The Best Way to Portion Frozen Shrimp
When it comes to frozen shrimp, skip weighing them: count out what you need instead.
Frozen shrimp are individually encased in icy shells that add weight, so if a recipe calls for 8 ounces of shrimp, you might be tempted to weigh out a little extra to compensate for the extra weight. But how much? It turns out thawed shrimp are 12 to 25 percent lighter once thawed. And to complicate matters, a batch of smaller shrimp had proportionately more loss due to its greater surface area.
All this to say, weighing frozen shrimp offers too large a range in measurement, which can affect a recipe. Instead, note that in addition to being labeled small, medium, large, etc., shrimp are labeled with the range of pieces per pound, such as 26/30 for large shrimp. This number (which is clearly marked on the packaging) represents raw, unfrozen weight, so if your recipe calls for 8 ounces of large shrimp, simply count out 15 shrimp—half of the top of the range. That way you’ll be sure to have enough post-thaw.
