How To Tell If Your Shrimp Are Perfectly Cooked Every Time

Shrimp is one of the easiest and quickest seafoods to cook; however, it's also the easiest to ruin. These little crustaceans can go from perfectly succulent and juicy to tough and rubbery in a matter of 30 seconds when left on the grill or pan just a little too long. The good news is shrimp has a few key indicators to let you know when it's ready to be removed from the heat and plated. You just need to know the signs, which consist of shape, texture, and color, and the shrimp will cook perfectly every time. This is especially important when you are cooking a garlicky shrimp scampi. You want to pay attention.

One of the most visual markers is shape. If your shrimp is ready to eat, it will have a loose C-shape; however, if it is curled into a tight O-shape like it has found its fetal position, you've cooked it too long. This means the proteins have overcooked, and what happens to the consistency of the shrimp meat will not be what you are hoping for. This is why the size of the shrimp you choose to serve matters.

Size matters when cooking shrimp. It should not be a true revelation that big shrimp need more time than little shrimp to achieve that perfect texture, but that's the facts. How do you choose the right shrimp for your dish? If you are cooking colossal shrimp, where you get about 16 to 20 shrimp in a pound, it can take three times longer to cook compared to medium shrimp, which are about 41-60 shrimp per pound. Colossal shrimp generally take about 15 minutes to find that C-shape. This means medium-sized shrimp take about 5 minutes, and small shrimp, well, don't walk away because they will be done in about 4 minutes.

Of course, your cooking method is going to be a factor. Pan-frying shrimp is going to be quick. Plan on between 2 and 4 minutes. But if the grill is your preferred cooking appliance, it is all about the shell. If you have the shell off, you can stick to the 2-4 minute formula. But if you leave the shell on, you almost double your time, taking between 4 and 6 minutes. 

And last, but not least, you want to pay attention to the color of this seafood. When shrimp is perfectly cooked, it will be pink on the outside and solid white on the inside. If your shrimp has a gray hue to it or is a little translucent or see-through, you will want to let it cook a few seconds longer.