Shrimp Stock

[Gonna Smoke]

Good friend has been really catching some nice shrimp using a technique we call deep-holing. He knows I've been laid up healing and wanting to join him, but he has been sending pictures of his exploits. I replied that I would like some fresh shrimp heads to make stock with. Be careful what you ask for... Anyway he showed up at my house with 3 gallon bags of heads. So now I'm in a fix. Got my wife to get the big pot and coached her on what I typically do. Quartered 2 large onions, coarse chopped about 4 carrots and 4 stalks of celery with leaves, 6 cloves of garlic crushed. Saute the heads in EVOO until turning pink. Added all the veggies, a palm full of whole peppercorns, 3 bay leaves, and a whole lemon squeezed. Covered with about 3 gallons water and brought to a boil. Reduced heat and simmered for maybe an hour...

Strained out all the solids and returned to the pot to reduce some, maybe about a 1/4 of the volume...

Ended up with 9 quarts for the freezer...

That pot was heavy and my wife, with the help of our daughter, had her hands full with me "directing traffic", but now we have plenty of shrimp stock for Etoufee, creole, gumbo, etc. they'll surely enjoy when I'm able to cook again. I told them that now they've got a very small glimpse of what I do to feed them, things they don't often get see me do...

 

[Steve H]

Nice looking stock Charles. That'll come in handy for sure.

 

[tbern]

Very nice!!

 

[tx smoker]

Wow Charles, I do envy you. How great it would be if I could incorporate seafood into our menu rotation but alas, it won't happen. I'll just have to live vicariously through you my friend.

Robert

 

[Dave in AZ]

Gonna Smoke looks beautiful! I always make shrimp stock from my peelings and shells, those heads are perfect. I love to see someone making a good stock!

 

[clifish]

Nice Charles going to be some good eating for sure. I had to pull out my EpiPen just reading this!

 

[Gonna Smoke]

Nice Charles going to be some good eating for sure. I had to pull out my EpiPen just reading this!

My best friend is allergic to shellfish, he can't even touch crabs or crab legs. Doesn't make sense, but he can eat shrimp...

 

[Gonna Smoke]

Nice looking stock Charles. That'll come in handy for sure.

Thank you Steve, I appreciate that...

Very nice!!

Thank you very much...

Wow Charles, I do envy you. How great it would be if I could incorporate seafood into our menu rotation but alas, it won't happen. I'll just have to live vicariously through you my friend.

Robert

Well Robert, I'll try cook some seafood dishes so you can get your "fix"...

Gonna Smoke looks beautiful! I always make shrimp stock from my peelings and shells, those heads are perfect. I love to see someone making a good stock!

The heads make fantastic stock. In years past before my shoulders were such a wreck and I could throw a cast net, I'd catch my own shrimp and I always made shrimp stock with the heads. Now the past few years I go to the docks and buy my shrimp right off the boat and they're already de-headed so this was a great opportunity that I didn't want to waste...

 

[gmc2003]

Nice job on the stock Charles. That should tide you over for a bit.

Point for sure
Chris

 

[clifish]

My best friend is allergic to shellfish, he can't even touch crabs or crab legs. Doesn't make sense, but he can eat shrimp...

That is strange, my last reaction (last week) must have been cross contaminated at the fish breading place. The restaurant I was in does not and did not have any shellfish on their menu.

 

[Gonna Smoke]

That is strange, my last reaction (last week) must have been cross contaminated at the fish breading place. The restaurant I was in does not and did not have any shellfish on their menu.

My friend's last reaction was actually many years ago while eating crab legs. He wasn't eating them, he was cracking them for his wife when his hands started to swell and now he won't get near them. Unfortunate because his wife and mine love them...

 

[clifish]

My friend's last reaction was actually many years ago while eating crab legs. He wasn't eating them, he was cracking them for his wife when his hands started to swell and now he won't get near them. Unfortunate because his wife and mine love them...

I wonder if that is a different type of allergy. I get it to the point my face swells and the airway encloses. Requires Benadryl, epinephrine and a trip to the ER to be watched for the next 4 hours. Done this twice and I care not to repeat it.

 

[Gonna Smoke]

I wonder if that is a different type of allergy.

Very well could be. The shrimp thing is what makes me curious, it is a shellfish, too...

 

[indaswamp]

Got my attention! Hell Yeah! I try and keep shrimp stock on hand too. Can't beat the flavor!