Britain very small crustaceans with a brownish shell are called shrimp, and are used to make potted shrimp. They are also used in dishes where they are not the primary ingredient.

Shrimp and other shellfish are among the most common food allergens. The Jewish laws of Kashrut forbid the eating of shrimp. According to the King James version of the Old Testament, it is alright to eat finfish, but shrimp are an abomination and should not be eaten. In Islam, the Shafi'i, Maliki and Hanbali schools allow the eating of shrimp, while the Hanafi school does not allow it in Sunni Islam. Nor does the Shi'ite school (Ja'fari) allow it.

Nutrition and toxins

Raw shrimp (mixed species)

Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy	71 kJ (17 kcal)
Carbohydrates	0.91 g
Fat	1.01 g
Saturated	0.115 g
Monounsaturated	0.080 g
Protein	13.61 g
Vitamins and minerals Vitamins Quantity %DV† Vitamin A 180 IU Vitamin D 0% 2 IU Minerals Quantity %DV† Calcium 4% 54 mg Iron 1% 0.21 mg Magnesium 5% 22 mg Phosphorus 20% 244 mg Potassium 4% 113 mg Sodium 25% 566 mg Zinc 9% 0.97 mg
Other constituents	Quantity
Water	83.01 g
Cholesterol	0.0013 g
†Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults, except for potassium, which is estimated based on expert recommendation from the National Academies.

Mussels and shrimps, Van Gogh 1886

External videos
Shrimp: According to Pvt. Benjamin Buford 'Bubba' Blue - Forrest Gump
Peeling and Deveining Shrimp - YouTube

Shrimp are high in levels of omega-3s (generally beneficial) and low in levels of mercury (generally toxic). As with other seafood, shrimp is high in calcium, iodine and 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. 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.

Comparative mercury levels
Species		Mean ppm
	Swordfish	0.995
	Shark	0.979
	Tuna (bigeye)	0.689	Fresh/frozen
	Grouper	0.448	All species
	Patagonian toothfish	0.354
	Halibut	0.241
	Bass	0.152	Striped, black and sea bass
	Cod	0.111
	Carp	0.110
	Lobster (American)	0.107
	Herring	0.084
	Crab	0.065	Blue, king and snow crab
	Haddock	0.055	Atlantic
	Mullet	0.050
	Pollock	0.031
	Catfish	0.025
	Squid	0.023
	Salmon *	0.022	Fresh/frozen
	Anchovies	0.017
	Sardine	0.013
	Tilapia *	0.013
	Oyster	0.012
	Clam *	0.009
	Salmon *	0.008	Canned
	Scallop	0.003
	Shrimp *	0.001
* indicates methylmercury only was analyzed (all other results are for total mercury)

Marketing

Frozen shrimp

Main article: Shrimp marketing

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.

Preparation

Deveining

Deveining is the removal of the gastrointestinal tract of a shrimp, a common part of preparing them for human consumption. The digestive tract is a dark band running from the head to the tail of the animal, where the spine would be if they were vertebrates. In females, the reproductive canal is also in the same area.

One must first cut a slit in the shell at the back of the shrimp. Special deveining tools are sometimes used but knives, skewers, and even toothpicks can be used to devein.

Removing the vein is not essential, as it is not poisonous and is mostly tasteless. Deveining does slightly change the flavour and makes it more consistent. Shrimp also sometimes consume small amounts of sand by accident and the vein thus might be gritty.

A steamed tail-on shrimp

Preparing shrimp for consumption usually involves removing the head, shell, tail, and "sand vein".

To de-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.

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. 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.

Shrimp and prawns are versatile ingredients, and are often used as an accompaniment to fried rice. Common methods of preparation include baking, boiling, frying and grilling. They are as delicate as eggs in regards cooking time. When they are overcooked, they have a tough and rubbery texture. Remove them from the heat when they just start to change color to pink.

There's a million ways to cook shrimp... shrimp is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. Dey's uh, shrimp-kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There's pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich...

– Bubba in Forrest Gump

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 flavouring 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.

See also

• Culinary name
• Shrimp and prawn fishery

External links

External videos
Shrimp: According to Pvt. Benjamin Buford 'Bubba' Blue - Forrest gump
Peeling and Deveining Shrimp - YouTube
When Japanese food is too fresh... - YouTube

• Media related to Shrimp and prawn dishes at Wikimedia Commons
• Shrimp at the Wikibooks Cookbook subproject