Handling ,Packaging, Preparing ,Prawns ??

[the fog ducker]

Well , now that i have some prawns to enjoy over the winter , I made up a batch for dinner 2 days after being caught ,not yet frozen , packaged in a small ziplock bag , 30 ish ,refridgerated fresh pronto. When cooked in a little butter and fresh garlic ( simple ) the texture was kinda soft , a little mushy almost , however , when we were at camp , we cooked up some fresh ones the day of , exact same way ,they were perfect , solid and sweet.
This has happened in the past.
I packaged the rest of them , cleaned with heads off , shell on , Medium zip lock bags ,filled half with tap water , prawns completely submerssed , in the freezer they went. I will be having some tomorrow , see how these are. ( Low Heat or High heat , time , etc.. Tips !!)
Have any of you had this happen , they even tasted a little off, They were cleaned immidately , (some still alive ) and refridgerated .NOT Spoiled !!thanks in advance FD

 

[kayladog]

West Coast spot prawns will go soft if overcooked. They need to be flash fried hot and quick. 1 minute each side maximum until just opaque. If cooked in butter, the trick is to cook as hot as possible without burning the butter. Try cooking them in a seasoned oil (grapeseed or vegatable oil, not olive oil 'cause it burns too easy like butter) then use butter for dipping , like for lobster.

 

[Lipripper]

They should be fozen immediatly or within a day, block frozen. We had the same problem in the plant.... they are just not meant to be stored fresh.
They will go mushy...almost a grainy texture a couple days after death no matter how quick they are cleaned.

 

[Sushihunter]

Yes, Prawns need to be used or frozen immediately. Commercial Prawners will flash freeze them within 15 minutes to retain the freshness of the product.

Some guys I know who were very active sport Prawners would vacuum pack the tails between two paper plates and then into the freezer. After being transported back to California, they were in wonderfull condition.

I've tried boiling them for about a minute and then peeling and freezing them, but found they are quite rubbery (still taste good though )

When frying Prawns, I use about a tablespoon of olive oil and a good size pat of unsalted butter. Pan is hot and should not not burn unless you over do it. 30 to 60 seconds should be enough, and don't forget the garlic!

Jim's Fishing Charters
www.JimsFishing.com
http://ca.youtube.com/user/Sushihunter250

 

[Moocher]

Milk cartons work great.

 

[spring time]

i freeze mine on a cookie sheet and keep spraying water every 12 hours for 3-4 days or until they get a good icing on the exposed flesh then put them in ziplock, and then vacumm pack them they last great still eating them since may the good thing about doing them this way is, take out as much as you need don't have to un freeze the whole bloc or tube. and it takes up lass room

 

[Bondo Bill]

This used to work real well for me. Add 1 tablespoon of pickling salt to the water in a 1 gallon freezer bag before freezing. I used to store them up to 6 months this way. Prawns retained thier flavor and remained firm.

 

[Copper Moon]

Try a bit of minced ginger as well as the garlic. I believe they should be consumed or frozen the same day as well.

 

[Dogbreath]

I had commercial caught Prawns for dinner last night, the guy I bought them from freezes them in saltwater right away.

But as posted they aren't in any way the same as fresh, good but not great.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[wolf]

Just like kayladog said quick and fast get pan very hot with oil in it throw the prawns in quickly stir or flip in pan if your that good LOL turn off the heat now add your butter and garlic all you need is a couple of tablespoons as you just want to coat them for flavour little bit of S&P and if you like dill and a splash of lemon.

P.S. I package mine in water with really heavy duty zip lock bags from industrial plastics

Good luck Wolf




Blue Wolf Charters
www.bluewolfcharters.com

 

[tailout]

Good for camping: Marinade in Kraft Greek with Feta& oregano dressing and put on sticks tail on in fire 2 min.Nice and easy.I package in heavy duty ziplocks too.

Rick

 

[Little Hawk]

Hey Dogbreath you beat me to the punch!

I'm hoping to start prawning (I'm a virgin) this year with a bunch of gear (and puller) I bought from a guy last year.

He too, told me his 'secret': After popping off the heads gets a clean bucket of salt water and freezes them in that, in zip-locks. After trying out a sample bag he laid on me, I believe it works good!

A guy I know who used to be a seafood broker told me that BC prawns are the best anywhere. We are a privileged bunch here and I can hardly wait to get going on this.

 

[Islandgirl]

Buy a roll of fish bags and use your vacuum packer to make the bags. Then I add water/prawns and seal with the Vac packer. You have a great stong bag and the prawns are packaged in water. I have kept them in the firdge for 3 days and they were still good BUT they must be triple washed before storage because of the bacteria on the outside(scavengers after all)

 

[happy hooker]

While at the seabeam last sept one of the guys had pickled some prawns and they were great.

22' Hewescraft Searunner

 

[fisher69]

I get the plastic tubs from the bulk section in thriftys. They hold about 30 tails and stack nice in the freezer. We also add a little salt to the water.
throw them in boiling water when they float they are cooked. dipped in butter and garlic.... heading for the freezer to pull out diner.[]

 

[Osama Bin Hopper]

Happy Hooker - shoot me an email if you want a recipe for pickled prawns. I've got a winner that couldn't be more simple.

They are fantastic!

Gimee the gaff!!!

 

[nahmint]

Our process with prawns... (with great results even after 3 mths frozen)
* take the tails off them shortly after the catch and...
* be sure to keep them cold until they are processed (sooner the better)...we put them on ice out of the sun if its warm at all.
* try eating them fresh so you know the taste of prime prawns!!!
* When we prawn fish for freezing we get them to the processing site ASAP... keeping them cold (on ice) for 3-4 hrs before is fine.
* NEVER use fresh water... it is toxic to prawns and they'll begin to deteriorate quickly. use ONLY salt water if you glaze them (we believe this is really important).
* We then flash freeze the tails... 50 per freezer bag...

** as for cooking...there are lots of great recipes here... just don't overcook them or they'll become rubbery. Like everyone is saying, 1 to 2 minutes in a hot pan or into boiling water bring to boil and 1-2 more minutes only.
ENJOY!!!

 

[Last Chance]

I've been stocking up on prawns before I go to Renny, anyone have any experience freezing shelled tails?

Last Chance Fishing Adventures

www.lastchancefishingadventures.com
www.swiftsurebank.com

 

[happy hooker]

quote:Originally posted by Osama Bin Hopper

Happy Hooker - shoot me an email if you want a recipe for pickled prawns. I've got a winner that couldn't be more simple.

They are fantastic!

Gimee the gaff!!!

Hey osama your email isnt working.

22' Hewescraft Searunner

 

[Osama Bin Hopper]

HH -

jeffhnish@hotmail.com

Gimee the gaff!!!