Shrimp - Farm Raised vs Wild Caught

[EllisWyatt]

In our old house (just north of Lake Pontchartrain), we used to have a "Shrimp Guy" who would bring shrimp, fresh off the boat, to the house. We would get 10-15 count shrimp (that still had the rainbow iridescence you see on freshly caught shrimp) for $6/lb. He would de-head them and bag them up in 1 lb bags..... I love living near the coast

Now that we live out in the country, it's way too far for him, so when he comes through the neighborhood, we have friends pick up 10-15 lbs for us.

 

[W2R]

In my experience, folks in Southern LA are much more discerning and demanding about their restaurant seafood than the rest of the south. It's one of the reasons we love to visit restaurants there! This is an exception, believe me!

I agree! We may be the murder capital of the US, and the hurricanes here still terrify me, but I do think we are living in a restaurant paradise.

Are you sure all your crawfish for your stews is from LA though? The US imports a huge amount from China and I find it very difficult to find LA crawfish.

I don't really like eating crawfish because they are so messy (they taste good but gosh, I think it is impossible to eat them and stay clean!). And then, preparing them as an ingredient is more labor intensive than I might prefer so I just don't buy them. I did go to a crawfish boil at a friend's house a few months ago, that was inspired by the fact that her husband caught a huge amount of them that weekend. I ended up sticky and hated it, but you do what you gotta do. At least they were low in calories. I don't think any of the dishes I generally order at restaurants are made with crawfish at all.

 

[REWahoo]

i don't really like eating crawfish because they are [-]so messy[/-] bait.

fify

 

[NW-Bound]

I did not have shrimp curry last night, but my wife will make it for dinner tonight.

And with the weather finally turning cool in the low elevation here, my thoughts turn to spicy dishes, and there are so many Oriental spicy dishes. My next quest will be Thai Tom Yum Goong (spicy shrimp soup). See linked photo.

At some point, my attention will turn to Creole cuisine, and I will have to make some. So many dishes to make, so little time, so many calories...

 

[audreyh1]

I did not have shrimp curry last night, but my wife will make it for dinner tonight.

And with the weather finally turning cool in the low elevation here, my thoughts turn to spicy dishes, and there are so many Oriental spicy dishes. My next quest will be Thai Tom Yum Goong (spicy shrimp soup). See linked photo.

At some point, my attention will turn to Creole cuisine, and I will have to make some. So many dishes to make, so little time, so many calories...

My absolute favorite shrimp soup. To make it right you've got to have some chili paste in soybean oil.

 

[audreyh1]

I agree! We may be the murder capital of the US, and the hurricanes here still terrify me, but I do think we are living in a restaurant paradise.



I don't really like eating crawfish because they are so messy (they taste good but gosh, I think it is impossible to eat them and stay clean!). And then, preparing them as an ingredient is more labor intensive than I might prefer so I just don't buy them. I did go to a crawfish boil at a friend's house a few months ago, that was inspired by the fact that her husband caught a huge amount of them that weekend. I ended up sticky and hated it, but you do what you gotta do. At least they were low in calories. I don't think any of the dishes I generally order at restaurants are made with crawfish at all.

It's not the whole crawfish that are imported so much - it's the already peeled crawfish

 

[W2R]

It's not the whole crawfish that are imported so much - it's the already peeled crawfish

Oh, OK. I can't imagine buying something like that. REWahoo was pretty much right about my opinion of crawfish to begin with. Also, fresh local crawfish are easily available free to anyone who knows someone that likes fishing (which is about 90% of the population I think!). Fresh locally caught crawfish are all over the place. True, New Orleans is no more immune to fly-by-nights trying to make a sleazy buck than any other place, but honestly I don't know one single person here in New Orleans who would actually take out their wallet and buy peeled, frozen, Chinese crawfish. Ewww. How sad that the seafood situation is apparently so grim for you.

Sorry if I am not sufficiently alarmed, but to me this is like a discussion of bootleg liver and onions would be to someone who didn't like liver....

 

[audreyh1]

Oh, OK. I can't imagine buying something like that. REWahoo was pretty much right about my opinion of crawfish to begin with. Also, fresh local crawfish are easily available free to anyone who knows someone that likes fishing (which is about 90% of the population I think!). Fresh locally caught crawfish are all over the place. True, New Orleans is no more immune to fly-by-nights trying to make a buck than any other place, but honestly I don't know one single person here in New Orleans who would actually take out their wallet and buy peeled, frozen, Chinese crawfish. Ewww. Sorry the seafood situation is apparently so grim for you.

Sorry if I am not sufficiently alarmed, but to me this is like a discussion of bootleg liver and onions would be to someone who didn't like liver....

I'm not suffering - I got the local shrimp!

I do like them crawfish boils. Available for a few weeks each year around here. Messy but so worth it! I'm pretty sure the live crawfish is coming from LA - very seasonal.

Pappadeaux - a small chain out of Houston. $$$ but excellent quality. Also the only place around here that I will eat raw oysters.

 

[W2R]

I'm not suffering - I got the local shrimp!

I do like them crawfish boils. Available for a few weeks each year around here. Messy but so worth it! I'm pretty sure the live crawfish is coming from LA - very seasonal.

You gotta be kidding. A few weeks each year? What weeks? We must not be shipping much out to your area at all. No wonder you see all that frozen, peeled, Chinese crawfish. But then, you're right, you couldn't have a crawfish boil with peeled crawfish anyway.

 

[NW-Bound]

My absolute favorite shrimp soup. To make it right you've got to have some chili paste in soybean oil.

I thought the hardest ingredient to get would be kaffir lime leaves. I believe that's what shown on top of the bowl of soup in the photo. I will have to substitute the leaves picked off my lemon tree in the back.

And speaking of crawfish, hey, I don't care that people badmouth them. When we were there in NO earlier this year, I got quite a few pounds for the two of us, and enjoyed them sitting outside the motorhome under the awning one afternoon.

Could have posted a photo of us with a mound of shell, but I won't.

 

[audreyh1]

I thought the hardest ingredient to get would be kaffir lime leaves. I believe that's what shown on top of the bowl of soup in the photo. I will have to substitute the leaves picked off my lemon tree in the back.

And speaking of crawfish, hey, I don't care that people badmouth them. When we were there in NO earlier this year, I got quite a few pounds for the two of us, and enjoyed them sitting outside the motorhome under the awning one afternoon.

Could have posted a photo of us with a mound of shell, but I won't.

Well, you can do it without the lime leaves if you squeeze in a bunch of lime juice at the end.

I order kaffir lime leave from importfood.com and store them in the freezer.

http://importfood.com/spws0101.html

 

[NW-Bound]

At the price they want for the leaves, I would see if I could buy a little tree at the nearby nursery.

 

[audreyh1]

At the price they want for the leaves, I would see if I could buy a little tree at the nearby nursery.

That's an excellent way to go - IF you can find one. They sell for $$$. You won't find them at your local nursery. You'll have to hunt it down in your local Thai community. I had one in Austin for several years.

It has to be kept in a pot and brought inside for freezing weather.

They freeze well, so for me one order is a year supply.

 

[NW-Bound]

When I had Thai Tom Yum soup in restaurants, I would not pay much attention to the different spices or leaves floating in the bowl and would just put them aside. It's when you try to make something yourself that you would learn more about the dish. It's another reason I like to make something myself. The problem that comes with it is that you may become fussier when a restaurant dish is not up to your now higher standard. But I digress...

I did a quick research on Kaffir lime leaves, and holy mackerel, found that it was more popular than I thought, and offers to sell it were all over the Web and eBay. My, my, my... Is everybody making Thai dishes at home now? The dried leaves come from Thailand and are not expensive, but the fresh leaves can be ordered from the States and cost more. And the flavor is not at all the same as regular lime or lemon leaves.

I also did a research on the tree itself, and found a local nursery that had it. Before I called for price, I talked to my wife. She asked if I would use enough to grow another tree, and besides she could get some from my sister-in-law. Son of a gun! This SIL has access to lots of fresh Kaffir leaves, and has been sharing it with another SIS of mine. And they are raving about it. Hah! I am always the last to know.

SIL just dropped off a Ziploc bag full of fresh leaves for me to make the soup tonight for some company. Life is good!

PS. By the way, the spicy-chili-in-oil is the droplets of hot oil floating on top as shown in the photo above. I am not going to make another run to an Oriental store for that, but think I can make my own by rendering the dried chili flakes in a bit of oil. I did remember to get some lemon grass and galangal.

 

[NW-Bound]

And for people who badmouth crawfish, I will say that my son will never touch shrimp or lobster. He says they look like coachroach. So he is missing out.

 

[tmm99]

When I had Thai Tom Yum soup in restaurants, I would not pay much attention to the different spices or leaves floating in the bowl and would just put them aside. It's when you try to make something yourself that you would learn more about the dish. It's another reason I like to make something myself. The problem that comes with it is that you may become fussier when a restaurant dish is not up to your now higher standard. But I digress...

I did a quick research on Kaffir lime leaves, and holy mackerel, found that it was more popular than I thought, and offers to sell it were all over the Web and eBay. My, my, my... Is everybody making Thai dishes at home now? The dried leaves come from Thailand and are not expensive, but the fresh leaves can be ordered from the States and cost more. And the flavor is not at all the same as regular lime or lemon leaves.

I also did a research on the tree itself, and found a local nursery that had it. Before I called for price, I talked to my wife. She asked if I would use enough to grow another tree, and besides she could get some from my sister-in-law. Son of a gun! This SIS has access to lots of fresh Kaffir leaves, and has been sharing it with another SIS of mine. And they are raving about it. Hah! I am always the last to know.

SIS just dropped off a Ziploc bag full of fresh leaves for me to make the soup tonight for some company. Life is good!

PS. By the way, the chili-spicy-in-oil is the droplets of hot oil floating on top as shown in the photo above. I am not going to make another run to an Oriental store for that, but think I can make my own by rendering the dried chili flakes in a bit of oil. I did remember to get some lemon grass and galangal.

And kaffir lime leaves stay perfectly fine in the freezer, so if you have left overs, that's where I would put them. (I wouldn't dry them - the flavor is pretty much gone dry...) I just love the flavor those leaves give. Thai food tastes so exotic to me. You eat different dishes from different countries, and you can tell what ingredients may be in the dishes you know, but I couldn't with Thai dishes, because I wasn't familiar with their ingredients at all.

 

[NW-Bound]

Yes, the food of many countries includes exotic spices, herbs, and other ingredients that would be hard to detect individually.

Just now, I discover that the Thai chili paste is more than just chili and oil. It's also got roasted garlic, roasted shallot, tamarind paste and dried shrimp in it. I should have remembered to get it in a jar at the Oriental store.

I will have to redo this once more with this ingredient to see the difference it makes. Arghh!

PS. Again, my wife comes to the rescue. She already bought a jar with the label "Tom Yum Paste". Now, what is that really? Is that simply equivalent to the above Thai chili paste, or does it also incorporate the lemongrass and galangal flavor in it? It's a mystery which I will try in unravel tonight.

 

[audreyh1]

When I had Thai Tom Yum soup in restaurants, I would not pay much attention to the different spices or leaves floating in the bowl and would just put them aside. It's when you try to make something yourself that you would learn more about the dish. It's another reason I like to make something myself. The problem that comes with it is that you may become fussier when a restaurant dish is not up to your now higher standard. But I digress...

I did a quick research on Kaffir lime leaves, and holy mackerel, found that it was more popular than I thought, and offers to sell it were all over the Web and eBay. My, my, my... Is everybody making Thai dishes at home now? The dried leaves come from Thailand and are not expensive, but the fresh leaves can be ordered from the States and cost more. And the flavor is not at all the same as regular lime or lemon leaves.

I also did a research on the tree itself, and found a local nursery that had it. Before I called for price, I talked to my wife. She asked if I would use enough to grow another tree, and besides she could get some from my sister-in-law. Son of a gun! This SIL has access to lots of fresh Kaffir leaves, and has been sharing it with another SIS of mine. And they are raving about it. Hah! I am always the last to know.

SIL just dropped off a Ziploc bag full of fresh leaves for me to make the soup tonight for some company. Life is good!

PS. By the way, the spicy-chili-in-oil is the droplets of hot oil floating on top as shown in the photo above. I am not going to make another run to an Oriental store for that, but think I can make my own by rendering the dried chili flakes in a bit of oil. I did remember to get some lemon grass and galangal.

Wow - great that you have access to the kaffir lime leaves - fantastic.

And galangal - yes. Another essential. Best fresh, and it freezes very well. Peel and slice before freezing for ease of use.

I have to order all this stuff - well, at least I can get fresh lemongrass.

 

[audreyh1]

Yes, the food of many countries includes exotic spices, herbs, and other ingredients that would be hard to detect individually.

Just now, I discover that the Thai chili paste is more than just chili and oil. It's also got roasted garlic, roasted shallot, tamarind paste and dried shrimp in it. I should have remembered to get it in a jar at the Oriental store.

I will have to redo this once more with this ingredient to see the difference it makes. Arghh!

PS. Again, my wife comes to the rescue. She already bought a jar with the label "Tom Yum Paste". Now, what is that really? Is that simply equivalent to the above Thai chili paste, or does it also incorporate the lemongrass and galangal flavor in it? It's a mystery which I will try in unravel tonight.

I think Tom Yum Paste has more stuff in it and just needs broth or water added along with shrimp and mushrooms.

Here is the chili paste in soybean oil that I typically use:

 

[NW-Bound]

Your jar indeed looks like it has just ground (and roasted?) chili in oil.

About the jar of Tom Yum paste of the same size that I got, it looks similar but does have more stuff in it. When in doubt, read the instructions! This resulted in me finding out that the ingredients included lemon grass, galangal, and Kaffir lime leaves already. As I already obtained these ingredients fresh, I was going to still put in some to "kick it up multiple notches".

We decided to turn this into a one-dish meal by making it into a hot pot. A table top burner, a wide pan for easy reach by everyone, and voilà. Into a 2 qt of chicken broth went two heaping tablespoons of the paste, and the fresh spice and herb. The aroma was heavenly. And the soup was spicy from just the paste, even though I did not add any fresh chili. Thai people eat really hot stuff.

We bought lots of veggies suitable for hot pot, 1-1/2 lb of thin-sliced beef, 2 lbs of shrimp, 1 lb of scallop. For 5 people, we ended up eating only 1/2 of everything that we prepared. After dinner, my sister, her husband and my mom stayed until 10:30PM talking over a couple of dessert. Life is so good.

PS. I meant to add some lime juice to the broth, then forgot all about it. The premade paste had enough sourness, so it was OK. Besides, I read that the sourness should come from tamarind (another thing to get if one wants to make everything from scratch). The lime juice should be added only at the end for enhancement; prolonged cooking of the juice turns it bitter is what I read.

 

[NW-Bound]

So now that I have this Tom Yum soup thing figured out, what dish should I be doing next? With shrimp that is, to keep to the topic of this thread.

How 'bout paella? Seafood paella, kind of like this photo from FoodTV?

The last time I made paella was a few years ago. I do not recall what rice I used, but this time, I am going to be using Bomba rice for more authenticity. Rumor has it that Whole Foods has this rice.

Life is too short to keep eating the same thing, while there's so much to try.