Shrimp and prawn as food#Fraud

File:Van Gogh - Stillleben mit Muscheln und Garnelen.jpeg

As with other seafood, crustacea are high in 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.{{cite web |url=http://www.dietaryfiberfood.com/cholesterol-shrimp.php |title=Cholesterol Content in Seafoods |access-date=January 7, 2007}} 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.{{cite journal |url=http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/reprint/64/5/712.pdf |title=Effects of shrimp consumption on plasma lipoproteins |author=Elizabeth R. De Oliveira e Silva, Cynthia E. Seidman, Jason J. Tian, Lisa C. Hudgins, Frank M. Sacks & Jan L. Breslow |journal=American Journal of Clinical Nutrition |year=1996 |volume=64 |pages=712–717 |pmid=8901790 |issue=5|doi=10.1093/ajcn/64.5.712 |doi-access=free }}

Prawns are high in levels of omega-3s (generally beneficial) and low in levels of toxic mercury, with an FDA study in 2010 showing a level of 0.001 parts per million{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/j.marpolbul.2010.06.045|pmid=20633905|title=Mercury concentrations and omega-3 fatty acids in fish and shrimp: Preferential consumption for maximum health benefits|journal=Marine Pollution Bulletin|volume=60|issue=9|pages=1615–1618|year=2010|last1=Smith|first1=Katrina L.|last2=Guentzel|first2=Jane L.|bibcode=2010MarPB..60.1615S }} analysing only methylmercury.[https://web.archive.org/web/20090602034804/http://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodSafety/Product-SpecificInformation/Seafood/FoodbornePathogensContaminants/Methylmercury/ucm115644.htm Mercury Levels in Commercial Fish and Shellfish (1990–2010)] U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Accessed 8 January 2012.

Preparing for consumption the smaller shrimp is done just by shelling, whereas for the larger prawns usually involves removing the head, shell, tail, and "sand vein". A notable exception is drunken shrimp, a dish using freshwater shrimp that is often eaten alive, but immersed in ethanol to make consumption easier.{{cite web|url=http://www.deependdining.com/2006/05/2-live-food-or-fresh-and-furious-live.html|access-date=May 20, 2016|title=2 Live food or the fresh and the furious. Live drunken shrimp & live lobster sashimi|author=Lin, E.|year=2006|publisher=Deep End Dining}}

To shell a prawn, 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. Although the head and shell are generally removed before consumption, they are edible when cooked.{{Cite web |date=2017-09-07 |title=A Very Good, Very Crunchy Reason to Not Peel Shrimp |url=https://food52.com/blog/20444-recipes-with-shell-on-shrimp |access-date=2023-01-17 |website=Food52 |language=en-us}} Much of the flavor of prawns comes from the shell, so it is preferable to cook them before shelling, otherwise by adding the shells to the cooking stock prior to straining or by flash cooking the shells in the pan to extract the "juices".

{{Quote box

|title =

|quote = 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...

|source = American soldier Benjamin Buford "Bubba" Blue, in the 1994 drama-comedy film Forrest Gump

|align = left

|qalign = center

|width = 250px

}}

Removing the "sand vein" (a euphemism for the digestive tract) is referred to as "deveining". This can be removed by making a shallow cut lengthwise down the outer curve of the prawn's body, allowing the dark ribbon-like gut to be removed with a pointed utensil. Special deveining tools are sometimes used, but knives, skewers, and even toothpicks can be used to devein.{{Cite web|url=https://whatscookingamerica.net/shrimptips.htm|title=Shrimp Hints and Tips|date=Sep 8, 2015|website=whatscookingamerica.net|accessdate=Dec 31, 2022}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.recipetips.com/kitchen-tips/t--1239/how-to-prepare-and-devein-shrimp.asp|title=How to Prepare and Devein Shrimp|website=www.recipetips.com|accessdate=Dec 31, 2022}} Alternatively, if the tail has been detached, the gut can be pinched at the tail end and pulled out completely with the fingers. On large prawns, the "blood vein" (a euphemism for the ventral nerve cord) along the inner curve of its body is typically removed as well. It is then rinsed under cold running water. Removing these "veins" is not essential, as it is not poisonous and is mostly tasteless.[http://www.heb.com/mealtime/FS-storeDeveinShrimp.jsp H-E-B's Guide on Storing and Deveining Shrimp] Deveining does slightly change the flavor and makes it more consistent.[http://mideastfood.about.com/od/tipsandtechniques/a/deveinshrimp.htm How to Devein Shrimp] Shrimp also sometimes consume small amounts of sand and so the vein might be gritty.

File:Nephrops norvegicus.jpg, Dublin Bay prawn, or {{lang|Fr|langoustine}} with eggs — the basis of scampi]]

File:Nephrops norvegicus with roe.JPG, Dublin Bay prawn, or {{lang|Fr|langoustine}} with eggs]]

Recipes using shrimp form part of the cuisine of many cultures. Strictly speaking, dishes containing scampi should be made from the Norway lobster, also called Dublin Bay prawn or {{lang|Fr|langoustine}} in French — a crustacean c.{{convert|10|cm|in|sigfig=1|abbr=off}} long, more closely related to the lobster than shrimp — though in some places it is quite common for other prawns to be used instead.

Shrimp and prawns are versatile ingredients. Common methods of preparation include baking, boiling, frying, grilling, and barbequing. They are as delicate as eggs with regard to cooking time. Either cook them quickly, at a high heat for a very short time or else at a low cooking temperature for a long time, or if mixed into a dish, then added close to the end of cooking. When they are overcooked, they have a tough and rubbery texture.

Wet shrimp is commonly used as a flavoring and as a soup base in many Asian cuisines with shrimp curry being very popular in South Asia and Southeast Asia. Other recipes include bagoong, okonomiyaki, and poon choi. In the subject of Japanese sushi, shrimp has long been valued as the "king of sushi-dane", as its composition can be either raw or cooked, and its latter preparation has often been considered a good introduction or choice for those unfamiliar to eating sushi, especially dishes involving raw fish. In North America, fried shrimp is popular, as is jambalaya in the southern States. Shrimp are also found in Latin American and Caribbean dishes such as enchiladas and coconut shrimp. In Europe, prawns and especially {{lang|Fr|langoustines}} are very popular, forming a necessary ingredient in Italian {{lang|it|cacciucco}}, Portuguese {{lang|pt|caldeirada}}, Spanish {{lang|es|paella de marisco}}, and many other seafood dishes. Prawns are also consumed as salad, by frying, with rice, and as shrimp guvec — a dish baked in a clay pot — on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey.

Also, shrimps are fermented into shrimp paste and prawn sauce condiments in southeast Asia and China.{{cite web | url=https://www.thespruceeats.com/what-is-shrimp-paste-3217015 | title=Is Shrimp Paste the Right Addition to Your Thai Pantry? }}

Several alternatives have emerged, fostered by environmental and welfare concerns regarding the fishing and farming of shrimps. Plant-based alternatives often have soy or seitan as a main ingredient. They may also use konjac for the texture, and various other ingredients like seaweed.{{Cite web |date=2025-02-28 |title=What Makes Vegan Shrimp Bounce? The Science Behind The Food |url=https://www.inverse.com/science/vegan-shrimp-substitute-ingredients-science |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=Inverse |language=en}}

{{main|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.{{cite journal |author=Yung C. Shang, Pingsun Leung & Bith-Hong Ling |year=1998 |journal=Aquaculture |title=Comparative economics of shrimp farming in Asia |volume=164 |issue=1–4 |pages=183–200 |doi=10.1016/S0044-8486(98)00186-0|bibcode=1998Aquac.164..183S }}

File:Shrimp on Ice-1.jpg|Shrimp chilled with ice in a market

File:Split raw shrimp.jpg|Split raw prawns

File:HKCEC WC HKTDC Food Expo 2009 Frozen Food Shrimp Seafood.JPG|Frozen prawns

{{main|List of shrimp dishes}}

Many various dishes are prepared using shrimp as a primary ingredient.

Ebiko, or shrimp roe, sometimes translated as "shrimp flakes", is used as an ingredient in the preparation of sushi.{{Cite web|url=http://www.koloajodo.com/2016/01/26/what-is-masago-ebiko-tobiko/|title=What is Masago? Ebiko? Tobiko?|date=Jan 26, 2016|website=www.koloajodo.com|accessdate=Dec 31, 2022}} There also exists popcorn shrimp, garlic butter shrimp, and breaded or battered deep-fried small shrimp.

File:Koh Kut, Thailand, Thai seafood.jpg|Thai seafood set, shrimp soup, shrimp salad and deep fried shrimp

File:Drunkenshrimp.jpg|Drunken shrimp

File:Tomyumsoup.png|Tom yum goong, a Thai prawn soup

File:A bowl of boiled shrimp.jpg|A bowl of boiled prawns

File:モサエビの刺身.jpg|Sashimi

There is a growing food fraud concern in Asia–Pacific where non-food grade gels are injected into shrimp and prawns to increase their weight and visual appeal.{{cite book |title=Food safety toolkit for Asia and the Pacific |date=2021 |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) |location=Bangkok |url=https://www.fao.org/asiapacific/perspectives/one-health/food-safety/food-safety-toolkits/en/ |access-date=17 April 2024|chapter=Food frauds - Intention, detection and management|chapter-url=https://www.fao.org/3/cb2863en/cb2863en.pdf|volume=5}}{{cite news |title=Not so fresh: Aussie bound prawns injected with jelly |url=https://au.news.yahoo.com/not-so-fresh-aussie-bound-prawns-injected-with-jelly-32810622.html |access-date=17 April 2024 |work=Yahoo News |date=5 October 2016 |language=en-AU}} Three grams of carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) can be used to make 50 kilograms of gel, which can be used for one tonne of shrimp.{{cite news |title=Crackdown on shrimp injected with gel |url=https://vietfishmagazine.com/aquaculture/crackdown-shrimp-injected-gel.html |access-date=17 April 2024 |work=Vietnam Fisheries Magazine |date=September 15, 2017}} In 2022, Cambodia seized 7 tons of shrimp that had been injected with CMC gel.{{cite web |title=Read News More than 7 tons of shrimps injected with Carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) gel found on the first month of 2022 ASEAN Consumer |url=https://aseanconsumer.org/read-news-more-than-7-tons-of-shrimps-injected-with-carboxymethyl-cellulose-cmc-gel-found-on-the-first-month-of-2022 |publisher=Association of Southeast Asian Nations |access-date=17 April 2024 |date=February 1, 2022}}

To combat food fraud, NIST offers Standard Reference Materials: Wild-caught Shrimp (RM 8258) and Aquacultured Shrimp (RM 8259) for testing.{{cite news |title=NIST's Shrimp and Salmon Reference Materials Could Help Combat Seafood Fraud |url=https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2023/09/nists-shrimp-and-salmon-reference-materials-could-help-combat-seafood-fraud |access-date=17 April 2024 |work=NIST |date=8 September 2023 |language=en}}

{{external media

|float=right

|width=245px

|video1=[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOTMQ2oXdLE Peeling and Deveining Shrimp] - YouTube

}}

{{portal|Food}}

• Crayfish as food
• Culinary name
• Eating live seafood
• Fish as food
• Pain in crustaceans
• Seafood
• Shrimp fishery

{{reflist|33em}}

• {{Commons category-inline|Shrimps or prawns as food}}
• {{Cookbook-inline|Shrimp}}

{{Shrimps and prawns as food|state=expanded}}

{{shrimps and prawns}}

{{seafood}}

{{Meat}}

Category:Animal-based seafood

Category:Decapods

Category:Commercial crustaceans

Category:Seafood

Category:Meat by animal

Category:Types of food