Text 25432, 116 rader
Skriven 2009-06-28 14:38:00 av JIM WELLER (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av RUTH HAFFLY
Ärende: Dried Shrimp
====================
-=> Quoting Ruth Haffly to Carol Shenkenberger <=-

 RH> when you were in Japan, you
 RH> picked up some dried shrimp and used it in some recipies.  At the
 RH> time, I said it sounded good.  I picked some up recently but have
 RH> forgotten what it was that you used them for.

Here's some general info:

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06
 
      Title: Dried Shrimp Tips
 Categories: Info, Shellfish, Shrimp, Seasonings
      Yield: 1 text file
 
           Dried shrimp
 
  VERY few ingredients (bacon, dried mushrooms and anchovies come to
  mind) make everything they touch taste better. I'd like to add
  dried shrimp to this short list of natural flavor enhancers. Cooks
  in Asia and Latin America have always known that a few dried
  shrimp can improve dishes as varied as stir-fried cabbage, pad
  Thai, tamales and scrambled eggs. They use it as a seasoning, not
  as a substitute for the fresh shellfish, an idea easily adapted to
  an American kitchen.
  
  Dried shrimp are intensely briny and mildly fishy; as with fish
  sauce, the aroma is stronger than the flavor. They are dense and
  meaty, and so potent that a few tablespoons can flavor a whole pot
  of soup. Best of all, they hold onto their flavor even after
  prolonged simmering.
  
  Add bacon to chowder and it sacrifices itself for the greater
  good, ending up flaccid and insipid. Not so with dried shrimp.
  They stay briny and chewy no matter how long they cook. In fact,
  texture is one of their biggest selling points. It makes them seem
  more like pork than shellfish.
  
  For centuries, shrimp have been dried as a way to overcome their
  perishability. At its simplest, the process involves shelling,
  salting and drying. In Mexico, the shrimp are often blanched and
  brined before being dried, which results in a milder flavor and
  softer texture. In Asia, they are dried in the sun on wooden
  platforms, which makes them drier and more potent.
  
  Most dried shrimp are imported from China and Thailand, and for
  home cooks, Asian cuisines provide the best inspiration for using
  them. They are often paired with cabbage, green beans or asparagus
  in stir-fries, or used in soups, noodle dishes and stuffings.
  Always, they amplify flavors without really calling attention to
  themselves.
  
  Patricia Yeo, the executive chef at AZ in the Flatiron district,
  grinds dried shrimp to make a crust for fish before sauteing.
  Susanna Foo, a Philadelphia restaurateur, uses dried shrimp in
  dressings, the way an Italian cook might add anchovies to
  vinaigrette. She also blends dried shrimp into risotto with
  shallots and mushrooms.
  
  Although most Chinese recipes that use dried shrimp call for
  chopping them up, in part to disguise their presence, in Thailand
  whole dried shrimp are often fried crisp as a garnish. Any Thai
  dish that uses chopped peanuts can be made with fried dried shrimp
  instead; noodle dishes, for example, or grilled eggplant, green
  mango salad or spicy cucumber salad.
  
  Dried shrimp also have a long tradition on the southern Pacific
  coast of Mexico, used lavishly in tamales, soups and sauces. They
  are also folded into eggs, along with onion and cilantro. If you
  like eggs with smoked salmon, you'll like them with dried shrimp.
  Chinese cooks soak dried shrimp in Shaoxing wine to mellow the
  flavor, but hot tap water works as well at making them easier to
  mince or chop. You can grind them in a spice mill without soaking.
  
  Most cooks prefer bigger dried shrimp, even in recipes in which
  they are chopped. They hold more moisture when dried and are not
  quite as salty. They can actually be chewy straight from the bag,
  while small ones are almost always brittle. In fact, some of the
  larger ones, three-quarters of an inch to an inch long, are chewy
  and mild enough to eat as a snack. The price increases with size:
  tiny shrimp run about 50 cents an ounce (about three tablespoons),
  while larger ones can cost twice as much.
  
  No matter what size you buy, avoid those that are gray or brown or
  look washed-out. Dried shrimp are not as stable on the shelf as
  most other dried foods. Within a few months, they will become very
  hard and lose much of their flavor. Fresh packages will have
  bright pink, coral-colored shrimp that are whole rather than
  broken.
  
  Once opened, vacuum-sealed packages of dried shrimp should be
  stored in the refrigerator, where they will keep for a
  month or two. Dried shrimp that are sold loose, as they are in
  Chinatown, should be refrigerated as soon as you get them home.
  
  Don't worry too much about using up dried shrimp before they
  become stale. Once you get started, you are bound to think of
  countless uses for them. Anywhere you might use anchovies, bacon
  or peanuts, think about using dried shrimp instead.
  
  "Dried Shrimp: Flavors' Little Helpers" By JACK BISHOP, NY Times

  MM format by Manny Rothstein, 3/5/01
  
MMMMM

Cheers

YK Jim


... Jumbo shrimp?  Let us examine this concept more closely

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