Good news: Maine Shrimp are in season.
Usually called Maine shrimp but also known as "northern" or "sweet" shrimp, these small wild shrimp will change your understanding of what a shrimp can taste like. They are exceedingly sweet and delicate with a flavor that makes them perfect to eat with as little adornment as a mere pinch of salt (some will even eat them raw).
Unlike the familiar large shrimp with their white-gray color, the Maine shrimp are notable for their shiny pink-to-red color and are often sold whole with the head and tail intact. And unlike most shrimp, these are never frozen.
The only disadvantage of cooking with these small shrimps is the effort to get them shelled and cleaned. That's because they're so tiny -- about 50 or 60 shrimp to a pound. But wow, is the effort worth it.
While some say the shrimp can be cooked in their shells, I have always found Maine shrimp to have a bit of sand in them and thus prefer to clean them before cooking. (Unlike the more familiar and larger shrimp, Maine shrimp do not have that black vein that most of us prefer to remove before cooking.) To remove the shell, take a shrimp in one hand, pinch its tail with your fingers and with your other hand, give a tug and the little, pink shrimp will usually slip out whole. Then give a good rinse with cool water and with a paring knife, remove any spots or marks.
Remember to always keep shellfish cold and on ice right up to when you cook it. So if it takes you a while to clean your shrimp, keep a bowl of ice in your sink to keep the shrimp very chilled while you're working with them.
These tiny delicacies can be cooked in a variety of ways.
- Boil for 2 minutes in salted water. Drain. Let cool. Use in salads or add to a pasta sauce or risotto.
- Peel, boil and add to chowder or shrimp bisque.
- After peeled and cleaned, "cook" in ceviche-style using a marinade of citrus juice (lemon, lime, or blood orange are good choices) and jalapeno pepper.
- Poach in olive oil and serve with pickled vegetables alongside a green salad.
- Quickly sauté in olive oil and thin slices of garlic and use either with pasta in a version of shrimp scampi or combine with oven-roasted tomatoes.
- Toss with a little lemon aioli or a mayonnaise to which you've added some lemon juice and Dijon mustard. Then use as the centerpiece of a salad plate or in a sandwich on a fresh ciabatta roll with some sprigs of arugula.
- Or simply boil, drain and while they're still warm, just dip in melted butter and eat immediately.
For those of you who pay close attention to where your seafood comes from, wild Maine shrimp are a good sustainable option to the farmed shrimp that come from Southeast Asia or Latin America. That's because Maine shrimp are all wild and caught either by trawler or in traps.
Most Maine Shrimp are sold for anywhere from $3.99 to $7.99 per pound. Supplies can quickly sell out so you may have to call ahead or shop around.
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