Florida Rock Shrimp Boiled, Broiled, or Fried

Absolutely our favorite seafood here in Florida, these little gems taste just like lobster! Florida Rock Shrimp.....Boiled, broiled or even deep fry, they are awesomeThis Florida Rock Shrimp is sliced in the center folded outward, when cooked will peel right out ready for dipping!Not in season now so these were frozen

Florida Rock Shrimp, very different from regular shrimp. Their bodies are rock hard, when cooked and dipped in butter they taste like little lobster tails!

Cleaning method:

Place the rock shrimp on a cutting board, dorsal side down and the swimmerets up. With a sharp knife, cut from the base of the tail to the other end, but not through the shell. Gently spread the meat apart to expose the sand vein and wash under cold running water.

2 lbs Florida Rock Shrimp cleaned, deveined, cut down the center opened like a butterfly

Directions for cooking:

( I do both methods, boil first, then broil. Most people do one or the other).... I have had so many questions on why... it's because I worry about bacteria in fish, so boiling for the 35 seconds makes me feel more confident, then broiling them isn't that long to consider they are cooking, I feel its glazing the butter into the shrimp... hope that helps you understand... you can just do either method... that's your preference.... (smile)

Boiled:

In a large pot of lightly seasalted water, bring to a boil, place rock shrimp in boiling water.

Rock shrimp cook more quickly than other shrimp. Stir, and after 35 seconds pour into a colander and rinse with cold water.

Broiled:

Place on a large boiler pan or cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush lightly with garlic butter below, broil on high for 2 minutes, serve dipped with melted butter... enjoy!

Fried:

Clean and wash rock shrimp, remove all shell.

Flour Seasoning: 1/4 cup flour, 1 tablespoon cornstarch, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon each salt, pepper, cayenne. In a large plastic bag mix together, shake rock shrimp in the seasoned flour. Fry in hot oil till browned, do not overcook. Serve with Hot Sauce.

Rock shrimp (Sicyonia brevirostris) have a hard, spiny shell more like a lobster rather than its shrimp cousins. The shell is "hard as a rock," hence the term rock shrimp. They live and spawn in warm deep waters, 120 to 240 feet.

Until machines were invented to process them, rock shrimp were popular only with avid fishermen and divers because getting to the meat through the hard shell was such a chore. Today rock shrimp is readily available, both fresh and frozen, head on or off, split and/or deveined.

Rock shrimp do not grow as large as their shrimp cousins. Like shrimp, they are sorted and sold by count, meaning the number of shrimp it takes to weigh in at 1 pound. The largest commercially-available rock shrimp are 21 to 25 to the pound and are about 2 inches in length (although some have been found measuring up to 6 inches).