Heather says:
As I live near the coast of South Carolina, you may assume that a staple like shrimp or fish stock would be easy to find. You would be wrong. To find shrimp or fish stock, I have to go to the fancy pants grocery store and since shrimp stock is so easy to make it has become my default.
The next time you have to peel shrimp for something like shrimp étouffée or shrimp quesadillas save the shrimp shells. Throw them in a freezer bag and store them in the freezer until you have the shells from 2 lbs of  shrimp. (We generally eat medium to large shrimp¹ as anything smaller just gets annoying to fuss with).
¹The point at which the word shrimp just looks and sounds bizarre has been reached.
: Shrimp Stock
: Shrimp stock is an important ingredient in many shrimp based recipes
- Shells from 2 lbs of shrimp
- 2 carrots, scrubbed and broken in half
- 3 ribs of celery, scrubbed and broken, including the leaves
- 6 peppercorns
- 2 garlic cloves, slightly crushed
- 1 onion, quartered
- 2 bay leaves
- 2.5 quarts cold water
 Shrimp Stock Directions
- Place all of the ingredients in a stock pot and bring to a boil over medium heat.
- Immediately reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 45 minutes.
- Strain the stock through a fine mesh strainer or cheese cloth to remove all of the solids.
- I typically strain the stock directly into wide mouth canning jars and allow the stock to cool at room temperature for an hour and then in a water (start with tepid, then add ice) bath for 30 minutes before freezing or storing in the refrigerator (if I plan on using it within two days). Stock I plan on freezing, I cool in the water bath and then place in a freezer bag which I lie flat to freeze on a baking sheet or plate.
Preparation time: 5 minute(s)
Cooking time: 45 minute(s)
Enjoy.
Linked to Tasty Tuesday
I didn’t know there was such a thing as shrimp stock. Thank you so much for this great idea. Shrimp is the only “seafood” our family eats, so this will be wonderful. Thank you again!
@twinglemln I use it interchangeably with fish stock, although some would call it shrimp broth. I’m not super picky about technicalities. It’s simple to make and works well in recipes, that’s all that matters, right? 🙂
Thank you. I should’ve made my name show up as Carrie@My Favorite Finds, not “twinglemln”. Oh well. Have a great day!
I am with Twinglemln. I had no idea there was such a thing. Maybe because I don’t eat shrimp. 🙂 But now I know who to send them too…you are a wealth of amazing info, my friend. 🙂
Ok, and I have never signed up for your new comment thingy and I should have picked Beauty and Bedlam as my user name…oh well. 🙂
@inpassionatepursuit Ah well, we can see who you are. Thanks for stopping by. Some call it shrimp broth, but I use it interchangeably with fish stock in recipes.
I can’t believe that I lived on the Gulf Coast and it never occurred to me to make stock from shrimp peelings. I have made fish stock, but never found much of a use for it other than in gumbo…feel free to suggest if you have a yummy use for it. I think the shrimp stock would be better for the pseudo-oriental soups (pheaux pho?) I make, or maybe a bisque. I will be experimenting!