OFF THE SHELF
Don't let your knowledge of favorite seafood be shrimpy

By Wanda A. Adams
Advertiser Food Editor

Shrimp, the country's most popular seafood, come in a variety of sizes.

Ama ebi: Bright red, sweet, crunchy shrimp from local waters; hard to find; fresh shrimp have short shelf life.

Black tiger prawns: Shrimp farm-raised in Asia.

Count: Shrimp are sold by count — the approximate number of shrimp per pound. The smaller the count, the larger the shrimp. Descriptive size names are also used and may vary from place to place, but in general, they are defined as: small (36-45 per pound), medium (31-35 per pound), large (21-30 per pound), extra-large (16-20 per pound) or jumbo (11-15 per pound).

Deveining: The central vein in larger shrimp must be removed as it often contains grit; deveining smaller shrimp is a matter of preference.

Kaua'i farm-raised shrimp: Fresh, whole shrimp raised by Ceatech, an aquaculture operation, in Kekaha, Kaua'i.

Prawn: Technically, a prawn is a specific species that resembles a miniature lobster, 6 to 8 inches long with tiny claws. Some define prawns as as members of the family Macrobrachium, a lobster-like crustacean that migrates from fresh water to salt and back again. Most prawns in restaurants and stores, however, are jumbo-size shrimp — 15 or fewer to the pound. The Hawaiian blue prawn is a freshwater prawn raised via aquaculture. Similarly, scampi has become a generic term for large shrimp or prawns.

Yield: One pound of headless, raw shrimp, in the shell, yields 1/2 to 3/4 pound cooked shrimp.