Barbecued Shrimp

Man that looks good .... being a home cook I am curious as to how you can devien shrimp and keep the shell on.

 

I suspect it involves a a very sharp knife. I would lay the shrimp down on its side place a hand on it palm flat and slice from just above the end of tail towards the head. A quick drag with an oyster fork should remove the vein. Anyone that's actually done it feel free to correct me...but that's how I would go about it.

 

A set of kitchen shears does the job as well. In fact, for home cooks, it's probably faster, and definately safer.

Start at the head end (where the shell edge is exposed) and cut towards the tail. Most of the time the vein etc. comes out as you cut. If not, a quick scrape with the shear blade does it with no need to dirty another tool.

 

Chefguy,

Looks like an interesting recipe, but a couple of things thing have me curious.  That's your reference to "chef." He's obviously not you, but who is he? 

What can you tell us about the organization which originates the recipes you re-post here?

Inquiring minds,

BDL

 

Was reading Steve Raichlen's How To Grill (thank you, Phil), and he suggests that you can devein shell-on shrimp by moving about halfway back with a fork. You pierce the shell with a tine, loop the vein, and lift. The vein will come right out.

I think cutting the shell, with either knife or shears, probably makes more sense---if for no other reason that it makes the shrimp easier to peel at table. And, unless the shrimp are very fresh, more veins will break than not using the fork method. But thought I'd pass it on.

 

The best shears for shellfish or small game are the Joyce Chen Kitchen Shears.  They are perfect for deviening shrimp or cleaning small game birds.  I stumbled on them some 30 years ago and sold literally hundreds of them to my hunters and fishermen in my golf pro shop.

Thanks for the recipe Chefguy.  I will try that.  Our offshore shrimp season in Texas is closed right now, and I hope they will be able to open it on schedule.  The situation in Louisianna could have a far reaching effect on the entire gulf coast.  I have no idea the impact on fish and shellfish supplies and price with the Louisianna fishery shut down.

 

Not to hijack this thread, but it really is a great book, Phil, and I've already learned a lot just by reading it. Time, now, to put some of it into practice.

 

Recipe looks pretty good only thing I would recommend is put the shrimp on a skewer so you can turn them all at once and slide them off straight on a plate.

 

Ed,

Why a skewer?  The recipe call for cooking in a pan (with no additional oil, the pan could be hard to clean).  Anyway, the shrimp are not grilled or cooked on a grate of any sort.  What makes them "barbecue" is the sauce. 

Of course, it's a disputable definition and the sort of thing that would outrage the posters on the barbecue boards I used to frequent.  But it seems silly to argue about language.  As long as we're all talking about the same thing...

BDL

 

So as to not have to pull out 1 at a time .They come out all at once. Then slide off the skewer in a straight line on the plate so it looks neat. I always try to cook my shrimp like this so they all start at same time on same surface. Grilling or bar  bq is even easier when skewed.

 

"Barbecued shrimp" is a New Orleans classic. There's an old story, which might even be true, that a customer from Texarkana was trying to explain "barbecue" to a New Orleans cook, who went and whipped up something akin to this recipe. Many of the flavors are similar, of course, but fundamentally the cook just had no clue what "barbecue" meant. The result is terrific -- Paul Prudhomme's recipe in Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen is spectacular -- but it certainly has nothing to do with barbecue in any other part of the country.

Personally, I like my barbecued shrimp to involve a little beer and quite a bit of butter, and then you don't want to skewer them: you serve it in bowls and dump the sauce right on top. Dunk crusty bread in it. Oh, and don't shell the things -- you have to peel them at the table and get covered in sauce.

 

Chris!  Now that you mention it the recipe appears slightly cajun style.

 

The first "Barbecued Shrimp" I had was at Pascal Manali's (sic) in New Orleans.  At that time (in the 1960's) that was their signature dish, and to my knowledge none of the other restaurants served it.  It was peppery with a ton of black pepper and butter, and it was plenty messy to eat.  It was well worth the trouble. By the time you finished peeling the shrimp and dipping the crusty bread you needed a shower.   

 

As long as we're all talking about the same thing...

Problem is, BDL, that with "barbecue" we don't always know, because of the regional differences about what that means. You pretty much have to know where you are, or where the speaker is from, to know what you're talking about.

In Louisiana, in general, and New Orleans, in particular, "barbecue" doesn't involve a grill. That's pretty much unique usage, not found anywhere else.

Below the Mason/Dixon line,  "barbecue" generally refers to what you eat, not the manner of cooking. In the South that means pork, and you can even subcategorize that into regional preferences such as pulled pork, ribs, and whole pig. In Texas, on the other hand, say "barbecue" and you mean beef, with most Texicans automatically thinking brisket. The mehtod of cooking is "grilling," not "barbecuing." And low & slow are the watchwords.

Throughout the South there are pockets that have distinct preferences which mark their barbecue. Western Kentucky, for instance, is noted for its use of mutton; South Carolina for its yellow sauces, etc.

In the Midwest, particularly Missouri, "barbecue" is all about the sauce. Low & slow grilling is the preferred cooking method, but there is no particular loyalty to the protein, which could be ribs, other pork product, chicken, beef.

In the North and upper Midwest, "barbecue" refers to the process and the event, and the words "barbecue" and "grill" are synonyms, as in "come on out next Sunday, we're having a barbecue". Everything for hot dogs to chicken to steak is cooked on the grill at a "barbecue," and low & slow not necessarily the way.

In your part of the world we find another unique usage. Whereas Louisiana does not involve a grill, you use a high fire and fast grilling for making barbecue---basically the other end of the continuum.

The long and the short of it is that when it comes to barbecue we are not, generally speaking, all talking about the same thing.

 

The version I make uses butter and bacon, have to really get the cholesterol up!

 

KY,

You had a lot of interesting things to say, but I'm not sure why you're directing them at me.  I'm actually pretty sophisticated about barbecue, having competed KCBS and what not; and do not think all barbecue is grilled. 

On the other hand, I don't equate a saute with barbecue, anymore than I do a crock pot -- no matter what sauce is employed. 

I'm actually pretty loose about the definition, there's no sense in fighting with common usage -- you can only lose.  When I talked about the guys who are deeply invested in the online boards dedicated to barbecue as being a little more demanding... well they are.  Because people can be rather rigid about what they do and don't include, when I talk about things like "California beef barbecue," "Santa Maria style," charcoal-grilling, etc., I stick with the more restrictive terms.

Yes, here I did use the term "grate." I can see how you associated with "grill," and consequently with "grilling." I used the term as much to refer to the grate you find in a smoker as one you find in a grill.   

Anyway, maybe we should start a thread...

BDL

PS.

I'm not sure why I'm even responding to this.  Why it's important to me that you know I knew.  Respect I guess.