Boiling shrimp. How to get them to peel easy?

You need to get some ice on them after the boil

You need to put a gallon of olive oil in the boil.

If possible get fresh shrimp that have not been iqf freezed.

Definitely not bs. I've also boiled crawfish this way and I hear a lot of caterers do it like this. Since crawfish, shrimp, and crabs cannot absorb any seasoning while actively cooking, this process stops the cooking process the quickest and allows seasoning to be absorbed. It's a little bit more effort but turns out great. If I don't feel like messing with multiple pots, I'll place an ice bag (ice still in bag) or frozen water in gallon milk jugs in the pot. Not quite the same but has a similar effect.

For shrimp in particular, make sure the size of them is consistent throughout the batch and kill the cooking process as soon as the shell starts to bubble away from the meat.

quote:

---

this process stops the cooking process the quickest and allows seasoning to be absorbed

---

I have seen this done as well. The problem I have is I like my boiled seafood hot. The only chilled shrimp I like is in a cocktail or with remoulade. From the looks of this thread I'll just have to work a little harder to peel my shrimp and crawfish.

Boil them until you see the shell start to separate from the meat, then cut it off. I only soak shrimp for 3 minutes. Perfect every time.

quote:

---

If possible get fresh shrimp that have not been iqf freezed.

---

This.

The type of shrimp you get and how they were frozen makes a huge difference. You can boil IQF (salt brine frozen shrimp which is how the majority of shrimp are caught and frozen now) perfect and they will still be harder to peel than fresh (never frozen) or nitrogen/CO2 frozen shrimp.

quote:

---

This is going to sound like BS, but I was at a restaurant where the shrimp were easy to peel all the time and I asked them what was the secret.

Have season water cooled off till cold. Boil shrimp until just done in plain water. Once Shrimp are done boiling remove from plain water to the seasoned water. The longer you leave them in the seasoned water the spicier they will become.

They peel perfectly and you can get them well seasoned.

---

this is how we prepare out shrimp and crawfish.

I've been successful by boiling them in water seasoned with liquid (so no sodium) boil, maybe adding a LITTLE salt to the water before boiling.

Toss in boil, shut off heat, and after soak, throw more salt in the water and add some on shrimp after pulling out.

I've found having the water completely salted for the boil causes some drying and sticking of the shell.