{"id":1993732,"date":"2024-05-16T18:57:30","date_gmt":"2024-06-04T15:33:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tasteofhome.com\/?post_type=recipe&p=1993732"},"modified":"2024-06-04T10:33:21","modified_gmt":"2024-06-04T15:33:21","slug":"steamed-shrimp","status":"publish","type":"recipe","link":"https:\/\/www.tasteofhome.com\/recipes\/steamed-shrimp\/","title":{"rendered":"Steamed Shrimp"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of my first jobs out of culinary school was at a seafood restaurant. As you might imagine, shrimp cocktail was one of the more popular shrimp appetizers<\/a> on the menu. Every day, I’d prepare for the dinner rush by pouring pounds of shrimp into perforated 12×20-inch hotel pans and loading them into the restaurant’s convection steamer. Within five minutes, an entire evening’s worth of steamed shrimp would be cooked and ready to go.<\/p>\n

I was amazed by the process. Before working there, I had thought that boiling shrimp was the best way to cook the tiny crustaceans for make-ahead dishes like shrimp pasta salad<\/a> or shrimp avocado salad<\/a>. But delicate shrimp can easily overcook in violently boiling water, becoming chewy and tough. In the steamer’s gentle cooking environment, however, the shrimp are surrounded by moist heat and achieve the plumpest, juiciest texture.<\/p>\n

How to Steam Shrimp<\/h2>\n

If you know how to steam vegetables<\/a>, then you know how to steam shrimp! The basic principles are the same: Bring a small amount of liquid to a boil, place the food in a steamer basket, and add the lid. The lid traps moisture inside the pan, surrounding the shrimp with hot steam.<\/p>\n

It’s great if you have a dedicated pot with a steamer basket, but it’s not necessary. Steamer inserts are designed to fit in most stockpots or Dutch ovens. They even have little feet on the bottom to ensure the basket will stay elevated from the bottom of the pot.<\/p>\n

The bigger question is what to use as your steaming liquid. You can use plain water, but shrimp tastes better with some seasoning. We add lemon, onion, garlic and bay leaves to water in this recipe, but the sky’s the limit here. Feel free to season the water with vinegar or use a naturally flavorful liquid like beer, broth or juice to steam the shrimp. No matter what you choose, just make sure the liquid level is a few inches below the bottom of the steamer basket or insert so that the shrimp steam instead of boil.<\/p>\n

How long do you steam shrimp?<\/h2>\n

Shell-on shrimp cook in three to five minutes, depending on their size. Peeled shrimp will finish cooking more quickly than shell-on shrimp, so pay attention to the visual factors to know when the shrimp are finished cooking. Cooked shrimp take on a pink hue, and their tails curl toward the heads in a loose C shape. If you poke the shrimp with your finger, the flesh should be firm to the touch with a little give.<\/p>\n

Steamed Shrimp Ingredients<\/h2>\n

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