# Cooking Wild Tiger Prawns



## creative (Feb 7, 2015)

I have never cooked this raw _large_ wild tiger prawns before.  I know they can be fried or grilled but for how long, i.e. how can you tell they are done?  When they turn pink?  About 5 mins?

I am thinking of frying them with butter and some garlic - just having them in ciabatta rolls.  Would they be better cooked in the shell (more flavour?) and peeled afterwards or is it tricky to remove the black vein after cooking?


----------



## Roll_Bones (Feb 7, 2015)

I have never seen "wild" tiger prawns or shrimp before. Only farmed raised. And when you say large, how large do you mean. 16-20 large?

Cook them like you would shrimp. Quick.
I like to cook shrimp in the shell as they seem so much bigger after peeling than when I cook them shelled and deveined.
But large shrimp/prawns will have a substantial gut (entrails) you want to get rid of.
You can remove the vein after you cook and peel them under running water.


----------



## creative (Feb 7, 2015)

Roll_Bones said:


> I have never seen "wild" tiger prawns or shrimp before. Only farmed raised. And when you say large, how large do you mean. 16-20 large?
> 
> Cook them like you would shrimp. Quick.
> I like to cook shrimp in the shell as they seem so much bigger after peeling than when I cook them shelled and deveined.
> ...


These are quite long - 7"/17cm.  I know they cook quick but how to tell when done? Just turn pink?

Yeah I think best cooked in shell for max flavour and devein afterwards (assuming the vein/gut does not contaminate the taste)


----------



## GotGarlic (Feb 7, 2015)

I would cut the shell down the back and devein them before cooking and still leave the shell on. I think you'll have to cut one in half to check doneness. When the outside is pink, they may not be cooked through yet.


----------



## CraigC (Feb 7, 2015)

creative said:


> These are quite long - 7"/17cm.  I know they cook quick but how to tell when done? Just turn pink?
> 
> Yeah I think best cooked in shell for max flavour and devein afterwards (assuming the vein/gut does not contaminate the taste)



Are you talking about just the tails or are they "head on"?


----------



## Cheryl J (Feb 7, 2015)

The jumbo shrimp I get here are big, but not that big , and they come shell-on, with a slice down the back and the vein already removed.  I would never cook them with the vein in.  

I rinse them under cold running water and run my thumb down the back to make sure all of the vein is out, mix them with olive oil and garlic and roast them shell on at 400F (don't know what the equivalent is in the UK).  They'll turn bright red - I would guess at that size it would take about 15 minutes total, turning once.  

You'll get varying opinions here about cooking them shell on or off , I think it adds to the flavor and helps keep them from drying out if the shell is left on.  Some of the meat will be forced out the shell during cooking, you can see enough of the meat if they are done or not without cutting into them. They don't take long.


----------



## Cheryl J (Feb 7, 2015)

Meant to add a pic.


----------



## jennyema (Feb 7, 2015)

GotGarlic said:


> I would cut the shell down the back and devein them before cooking and still leave the shell on. I think you'll have to cut one in half to check doneness. When the outside is pink, they may not be cooked through yet.



Yes.  If I were sautéing I'm garlic and butter with shell on id absolutely devein before cooking.


----------



## creative (Feb 7, 2015)

CraigC said:


> Are you talking about just the tails or are they "head on"?


The whole unshelled prawn is 7" i.e. from top of its head to end of its tail


----------



## creative (Feb 7, 2015)

OK thanks for your feedback.  The way to go seems to be to keep shell on but to devein them and check they are cooked by cutting into them.


----------



## creative (Feb 7, 2015)

Just to report back on cooking those large wild tiger prawns in their shells (I found no vein - either along the back or on the underside...perhaps it had been done; when I washed them, there was a little 'blood')

I fried them in butter and oil, lowish heat with some garlic slivers.  The garlic had to be removed before it burnt.  Difficult to cook evenly, given its shape and the curling factor.  It was not easily to peel off the shell whilst it was still fairly hot but delicious taste though.

In hindsight, I think it would have been better had I skewered them along the head part and grilled them (brushed in butter).  The metal skewer would have acted like a good heat conductor.  Close to the head they are quite thick and so the tail part is likely to be cooked before then.


----------



## Dawgluver (Feb 7, 2015)

I think skewering them is a good idea.  You could also butterfly them.  I love coconut shrimp done that way.


----------



## Zhizara (Feb 7, 2015)

I love my seafood cooked in garlic butter.  I'd definitely peel and devein first.  That way when they are cooked you're done and ready for that ciabatta roll.

If they are really, really large you might want to split them down the middle before cooking.


----------



## Steve Kroll (Feb 7, 2015)

Cheryl J said:


> Meant to add a pic.



That looks exactly like what I had a few night's ago! They were HUGE mutant shrimp!

I just sauteed them, deveined and shell-on, in butter, garlic, lemon, and a splash of white wine. I also tossed in some parsley and red pepper flakes at the end.


----------



## Cheryl J (Feb 7, 2015)

Steve Kroll said:


> That looks exactly like what I had a few night's ago! They were HUGE mutant shrimp!
> 
> I just sauteed them, deveined and shell-on, in butter, garlic, lemon, and a splash of white wine. I also tossed in some parsley and red pepper flakes at the end.


 
Yum!  Every now and then I find shrimp that look like small lobsters.   What a find, me thinks.  I'll have to try them with a little white wine and red pepper next time.  I have to have several grinds of fresh cracked black pepper, too.


----------



## Addie (Feb 7, 2015)

When my husband was shrimping down in Texas, he would bring home about 10 pounds from each trip. I would rinse them and sauté them in olive oil/butter and some garlic. It was us to the eater to remove the shell and head along with deveining them. My husband like to eat his with horseradish. I like to dip mine in melted butter. After about three months of these feasts, we both got a little sick of them. So he would still bring some home and I would give them to my neighbors. Needless to say, I was very popular. So between lobsters as a kid and shrimp from my husband, I can look at both and not drool.


----------



## puffin3 (Feb 17, 2015)

Very low and slow. Sautee in unsalted clarified butter at very low heat. Protein strands become rubber bands when heated over 212 F.
They are cooked when the flesh becomes just opaque. After a few minutes remove one and try it. Prawns don't have to be served hot. Warm is fine so consider the 'carryover' temperature.
I leave the shells on but devane. Removing the shells is part of the eating experience. 
No garlic or any other flavors to mask the delicate flavor of the prawns.
A squeeze of fresh lemon juice when served.
Hot damp individual hand towels for everyone.


----------



## Selkie (Feb 17, 2015)

Please, whatever you do never boil shrimp or prawns. If you're not going to grill them, put them into something such as a soup or stew, bring the liquid to a boil and turn off the heat. Then, put the shrimp/prawns into it, wait three minutes for shrimp, 5 minutes for prawns and then serve. Boiling or simmering would make them tough, over cooked and rubbery. Heating just below boiling will keep them tender and a pleasure to eat.


----------



## Addie (Feb 17, 2015)

puffin3 said:


> Very low and slow. Sautee in unsalted clarified butter at very low heat. Protein strands become rubber bands when heated over 212 F.
> They are cooked when the flesh becomes just opaque. After a few minutes remove one and try it. Prawns don't have to be served hot. Warm is fine so consider the 'carryover' temperature.
> I leave the shells on but devane. Removing the shells is part of the eating experience.
> No garlic or any other flavors to mask the delicate flavor of the prawns.
> ...



Opaque is not good enough for me. I want my seafood cooked. Having been married to a shimper, I know only too well what can be found in our seafood. That is why I will never eat sushi. I want my shrimp cooked until pink all around. And I don't care how long it takes to bring them to pink. One food I do know how to cook and do it well, is seafood.


----------



## puffin3 (Feb 17, 2015)

Addie said:


> Opaque is not good enough for me. I want my seafood cooked. Having been married to a shimper, I know only too well what can be found in our seafood. That is why I will never eat sushi. I want my shrimp cooked until pink all around. And I don't care how long it takes to bring them to pink. One food I do know how to cook and do it well, is seafood.


Ya. Me too. I commercial fished off the West Coast for over twenty years. Did all the cooking on my boat. Owned and operated a restaurant specialising in serving fresh seafood.
It's nice to have someone on this forum who is an expert on seafood cooking as you.
What's your preferred method of cooking fresh halibut?


----------



## creative (Feb 17, 2015)

Bearing in mind what we know here re. prawns getting tough if on a high heat - this seems to bypass food manufacturers, i.e. when making fish pie (with prawns) and paella.  At least with paella you have the option to take off the prawn and add it towards the end.  (I know the ideal is to make it yourself but, hey, at the end of a long day and when it is reduced in the shop....)


----------



## Addie (Feb 17, 2015)

puffin3 said:


> Ya. Me too. I commercial fished off the West Coast for over twenty years. Did all the cooking on my boat. Owned and operated a restaurant specialising in serving fresh seafood.
> It's nice to have someone on this forum who is an expert on seafood cooking as you.
> What's your preferred method of cooking fresh halibut?



In my family, all fish gets breaded and fried.


----------



## Roll_Bones (Feb 17, 2015)

Addie said:


> Opaque is not good enough for me. I want my seafood cooked. Having been married to a shimper, I know only too well what can be found in our seafood. That is why I will never eat sushi. I want my shrimp cooked until pink all around. And I don't care how long it takes to bring them to pink. One food I do know how to cook and do it well, is seafood.



So, I'm going to go out on a limb and say you don't like Serveche? 



Addie said:


> In my family, all fish gets breaded and fried.



I thought you were an expert?

Oh....Wild tiger prawns?  All the tiger anything I have seen was farmed raised. Where would one find wild tiger prawns?


----------



## CraigC (Feb 17, 2015)

Selkie said:


> Please, *whatever you do never boil shrimp* or prawns. If you're not going to grill them, put them into something such as a soup or stew, bring the liquid to a boil and turn off the heat. Then, put the shrimp/prawns into it, wait three minutes for shrimp, 5 minutes for prawns and then serve. Boiling or simmering would make them tough, over cooked and rubbery. Heating just below boiling will keep them tender and a pleasure to eat.



There are a whole bunch of folks in Louisiana, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina etc, that would have a very good laugh at that. Although I like them boiled, I really prefer steaming.


----------



## Selkie (Feb 17, 2015)

Having a good laugh doesn't make then right. Boiling is wrong.


----------



## creative (Feb 17, 2015)

Selkie said:


> Having a good laugh doesn't make then right. Boiling is wrong.


Well boiling them is not getting the best out of them - much nicer to eat cooked gently both texture and flavour wise.


----------



## CraigC (Feb 17, 2015)

Selkie said:


> Having a good laugh doesn't make then right. Boiling is wrong.



What is wrong with boiling them? 



creative said:


> Well boiling them is not getting the best out of them - much nicer to eat cooked gently both texture and flavour wise.



How do you figure? If you know what you are doing there will be nothing wrong with either texture or flavor. Don't knock something until you try it!


----------



## creative (Feb 17, 2015)

CraigC said:


> What is wrong with boiling them?
> 
> How do you figure? If you know what you are doing there will be nothing wrong with either texture or flavor. Don't knock something until you try it!


Have you ever tried prawns cooked more gently, i.e. simmered rather than boiled?  If not you might be amazed, 
so don't knock it until you try it!!  

Also, I guess you haven't read the previous page then, specifically posts #17 and #18.


----------



## Addie (Feb 17, 2015)

Roll_Bones said:


> So, I'm going to go out on a limb and say you don't like Serveche?
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I cook it the way my family likes it. I prefer mine baked with a light tomato sauce. And I prefer the whole fish be cooked. I don't remove the head. My kids think I am a very sicky person.


----------



## CraigC (Feb 17, 2015)

creative said:


> Have you ever tried prawns cooked more gently, i.e. simmered rather than boiled?  If not you might be amazed,
> so don't knock it until you try it!!
> 
> *Also, I guess you haven't read the previous page then, specifically posts #17 and #18*.



I don't limit myself to one way of cooking, or not, any kind of seafood. I've had shrimp in scampi, grilled, fried, "BBQ'd", poached in butter, stuffed with crab meat and broiled, etc and have probably forgotten even more along the way. I read the posts, what is your point? If someone wishes to limit their preparations to one method, that is their business. It doesn't mean the rest of us need to miss out! Have you ever had a low country or Cajun shrimp boil?


----------



## Cooking Goddess (Feb 17, 2015)

Come on people, quite snipping at each other. What is the "right" way to cook any food? The way that results in a food YOU enjoy eating. You know, you say "poTAYto, I say "poTAHto". Cook it the way you like. YMMV.*


*Your Mileage May Vary


----------



## Selkie (Feb 17, 2015)

Yes, I've had a Cajun shrimp boil! My mother was Cajun (100%) and to my grandmother English was a second language with Cajun being her native tongue! I still have a large maternal family in Louisiana and I been to MANY shrimp/crawdad/'gater/oyster and general seafood boils. The shrimp is added AFTER the kettle stops boiling. The crawdads simmer for one minute and then steep.
It makes the difference between chewing an automobile rubber shock absorber or a tender piece of cod.


----------



## creative (Feb 17, 2015)

Cooking Goddess said:


> Come on people, quite snipping at each other. What is the "right" way to cook any food? The way that results in a food YOU enjoy eating. You know, you say "poTAYto, I say "poTAHto". Cook it the way you like. YMMV.*
> 
> *Your Mileage May Vary


Yes, there may be no right or wrong way however, there are ways of getting the best out of the food you cook with.


----------



## salt and pepper (Feb 17, 2015)

Cheryl J said:


> Meant to add a pic.



    Looks yummy Cheryl...


----------



## Cheryl J (Feb 17, 2015)

Thanks, Joey. 

I'm with those who have said there are so many different ways to cook/bake/steam/simmer/grill, etc., shrimp.  I've prepared and eaten shrimp so many ways. There isn't any one 'right' way. 

I don't know much about it, but I've always thought a good ol' low country boil would be so much fun - lots of goodies, newspapers on the outdoor tables, plenty of napkins, and good company.  Sounds like my kind of meal.


----------



## Addie (Feb 17, 2015)

Cheryl J said:


> Thanks, Joey.
> 
> I'm with those who have said there are so many different ways to cook/bake/steam/simmer/grill, etc., shrimp.  I've prepared and eaten shrimp so many ways. There isn't any one 'right' way.
> 
> I don't know much about it, but I've always thought a good ol' low country boil would be so much fun - lots of goodies, newspapers on the outdoor tables, plenty of napkins, and good company.  Sounds like my kind of meal.



So right Cheryl. Every year my sister and I would go to the yacht club for their lobster boil. Two huge lobsters, corn, red potatoes, Cole slaw and each year the dessert would change. Another plus is you could go up for seconds as long as the food held out. Of course most folks went for seconds on the lobsters. I was always more interested in collecting the shells for a seafood broth. My two, my sister's three or more, and any others I could collect. I never came home with less than 10 to 15 shells. They made the most delicious broth you could imagine. I let it boil down to almost a paste. It  was so intense in flavor, all you needed was a large tablespoon for whatever you were going to put it in. My daughter used to use it for her marinara sauce. My sister had a huge appetite and would get seconds on everything except the Cole slaw. Now that is one of my most favorite foods. How could she not like Cole slaw!


----------



## creative (Feb 18, 2015)

I guess everyone knows that the shells and heads of prawns make a great fish stock?  I have read that a 20 minute simmer is sufficient i.e. going over this makes the fish stock milky and bitter (I realise this may refer to fish bones though).


----------



## Addie (Feb 18, 2015)

creative said:


> I guess everyone knows that the shells and heads of prawns make a great fish stock?  I have read that a 20 minute simmer is sufficient i.e. going over this makes the fish stock milky and bitter (I realise this may refer to fish bones though).



Any time my sister would make fish chowder, she would always toss a couple of fish frames into the stock.


----------



## Bigjim68 (Feb 18, 2015)

One of my favorite preparations of those huge prawns is to butterfly and stuff with crab.  Basically a crab cake mixture minus the filler.  Lightly broiled.  

Fresh corn on the cob, hush puppies, slaw.  Eatin' doesn't get much better than that.

And, of course, a good, not too hoppy, micro.


----------



## RPCookin (Feb 18, 2015)

Selkie said:


> Yes, I've had a Cajun shrimp boil! My mother was Cajun (100%) and to my grandmother English was a second language with Cajun being her native tongue! I still have a large maternal family in Louisiana and I been to MANY shrimp/crawdad/'gater/oyster and general seafood boils. The shrimp is added AFTER the kettle stops boiling. The crawdads simmer for one minute and then steep.
> It makes the difference between chewing an automobile rubber shock absorber or a tender piece of cod.



This is just nuts.  Sorry but there is definitely more than one way to cook these tasy morsels.  I agree that you have to be a bit more careful with larger prawns, but with the shrimp that most of us typically have available from the supermarket, it's just not that touchy.  I made shrimp cocktail for our hors d'oevres  on Valentines day.  I put the pot to a rolling boil, then added the cold (not frozen) shrimp.  I removed them after about one minute, chilled them in cold water then into the freezer for 15 minutes.  They were perfectly cooked and nicely chilled and went very well with the Shannon Ridge Cabernet that we drank with them.  

Boiling did not make them tough or rubbery.  It isn't the boiling that does that, it's overcooking that does it.  When I make my version of jambalaya, I add shrimp at the very last.  After living in the Bahamas for 2 years, and eating a lot of conch, I know what rubbery is.  Conch can turn into pure latex if held too close to a match.  It's best eaten raw after a few minutes spent marinating in a bit of lime juice.  

Crack conch is very good, battered and deep fried, but it has to be pounded nearly to death before cooking to be edible.  Conch fritters can be good, but the conch in them can be very tough.  The conch I've had in Chicken and conch souse and in conch and rice is added right at the end to just warm it and keep it tender.

By the way Addie, I don't generally eat raw seafood either.  Seviche is not high on my list of good eats, and I've never even entered a sushi bar.  The raw conch was different because it was no more than 5 minutes from the live animal on the ocean bottom to being passed around for a beach munchy.  For, conch eaten on the beach or on a boat, the setting is part of the experience.  It would probably not be as interesting if eaten while sitting in a Colorado restaurant, even assuming that you could find such a thing here.


----------



## Addie (Feb 19, 2015)

RPCookin said:


> This is just nuts.
> 
> By the way Addie, I don't generally eat raw seafood either.  Seviche is not high on my list of good eats, and I've never even entered a sushi bar.  The raw conch was different because it was no more than 5 minutes from the live animal on the ocean bottom to being passed around for a beach munchy.  For, conch eaten on the beach or on a boat, the setting is part of the experience.  It would probably not be as interesting if eaten while sitting in a Colorado restaurant, even assuming that you could find such a thing here.



We have a town down in the southern part of the state. Their restaurants are known for their conch foods. All I know is the town smells to high heaven from it. I used to hate going down there to meet my husband. 

One time he brought home a couple of shrimp caught closer to shore than where they normally go. He kept them alive and when he got them home, he cut them open and showed me why they go so far out to make their catch. We were sitting at the table when he did this. I barfed all over the table when he cut them open. Our harbors and waters close to shore are so polluted, that any fish or other seafood caught there are so contaminated, that commercial fishing vessels are not allowed by the FEDS to fish within a certain limit. 

He also did the same with a cod fish that had been caught close to the shore. Good heavens, any person fishing off a bridge within the city limits on the eastern shoreline is getting a feast of parasites. I hope they are just practicing "catch and release." 

Our beds of clams and other seashells are tested by the state here. When you do clamming for a living, you have to put a tag on what you caught, telling you where you dug them, and when. The same goes for oysters. So these folks here who clam for a hobby in the summer, I hope they know where they are doing this. As I kids during WWII, all of us would dig them and bring them home for a meal. Our mothers really appreciated our efforts as we had a lot of meatless days. But our waters weren't so polluted then. And clamming wasn't  regulated as closely as it is now. We recently had a major very large clam bed polluted out by the airport due to a jet fuel spill. It will be years before that bed recovers. That was a major blow to the clamming industry here. When I buy fish, I don't buy bottom feeders like flounder. When there is crap thrown overboard, it will sink to the bottom and get eaten by bottom feeders. Fortunately responsible boat owners and commercial shipping do not do this. There is a major big fine if caught. Small boat owners can have their boats confiscated in some areas. And those plastic six pack rings are a death knell for our wildlife in our waters. No thank you. Just take a look at today's wildlife in William's Sound in Alaska. They are still paying the price and cleaning off birds that dive for their food.


----------



## Mad Cook (Feb 20, 2015)

creative said:


> I have never cooked this raw _large_ wild tiger prawns before. I know they can be fried or grilled but for how long, i.e. how can you tell they are done? When they turn pink? About 5 mins?
> 
> I am thinking of frying them with butter and some garlic - just having them in ciabatta rolls. Would they be better cooked in the shell (more flavour?) and peeled afterwards or is it tricky to remove the black vein after cooking?


 I usually fry them quickly until they start to go pink. 

Incidentally, I mis-read this as "Cooking WILD TIGER" ! I've eaten gazelle (OK), crocodile (I don't recommend it) and zebra (lots of guilty feelings because it looks like a horse) but never tiger.


----------



## creative (Feb 20, 2015)

Mad Cook said:


> I usually fry them quickly until they start to go pink.
> 
> Incidentally, I mis-read this as "Cooking WILD TIGER" ! I've eaten gazelle (OK), crocodile (I don't recommend it) and zebra (lots of guilty feelings because it looks like a horse) but never tiger.


Ha....just as well - tigers are a dwindling species!


----------

