Sand in the Coffee, Vol. 137: the royal red, and how to eat one without ruining it
Do not boil it into submission. That is the whole lecture; the rest is footnotes.
A Royal Red is a deep-water shrimp from the Gulf, pulled up from far deeper water than the white shrimp most people picture, and locals treat it as a small point of pride. The shell is a darker pink-red even raw, and the meat is soft and sweet in a way people keep comparing to lobster. If you have eaten a lot of ordinary boiled shrimp, the first Royal Red is a mild shock.
how to order
Ask the place how they serve them. The usual answers are steamed, boiled lightly or in a basket. Steamed or lightly boiled gets you the shrimp itself. Fried is fine, but it is a different meal. If the server says the Royal Reds are in, order them. Availability changes with the boats and the season, so a menu listing is not a promise.
how to eat one
- Peel it warm. The shell comes off easier before the shrimp cools. Pinch the tail, slide a thumb under the shell along the legs, and pull.
- Taste one plain first. Before sauce, before butter, before anything. You are paying for the shrimp, so meet it first.
- Then add what you like. Melted butter, a squeeze of lemon, or cocktail sauce if that is your house religion. No one at the table gets a vote on yours.
- Do not overcook leftovers. Reheating turns the soft texture to rubber. If you bring any home, eat them cold on a salad.
the one mistake
Treating them like the shrimp in the freezer bag. A Royal Red cooks fast, and a minute too long turns sweet into chewy. If you are cooking your own, take them off the heat earlier than your instinct says and trust the color.
where to look
Seafood markets and restaurants on both sides of the state line carry them when they are running. Call ahead, since supply depends on the boats. The post-storm weeks have been uneven for many kitchens, so a quick call saves a trip, and a reopened place that has them is worth your business.
the plan
Pick a night this week, order a pound, sit down before it cools, and peel the first one slowly. Check /beach-today/ for the evening wind if you plan to eat outside. Everything else is napkins.
— Chris
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