It is a very common question which I would almost encounter daily with brand new anglers for prawn fishing. There are a few points to take note in order to keep these freshwater shrimps fresh and tasty.
Basically, after you have brought home the shrimps, try not to freeze them in the freezer. The shrimps are best kept in the chiller instead since frozen big head shrimps will lose its texture and shrimps that are kept too long in the freezer will lose the 'QQ' texture and become powdery like.
"What else should I look out when storing them? "
Ans: You could apply salt to the shrimps during storage. It is best done when they are still alive as they would intake the salt into their system and the salt will give you a better after taste when cooked or sashimi.
"How long could I store them?"
Ans: I would suggest that the shrimps are consumed within a week from the date of 'captured'. It would be even better to eat them the same day of 'captured'.
"How to prepare big head shrimp sashimi?"
Ans: I got this from a sashimi chef so don't ask me if it is the correct way or not. Anyway, it tastes really good when eaten raw. Firstly, while the prawn is still alive, put them into a pail of ice cold water with lots of ice and salt. The shrimp will knock out pretty soon in that temperature and you could start to remove the shells and its guts. Please remember to keep it as cold as possible as the heat from our hands could affect the taste and also, the longer you take to prepare them, you are losing quality as the same time. The chef recommended to use japanese sashimi wine to further enhance the taste but you could also use sashimi sauce with wine too. When the shrimps are ready, serve them with a plate of ice to keep them cold as the ice will keep the texture 'QQ'. Dip the shrimp into the sashimi sauce (best with wine type), roll it around and then put it into your mouth... HEAVENLY!!!
"Steam them or grill them better?"
Ans: Chinese restaurant would normally steam them with egg white and chinese wine. The wine fragrance will greatly enhance our appetite further. It is definitely a great way to prepare them the chinese way. You could also grill them on the spot. If the heat is right, your shrimp will come out nice and juicy and during grilling them, the aroma from the grilling shrimps are mouth watering as well.
"What sizes prawns are best tasting?"
Ans: Personally, I prefer shrimps of 3-4inches in size. I feel that they are sweeter than their bigger counterparts. I like them grilled, steamed or eating them raw. For the bigger ones with big blue claws, I simply love the claws as the muscles in the claws are sweeter than the body itself. thus, whoever that dump the big claws I would advice them to keep them. If they insist, I would keep the claws for myself instead. As for these big claws, same thing, prepare them in ice cold water. Part them into half, season with salt, butter and garlic. Send them into the oven while they are still ice cold. When the big claws are cooked, serve them with a dash of black pepper or even add some sashimi sauce to further enhance the taste. You will want more!
After writing all these... I am getting hungry myself... hahaha.
The above are just my very own humble opinions. It is not even a guide to how to eat them. It is just some ways that I think that is nice and to share it with you all here. You may also invent your own way of eating them! I have customers who deep fried them with oats. Fantastic as well!
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