What she really wanted...

[Gonna Smoke]

...for her birthday meal was Frogmore Stew or otherwise called Beaufort Stew or low country boil, but I didn't have any shrimp and I don't buy shrimp from the grocery store. It was in my plans to go get some fresh off of the boat and after talking with a friend of mine, today was the day. He said they had really been catching a lot of nice shrimp. Made the trip to McClellanville to Livingston's Bulls Bay Seafood and they had just off loaded a boat. I got 100 lbs. heads-on. These shrimp were literally swimming in the ocean yesterday. 50 lbs. in this cooler...

And another 50 lbs. in this cooler...

Took me about 3 hours to de-head them...

These are 16-20 count with the heads on or 21-25 count de-headed. For size reference...

Same 3 shrimp minus the heads...

So after cupping them up and putting them in the freezer, it was time to fix Sheila what she wanted for her birthday meal...

Time to eat...

Now what to do with all those shrimp heads...

It's been a long day so that's tomorrow's project...

 

[cptnding]

That's some great looking fresh shrimp! Very clean looking.
How do you pack them for freezing? 100 pounds of shrimp is a lot!
I see a whole bunch of shrimp stock in your future.

 

[jcam222]

That's some good looking shrimp! I used to get huge shrimp straight off the boats in Tarpon Springs FL , they were amazing.

 

[pineywoods]

Dang Charles that's a lot of shrimp to deal with at once. Meal looks great

 

[SmokinEdge]

That looks excellent. You can’t get fresh Chile and I can’t get fresh shrimp. Love them both though.

 

[civilsmoker]

Holy shrimp! Now that’s a meal!!! Nailed it!!!

 

[Steve H]

Nice work Charles!

 

[BrianGSDTexoma]

Wow Charles. Awesome haul. The boil looks great!

 

[Gonna Smoke]

How do you pack them for freezing? 100 pounds of shrimp is a lot!

100 lbs. of shrimp with the heads on will yield about 60 lbs. without the heads. I buy these quart containers to pack them in...

They hold 1½-1¾ lbs. of shrimp. Pack them and fill with water. These are the containers many restaurants use for soups and other liquids for take out. They come 250 to a case and I wash and reuse them...

I see a whole bunch of shrimp stock in your future.

Yep, that's my project for today...

 

[Gonna Smoke]

That's some good looking shrimp! I used to get huge shrimp straight off the boats in Tarpon Springs FL , they were amazing.

That's why I don't buy shrimp from the grocery store. Thanks Jeff...

 

[Gonna Smoke]

Dang Charles that's a lot of shrimp to deal with at once. Meal looks great

Thanks Jerry. Yes, it is a lot of work to pinch the heads off, pack and freeze. Between the trip to the docks and then the processing, it took me most of the day. But all this year we will enjoy the fruits of my labor...hopefully...

 

[Gonna Smoke]

That looks excellent. You can’t get fresh Chile and I can’t get fresh shrimp. Love them both though.

Thank you Eric!

 

[Gonna Smoke]

Holy shrimp! Now that’s a meal!!! Nailed it!!!

Thank you buddy, I appreciate that...

 

[Gonna Smoke]

Nice work Charles!

Thank you Steve!!

 

[Gonna Smoke]

Wow Charles. Awesome haul. The boil looks great!

Thanks Brian!

 

[hooked on smoke]

Wow, that's a lot of shrimp. They look amazing. The meal looks pretty darn good.

 

[cptnding]

Yep, that's my project for today...

So how did the stock turn out?
I'm curious how you make it and what you use it for. I've always just tossed the heads. Never thought about stock.

 

[912smoker]

That's a great meal Charles and fun in the freezer! Lots of work but well worth the effort.

Keith

 

[TimboBBQ!]

...for her birthday meal was Frogmore Stew or otherwise called Beaufort Stew or low country boil, but I didn't have any shrimp and I don't buy shrimp from the grocery store. It was in my plans to go get some fresh off of the boat and after talking with a friend of mine, today was the day. He said they had really been catching a lot of nice shrimp. Made the trip to McClellanville to Livingston's Bulls Bay Seafood and they had just off loaded a boat. I got 100 lbs. heads-on. These shrimp were literally swimming in the ocean yesterday. 50 lbs. in this cooler...
View attachment 724673

And another 50 lbs. in this cooler...
View attachment 724674

Took me about 3 hours to de-head them...
View attachment 724675

These are 16-20 count with the heads on or 21-25 count de-headed. For size reference...View attachment 724676

Same 3 shrimp minus the heads...
View attachment 724677

So after cupping them up and putting them in the freezer, it was time to fix Sheila what she wanted for her birthday meal...
View attachment 724678

Time to eat...
View attachment 724679

Now what to do with all those shrimp heads...
View attachment 724680

It's been a long day so that's tomorrow's project...

Man that’s some great looking shrimp!

 

[JLinza]

That looks great Charles