Choosing and Buying Gourmet Seafood Online - Wild Caught American Shrimp

When selecting items for a seafood feast, wild caught American shrimp are considered to be an excellent choice of many gourmet cooks. Wild American shrimp are not only recognized for outstanding flavor but they can be an important part of a healthy diet.

They are delicious steamed, boiled, grilled, fried and in dishes like shrimp scampi. They are also popular as an appetizer, such as shrimp cocktail, shrimp bisque and shrimp salad. Shrimp even freeze well and can be purchased in large numbers, processed and the excess amounts frozen for later meals.

Wild American shrimp include white shrimp (Litopenaeus setiferus), brown shrimp (Farfantepenaeus aztecus), pink shrimp (Penaeus duorarum) and royal red shrimp (Pleoticus robustus or Hymenopenaeus robustus) rock shrimp (Sicyonia brevirostris) and Northern shrimp (Pandalus borealis).

Shrimp are sized by "count". The number is the average number of shrimp specimens per pound. This applies to both whole and heads-off shrimp. For example, headless shrimp of 16/20 count means there are 16 to 20 headless shrimp per pound. Counts for headless shrimp typically range from 16/20 (large shrimp) to 60/70 (small). Pacific pink shrimp are even tinier, having counts of about 100 to 140 whole shrimp per pound.

Wild caught American shrimp are also a good choice in terms of sustainability. Many of the American shrimp fisheries have been recognized for ethical harvesting techniques.

The Wild American Shrimp Certification Program certifies that warm-water, wild caught shrimp from U.S. coastal waters meet a high standard of quality and consistency. Shrimp that attain Certified Wild American Shrimp certification receive special labeling. Participation in the certification program is available to harvesters, processors, distributors, retailers, grocers and restaurateurs.

Another American shrimp fishery has received international recognition. Oregon's pink shrimp fishery has earned the world's first sustainable shrimp certification under the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification program.

Pink shrimp, also known as bay or salad shrimp are small (100-140 whole shrimp per lb) shrimp which are harvested using the advanced trawl methods. Pink MSC certified shrimp are delivered to shore for cooking, peeling, and freezing, resulting in an extremely fresh product that is considered some of the most flavorful shrimp in the world.

The variety of high quality, healthy and sustainable American shrimp makes them an excellent choice for seafood lovers.