given the iffy quality/health safety issues , , I refuse to buy farm raised shrimp and/or 'not USA source' shrimp.
seems the bigger they get, the more noticeable 'taste' declines - I stick to the 15-20 per pound size. one will see slightly different gradings - stuff like "14-18" which is likely insignificant.
buying 'fresh never frozen' is a huge challenge - the 'big boats' catch and freeze - either in a block or IQF - within minutes.
day boats go out, catch, return to dock same day. unless you're in a seaport, getting day boat shrimp is really not possible. we lived in Jacksonville FL long time ago - one could go to the dock and get a whole (bring your own) bucketful for a buck. not no more . . .
a shrimp is not a shrimp is not a shrimp - many species and most importantly to note the season they are harvest . . .
unless you live in shrimp boat country, getting fresh-never-frozen shrimp is all but impossible.
here a list by type/season, so when some teenager behind the counter tells you these are fresh caught rock shrimp - and the calendar says November - you can assume a lack of knowledge or a desire to fraudulate.
note: "local" names vary hugely . . . .
by type:
White Shrimp (Penaeus Setiferus), from brackish water estuary, are milder in flavor and just a little softer in texture than either Browns or Hoppers. These may be the perfect shrimp to fry or saute.
season: late Spring through June, then again from Fall until the dead of Winter sets in sometime in January.
Key West Pinks
Florida Hoppers or Pink shrimp (Penaeus Duorarum) produced locally by the high salinity waters of St. Joe Bay may just be the perfect boiling shrimp. These easy peeling, firm shrimp are in the middle of the flavor spectrum and have one of the prettiest after cooked colors. Unlike most shrimp that have a distinct color, Hoppers are chameleons who match the color of the bottom they are sitting on top of. From the almost translucent green hue they exhibit in St. Joe Bay, to the golden brown color caught off the shores of Cape San Blas, to the distinct almost cooked pink color of the hoppers caught off the Florida Keys, hence called Key West Pinks, these shrimp can always be identified by the ever present circular spot right in the middle of the shrimps side.
season: March to early May
Wild American Browns
Brown Shrimp (Penaeus Aztecus) or locally called Brownies are a little richer in flavor than the hoppers and are golden brown in color. These shrimp are a little softer than hoppers and are great for just about any cooking you can think of.
season: Normally they kick in when the hopper run ends in early May and can last throughout the Summer months.
Rock Shrimp (Sicyonia Brevirostris) probably best described as armor-plated shrimp that tastes more like lobster, lives and breeds offshore of Cape San Blas in between 100 and 200 feet of water. These tasty shrimp are an everyday meal to a hungry snapper lurking over the Empire Mica. They are difficult to peel but well worth the trouble to split and broiled. They just may be the most underrated shrimp on the planet
season: May and June
Royal Reds (Pleoticus Robustus) are perhaps the softest and most delicate of all our native shrimp species. This vibrant red shrimp never sees the light of day, preferring the cold dark depths out at the edge where the gently sloping bottom of the Gulf drops abruptly off the continental shelf.
season: early March through June.
by season:
early March through June - Royal Reds (Pleoticus Robustus)
March to early May . . . - Key West Pinks aka 'hoppers' (Penaeus Duorarum)
May and June . . . . . . - Rock Shrimp (Sicyonia Brevirostris)
May thru Summer . . . . .- Brown Shrimp (Penaeus Aztecus)
late Spring through June - White Shrimp (Penaeus Setiferus)
Fall thru dead of Winter - White Shrimp (Penaeus Setiferus)