Looking for shrimp

[GBIceman]

Hi all; got an OBS for Christmas, awesome device. Smoked some tuna steaks last night-I'm in love. Would like to try some shrimp, looking to start out slow and easy and build up to harder things. Any quick recipes would be appreciated.

[DTAggie]

Welcome GBIceman.  Glad the first smoke was a success.  I have never done shrimp in the Bradley, but don't be afraid to try bigger things.  It is really easy and all the answers can be found here on the forum.

[BuyLowSellHigh]

GBIceman, welcome to the forums.

Get to know the recipe site (link below) .. scroll down to Sea Food (NO FISH). two recipes for smoked shrimp.

http://www.susanminor.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?180-Our-Time-Tested-and-Proven-Recipes

[FLBentRider]

W E L C O M E  to the Forum GBIceman!

[ArnieM]

Hi GBIceman and welcome to the forum.  Personally, I'd use alder for no more than about 40 minutes, but that's just me.

[GBIceman]

Thank you for the responses, I was looking for the recipe pages. I am going to cold smoke some ribeyes before grill than smoke cook some shrimp, to celebrate a Packer victory!!!

[hal4uk]

GBI, whichever way you cook them, get GULF shrimp. 
Don't worry about that dang oil spill, the best shrimp in the world comes from the gulf.

Nowadays, there's a LOT of shrimp in the grocery stores from Thailand, China, India, etc...
Some of it is "ok", and some of it tastes like cardboard.
Try to get it in original packaging, so you can see for sure where it came from.

Not only are gulf shrimp the best, but they are almost always IQF (Immediately Quick Frozen) with blast freezers.
Most other shrimp are inferior in the first place, and often just frozen with regular cheapo freezers...
That slower drop to the freeze crystallizes the moisture much differently, and destroys the texture.

Look for original packaging....
"IQF" + "Gulf of Mexico"

[BigJohnT]

Man, I had 6 lbs of Texas shrimp over the holiday weekend... way better than ChunLee.

John

[Caneyscud]

Lots of people and other sites will say you can't smoke shrimp.  I've done it many times, you just have to keep close watch and take off just when done.  But then again - I'm not picky about shrimp - what others claim to be over done shrimp and rubbery, I devour.  I've never met a shrimp too "tough" to eat - well except for those tiny dried ones in the oriental markets. 

One thing I don't do though is wrap them in bacon.  I've never had that work out for me.  To smoke long enough to get the bacon done, the shrimp are dry.  Others seem to be able to do it, but I haven't.  When I want that flavor sorta, I will wrap in a cheep Prosciutto instead of bacon.  Don't have to wait for that to get done.

I don't usually try to smoke the biggies - the U15's and bigger - I'll grill those.  I'll use the 21/25 or the 26/30 sizes, shell off and marinate, then smoke until just done.  Most say use a milder smoke like alder or maple, but heck, if you like mesquite go for it - I have.  They won't take long at 165 to 200 deg to get done.  For instance a shrimp is done in boiling water in about 3 minutes.  It'll take longer in the smoker, but not much longer - just watch for the color change.  might take from 10 min. to 45 min. depending on temp and size of shrimp.  I like the CT to be down lower than 200.

Marinade the little buggers from 2 hours to 8 hours.  I don't like the longer times as they seem to get soggy with the oil.

My Texas Shrimp marinade
White wine - something sweetish like a Riesling is best
EVOO
Cilantro
Chili Powder
Cumin
Chopped Garlic
Chopped Shallots or Green Onion
Maybe a little sugar or sweetener
sometimes I will add red pepper flakes

For simple
Good Italian Salad Dressing
Beer
Garlic

For Hot
Juice of a lime or two
1 tablespoon chili powder
1-1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper (or to taste)
black pepper
salt
canola oil

It's fun to experiment with different salad dressings and vinaigrettes.  I had some that were really good where somebody used some French Dressing.

Cajun marinade
EVOO
Cajun Seasoning such as Tony Cachere's
Chopped garlic
Juice from half a lime
Maybe some cayenne

Tequila Lime (for you lushes ;D)
EVOO (1/4 cup)
Tequila (few tablespoons, but equal amount with the lime juice)
Fresh Lime Juice
Coarse ground pepper
Pinch of granulated garlic
pinch of cumin.
sometimes I will add cilantro and red pepper flakes.

Bourbon Shrimp
Bourbon
EVOO
Louisiana hot sauce
Worsy...worche....wort.....horsey....oh you know what sauce I'm talking about.
There should be about twice as much bourbon as the other liquid ingredients combined.
Minced fresh garlic
salt
Pepper
Don't marinade too long in this stuff as the bourbon will "cook " the shrimp.  It also make a good glaze with grilling shrimp.

One thing I like to do with smoked shrimp is make a smoked shrimp dip
Ether in a cream cheese base
or included in a buttery, cheesey spinach artichoke dip

I have brined and smoke them with the skin on.  They are moister that way, but not quite as smokey as the shell gets discarded (should make a killer shrimp broth though - so don' throw away).  The brine I used was 3 cups cold water, 1/4 cup kosher salt, 1/4 cup sugar if I remember correctly.

I've bookmarked this recipe - but haven't tried it yet.  I've got some clear balsamic I will use when I do
Anytime Balsamic Shrimp

1 1/2 pounds large uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup Traditional Aceto Balsamico (aged Balsamic Vinegar) or Faux Aged Balsamic Vinegar (see recipe below)
Fleur de Sel salt, sea salt, or coarse salt to taste*

Another one I want to try is olive oil, garlic, and sriracha.

And then again you can use shrimp to stuff things then smoke

Half a jalapeno, deseed and trim out the membrane.  mix a cream cheese/cheese mixture with you favorite stuff - I use garlic, black pepper and a little chorizo.  Lay a small shrimp in your jalapeno half and top with the cream cheese mixture.  Then wrap in bacon and smoke.  It would be interesting if you did this with a big pepper like a poblano or one of those big red peppers that Sam's has very often (they are very good). 
Or if you don't like the peppers (wassa matta ya sick or sumthin?) take a pork tenderloin, slice into 1" thick rounds.  With a sharp knife make a pocket from the slide of the slices.  Stuff the pocket with a shrimp and the same cream cheese mixture, wrap in bacon and smoke.  I've heard of people doing this with bologna - but I dunno!

[GBIceman]

Thank you all,
Choose the oil,pepper and lemon marinade from the recipe site. Smoked with alder at about 190 for 40 minutes. (cold out last night). Texture was awesome, little too much pepper. Will add garlic next time. Awesome meal. Go Pack Go!!!!

[Edward176]

Looks very yummy, thanks for posting it I'll try it.