James Beard's New Fish Cookery (47 page)

Shrimp

More shrimp, either fresh or canned, are sold in this country than any other type of shellfish. The fresh shrimp in our markets range in size from 6 to 8 to the pound, 12 to 16 to the pound, or 18 to 25 to the pound, down to the tiny Maine and Pacific shrimp which are extremely small. As for the tiny shrimp, I think they are much underrated in this country. They are remarkably good in salads and are excellent in many cooked dishes. A huge bowl of tiny shrimp, shelled, makes a perfect snack with cocktails.

You can now buy quick-frozen shrimp in nearly all parts of the country. They are obtainable both cooked and raw. In the raw state, they may be a greenish-gray color, pale pink, or brown.

Cooked shrimp are sold in shells, shelled, and sometimes both shelled and deveined. In my opinion, shrimp that have been shelled and deveined before cooking are more delicate in flavor and less apt to be gritty. Shelling is a simple job — just push the shell with your thumb and forefinger and it comes off easily. You should leave the tails on for certain types of cookery, especially in preparing barbecued or grilled shrimp. While it is not necessary to devein shrimp, most people prefer to serve them that way. Use a sharp-pointed knife to cut along the curve in the body, removing the black vein. If you are making “butterfly” shrimp, by all means devein before cooking to enhance the appearance of the dish. Cut well through each shrimp so that the two halves nearly divide.

The unpardonable fault in preparing shrimp is overcooking. They should be cooked just long enough to give them color and firmness — about 3 to 5 minutes, certainly no longer. If you are adding shrimp to a sauce, don’t cook them before adding them or they will be overcooked. If a recipe calls for bouillon from the shrimp, cook the shells and a couple of fish heads to get the required amount of broth. For shrimp to be served as hors d’oeuvre or in salads, poach them in a strong court bouillon.

Practically all shrimp sold in the markets have been decapitated, but in certain localities in the South and the West, you may find small sweet shrimp that are sold with their heads on. These are what the French call
bouquet
and are excellent served in shell as hors d’oeuvres — without sauce. The flavor is very delicate, and overwhelming them with sauces is unthinkable.

It is very difficult to tell you how many shrimp to buy per person. Sometimes I can eat a half pound as a first course at dinner, and for a main course I would want the same amount. So, if the appetites are very good, you might gauge about 1 pound of shrimp for two persons. If you are mixing the shrimp with a great deal of sauce, you may be able to make a pound stretch for 4 servings.

Shrimp as a First Course–Cold

In addition to the small shrimp, poached and served without sauce, there are almost endless ways in which shrimp may be used as appetizers. Large shrimp, cooked in court bouillon (page 18) and cooled, may be served either shelled or unshelled. Arrange them on plates of greens and pass:

1. Sauce rémoulade (page 35)

2. Sauce vinaigrette (page 36)

3. Sauce mayonnaise (page 34)

4. Sauce verte (page 34)

5. Mustard sauce (page 23)

You may use a cocktail sauce if you wish; personally I like to get as far away as possible from the bottled tomato sauce that is served so much as cocktail sauce. It smothers the flavor of the shrimp. So I give it a little dressing up (see page 38).

TOMATO SHRIMP APPETIZER I

For each person, peel, seed, and hollow out a large ripe tomato. Into the bottom place a cold egg which has been poached in boiling salted water until the yolk has not quite set. Cover the egg with shrimp. Top with mayonnaise (page 34) and garnish with finely chopped parsley, chives, and tarragon.

TOMATO SHRIMP APPETIZER II

Hollow the tomato out as above, put in the egg, and add the shrimp. Cover with a tomato aspic and chill until very firm. Prepare mayonnaise jelly (page 34) with equal quantities of mayonnaise and aspic and cover each tomato with this sauce. Garnish with finely chopped egg, red pepper, and parsley.

CUCUMBER SHRIMP APPETIZER

For each person make a cucumber boat. Cut a strip from one side of the cucumber and remove all the seeds, hollowing it out. Then cut a thin slice from the bottom so that the cucumber boat will stand steady on the plate. Salt and pepper the inside, and rub with olive oil and vinegar. Chill for 2 hours.

Fill the boats with well-seasoned shrimp that have been cooked in a court bouillon and chilled. Cover with a mayonnaise sauce, and garnish with slices of tomato, hard-cooked egg, and finely chopped fresh dill.

VARIATION

Season the cucumber boats well with chopped fresh dill and chives. Fill with the cooked shrimp, cover with dill-flavored sour cream, and garnish with chopped hard-cooked egg and capers.

SHRIMP ASPIC RING

2 quarts court bouillon (page 18)

3 pounds large shrimp

3 envelopes gelatin

12 eggs, hard-cooked

1 small onion, chopped

6 mushrooms, chopped

12 ripe olives, chopped

Mayonnaise

2 cucumbers

Romaine lettuce

2 or 3 knob celery (celery root), grated

Sauce rémoulade (page 35)

Pimientos, olives, and other garnish

Prepare the court bouillon. Poach the shrimp for 4 minutes and remove them from the bouillon to cool. Reduce the bouillon to 1 quart and strain. Dissolve the gelatin in 1/2 cup of cold water and combine with the bouillon. Cool, but do not let it set.

Cut 6 eggs in half the long way and 6 the round way; remove the yolks. Crush the yolks with the onion, mushrooms, and ripe olives. Moisten with mayonnaise. Fill the egg halves with this paste piped through the large rosette end of a pastry tube. Chill.

Arrange the shelled shrimp in the bottom of a ring mold — making a solid ring of shrimp. Cover with a layer of the jelly and chill until firm. Score the skin of the cucumbers by running the tines of a fork the long way, from tip to tip, in order to form scalloped edges on the cucumber slices. Then slice them evenly. Arrange a layer of the cucumber slices in an overlapping ring on top of the shrimp and jelly. Add another layer of shrimp and cover with more aspic. Chill. Cover each stuffed egg with aspic and chill.

Arrange romaine on a large platter and unmold the ring on top. Fill the center with the celery root mixed with sauce rémoulade. Decorate the stuffed eggs with pimientos and olives cut in slices or designs and arrange them around the edge of the platter. Serve with more rémoulade.

CUCUMBER ASPIC WITH SHRIMP

White wine court bouillon (pages 18–19)

2 pounds shrimp

11/2 envelopes gelatin

2 or 3 cucumbers, peeled and sliced

Romaine

Green peppers

Russian salad (pages 409–410)

Prepare the court bouillon. Add shrimp shells and cook for 1/2 hour over a brisk flame to blend the flavors. Poach the shrimp for the last 4 minutes and remove from the bouillon to chill. Reduce the bouillon to 3 cups and strain through a linen napkin.

Dissolve the gelatin in 1/4 cup of cold water. Combine it with the bouillon and season to taste with fresh tarragon or dill.

Arrange the cucumber in overlapping slices in the bottom of a ring mold. Add a little of the gelatin mixture and let it set. Pour the remaining gelatin over it and chill until firm. Arrange romaine on a round platter and unmold the ring on top. Fill the center with the cold poached shrimp. Decorate with strips of green pepper and surround with pepper cups filled with Russian salad. Serve with sauce verte (page 34).

INDIVIDUAL SHRIMP ASPICS

Court bouillon (page 18)

2 pounds shrimp

2 envelopes gelatin

Fresh
or
dried tarragon

4 truffles

6 hard-cooked eggs

4 pounds asparagus

4 pimientos

Mayonnaise (page 34)

Prepare the court bouillon. Peel and devein the shrimp and poach them for 4 minutes. Remove to cool. Reduce the bouillon by half and strain through a linen cloth. Dissolve the gelatin in 1/2 cup of cold water. Combine with the bouillon and add a few leaves of fresh or dried tarragon. Taste for seasoning. Chill, but do not let it set.

Line individual molds with a large slice of truffle surrounded with slices of hard-cooked egg. Add a spoonful of the jelly mixture and let it set. Arrange the cooked shrimp in the molds in an even design. Place another slice of truffle in the center and cover with more jelly. Chill.

Clean the asparagus and cook in boiling salted water until just barely tender. Drain and cool. Arrange in a half sunburst on a large platter and garnish with strips of pimiento. Unmold the aspics and arrange them on the platter. Serve with mayonnaise.

SHRIMP BOATS

11/2 pounds shrimp

Court bouillon (page 18)

2 cloves garlic

1/4 cup olive oil

3 avocados

Russian dressing (page 35)

Shell and devein the shrimp. Prepare the court bouillon and poach the shrimp for 4 minutes. Cool.

Crush the garlic in a mortar or chop exceedingly fine and combine with the olive oil. Cut the avocados in half and remove the pits. Dress each one with a little of the oil and garlic mixture. Fill the centers with cold shrimp and serve with a Russian dressing.

PICKLED SHRIMP

These may be prepared with either shelled or unshelled shrimp and may be kept for quite a while in the refrigerator if you store them in covered fruit jars. They are exceedingly good with beer and cocktails and make a wonderful late evening snack with a bottle of chilled white wine. I like heavy rye or pumpernickel bread with them.

For 3 pounds of shrimp you will need 1 cup wine vinegar (the white is better, but the red does add color), a cup of either olive oil or peanut oil, 2 cups wine (white or red, depending upon the vinegar you use), a like amount of water, and a bouquet garni of 2 leeks or large green onions cut in pieces, 2 or 3 hot red peppers, a handful of parsley, some celery leaves, 6 to 8 whole peppercorns, 2 or 3 cloves, a sprig of fresh tarragon or a teaspoon of the dried, a sprig of thyme, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, and a piece of stick cinnamon.

Cook this bouillon all together for about 15 minutes after it has started to simmer. Add the shrimp and cook 5 more minutes. Let the shrimp cool in the broth and store in jars until you wish to use them.

Hot Shrimp Hors d’Oeuvre

FRENCH-FRIED SHRIMP

Fat for frying

2 pounds shrimp

1 teaspoon curry powder

1 teaspoon chili powder

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Corn meal

3 eggs, beaten

Heat fat in your automatic fryer or deep fryer to 365°. Shell and devein the shrimp, leaving the tails on. Mix the seasonings with the corn meal. Dip the shrimp in the eggs and then roll in the corn meal. Fry a few at a time in the hot fat. Drain on absorbent paper. Serve with mayonnaise (page 34).

SHRIMP STRAWS PEKINESE

1 pound shrimp

1/4 pound fresh ginger, finely chopped

1 large onion, finely chopped

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 egg whites

Slices of stale bread

Crumbs

Deep fat for frying

Shell and clean the shrimp and chop very fine. Mix with the vegetables, season to taste, and moisten with egg whites. Spread the mixture on stale bread cut into fingers. Dip in fine crumbs and fry in fat heated to 375° for 3 minutes. Drain on absorbent paper.

BUTTERFLY SHRIMP

2 pounds shrimp

2 eggs, beaten

3/4 cup milk

Soft bread crumbs

Soy sauce

Mustard

Kumquat chutney

Heat the fat in your French fryer to 360°. Shell and devein the shrimp, leaving the tails on. Split them almost in two and flatten them out. Beat the eggs with the milk. Dip the shrimp in the eggs and milk, then in the crumbs, and fry 21/2 to 3 minutes, or until brown. Drain on absorbent paper. Serve with bowls of soy sauce, hot mustard, and kumquat chutney.

TEMPURA

2 pounds shrimp

2 eggs, separated

3/4 cup beer

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup sifted flour

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon mustard

Flour

Heat the fat in your French fryer to 365° or slightly over. Shell and devein the shrimp, leaving the tails intact. Beat the egg yolks with the beer, oil, flour, and seasonings and blend well. Beat the whites until stiff and fold them in. Dip the shrimp in flour and then into the egg batter. Lower them into the frying basket by spoonfuls. Cook 4 minutes. Drain on absorbent paper and serve with soy sauce and hot mustard. Thin slices of large white radish go well with this.

VARIATION

Wrap the shrimp in half slices of bacon.

SHRIMP FRITTERS

1 pound shrimp

3 cups chopped parsley

1 tablespoon fresh dill

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons baking powder

2 eggs, well beaten

1/2 cup milk

Dash of Tabasco

Cook and clean the shrimp. Chop them and mix with the parsley and dill. Sift the dry ingredients; add the eggs and the milk and mix until smooth. Combine with the shrimp and herbs and add a dash of Tabasco. Drop by spoonfuls into shortening heated to 380°. Fry until brown and crisp. Drain on absorbent paper. Serve as a first course. If you serve these as a cocktail snack, drop them from a small teaspoon into the fat.

BROILED BARBECUED SHRIMP

2 pounds shrimp

1 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons chopped parsley

1 tablespoon basil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon tomato sauce
or
chili sauce

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon wine vinegar

Shell and devein the shrimp, but leave the tails on. Make a sauce by mixing all the other ingredients together. Arrange the shrimp in a shallow pan — 9 by 14 inches — and pour the sauce over them. Marinate for several hours. Broil for 5 to 8 minutes. Arrange the shrimp on a serving dish or serve them in the broiling pan. Eat them by picking them up by the tail and dipping them into the hot sauce, so plates and plenty of paper napkins are needed with this dish.