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The following is something that I added to a thread on another site after listening to a bunch of guys gripe about shrimp (frozen vs fresh) (farm raised vs domestic) --- I come from a shrimping family and this is one of the few subjects that I actually get on a soapbox about....
"Almost all of the shrimp that you buy, whether in the grocery store or at the seafood market, have all been frozen. About 99% of the offshore boats along the gulf coast are freezer boats. When the shrimp are caught, they are washed and flash frozen in super cold salt water and then put below deck in an industrial sized freezer for the remainder of the trip. This process is called IQF (Individually Quick Frozen). There is nothing wrong with IQF shrimp, as as long as they are handled well. When they are treated well, you can't tell the difference between fresh or previously frozen once they are thawed out. Back in the day, when we iced our shrimp on the boat, we were forced to the dock after about ten days due to the reduced hold time on the catch. If the boat stayed out any longer, the shrimp would turn black. Would you rather put a steak in the ice chest for 10 days with ice on it or freeze it as soon as you get it home so you can thaw it when your ready for it? There are downsides to the IQF shrimp -- if not treated well -- they lose legs and freezerburn. I also find them harder to peel after being boiled than fresh dead shrimp. But overall, they are a great product that makes up the bulk of the shrimp that consumers buy, whether they know it or not. If you eat seafood at restaraunts, buy it in the grocery store or at seafood markets (including the trucks on the side of the road) it almost always has been previously frozen.
The other big gripe for those of us from shrimping families are the imported/farm raised shrimp. They come from mostly asian countries but some are even from TEXAS!! When you buy shrimp or eat them at a restaraunt ask this question --- ARE THESE SHRIMP WILD CAUGHT GULF SHRIMP? If they can't answer you with a definite yes -- walk away! Imported shrimp have been pumped full of growth hormones and antibiotics that accelerate the production rate and increase yield. There is little or no regulation imposed upon them by the FDA and millions of pounds of them are shipped to the US every year. They are a far inferior product that has flooded the American market due to their abundance and low cost. All but a few local coastal restaraunts have switched to them to increase profit.
There are several times of the year when fresh -- never frozen -- large table shrimp are available for sale right off the boat or at local markets but this is the exception not the rule. If your fortunate enough to find them available to you, stock up -- they won't be there long. As the shrimp grow, they move offshore quickly where they are caught by the freezer boats. The larger they get, the faster they move to get into the gulf. They don't hang around long enough for the bay boats to flood the market with them.
So, now you have a little more to think about the next time you buy shrimp from the guy on the side of the road, at HEB or even in a fancy restaurant!! "
"Almost all of the shrimp that you buy, whether in the grocery store or at the seafood market, have all been frozen. About 99% of the offshore boats along the gulf coast are freezer boats. When the shrimp are caught, they are washed and flash frozen in super cold salt water and then put below deck in an industrial sized freezer for the remainder of the trip. This process is called IQF (Individually Quick Frozen). There is nothing wrong with IQF shrimp, as as long as they are handled well. When they are treated well, you can't tell the difference between fresh or previously frozen once they are thawed out. Back in the day, when we iced our shrimp on the boat, we were forced to the dock after about ten days due to the reduced hold time on the catch. If the boat stayed out any longer, the shrimp would turn black. Would you rather put a steak in the ice chest for 10 days with ice on it or freeze it as soon as you get it home so you can thaw it when your ready for it? There are downsides to the IQF shrimp -- if not treated well -- they lose legs and freezerburn. I also find them harder to peel after being boiled than fresh dead shrimp. But overall, they are a great product that makes up the bulk of the shrimp that consumers buy, whether they know it or not. If you eat seafood at restaraunts, buy it in the grocery store or at seafood markets (including the trucks on the side of the road) it almost always has been previously frozen.
The other big gripe for those of us from shrimping families are the imported/farm raised shrimp. They come from mostly asian countries but some are even from TEXAS!! When you buy shrimp or eat them at a restaraunt ask this question --- ARE THESE SHRIMP WILD CAUGHT GULF SHRIMP? If they can't answer you with a definite yes -- walk away! Imported shrimp have been pumped full of growth hormones and antibiotics that accelerate the production rate and increase yield. There is little or no regulation imposed upon them by the FDA and millions of pounds of them are shipped to the US every year. They are a far inferior product that has flooded the American market due to their abundance and low cost. All but a few local coastal restaraunts have switched to them to increase profit.
There are several times of the year when fresh -- never frozen -- large table shrimp are available for sale right off the boat or at local markets but this is the exception not the rule. If your fortunate enough to find them available to you, stock up -- they won't be there long. As the shrimp grow, they move offshore quickly where they are caught by the freezer boats. The larger they get, the faster they move to get into the gulf. They don't hang around long enough for the bay boats to flood the market with them.
So, now you have a little more to think about the next time you buy shrimp from the guy on the side of the road, at HEB or even in a fancy restaurant!! "
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