I find cooked coldwater prawns a bit tasteless. Can I soak them in a brine solution to give them more taste

I hate to say it, but those tinned prawns mum used to get about 20 years ago tasted better than the small coldwater ones we get now, which are a bit watery and limp. The family aren't a fan of prawn cocktail with king prawn so I wondered if I could soak cooked cold water prawns in a brine solution to give them a little more taste? If yes, what would be the make up of the solution and for how long should the prawns be left in the brine?

jillyg75
  • Posted by: jillyg75
  • December 21, 2020
  • 1898 views
  • 1 Comment

1 Comment

Lori T.
Lori T. December 22, 2020
I agree that the typical boiled in the shell prawn (or shrimp, here in the US) does usually end up a tasteless blob of rubber. What I do to avoid this is a little more labor intensive, but it does work for me. I clean and peel the shrimp, except of course the tail bit. Then I make up a spice mix with salt, garlic, a bit of cayenne, etc- and you can find recipes for a product sold here called Old Bay Seasoning, or other spice mixes people use to tailor for your own taste. I season the shrimp and then leave them a few hours in the frig to absorb the seasoning. Then, and this is the big thing- I STEAM them, rather than boil them. Boiling just washes what flavor there is away, in my opinion. Steaming doesn't do that. When they are done, I cool them quickly by tossing them with ice cubes in a colander. If you want to leave the shells on, the I suggest a brine ala Alton Brown, which uses both kosher salt and sugar for the soaking water. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/the-shrimp-cocktail-recipe-1927450
His cocktail sauce is a favorite of mine, as well- and the recipe there includes those directions as well.
 
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