Real Recipes From Real Home Cooks ®

shrimp stock

Recipe by
Donna Graffagnino
Bayou Country, LA

Chef Paul Prudhomme has always said "Don't add water to a dish when you can add stock." Even in a cake mix recipe, if it calls for water I add milk... It's all about making layers of flavors. This recipe doesn't cost a single penny to make, in ingredients, because it's literally garbage t hat makes the best stock.

yield 10 -12 Pints
prep time 5 Min
cook time 3 Hr
method Stove Top

Ingredients For shrimp stock

  • shrimp heads and peels
  • onion, celery, bell pepper, carrot peels, end pieces, skins, the stuff that you would normally throw away
  • garlic skins, parsley stems, green onion tops, corn cobs
  • 15-20
    whole peppercorns
  • 1 tsp
    liquid crab boil (don't use to much, you don't want it to taste like shrimp boil water

How To Make shrimp stock

  • 1
    When I cut onions, celery, bell peppers, peel garlic and carrots, etc., I save the ends and skins in Zip-Lock bags and freeze them. The same goes with corn cobs, shrimp peels and heads - don't throw them out, freeze them and make delicious stock out of them.
  • 2
    When I make stock I use a 16 quart pot so that it makes a lot, so I usually have several bags of "garbage" to fill up the pot. You want to have at least a 4 to 1 ratio of shrimp peels to aromatics.
  • 3
    Throw everything in, add water and bring it to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer on low heat for at least 1 1/2 hours. If you add the 1 teaspoon of liquid crab boil then it will smell like a shrimp boil - I love it! The shrimp peels will float to the top of pot so save enough room in the pot so it doesn't boil over.
  • 4
    When ready, let it cool down, scoop out all of the garbage, then strain the stock through paper towel lined colander into another large container. Change the paper towels several times during the straining process. If you want your stock to be perfectly clear then strain it one or two more times.
  • 5
    Pour into prepared pint jars and pressure can for 45 minutes at 11 lbs of pressure for dial gauge, or 10 lbs of pressure for weighted gauge. Pressure is different if you are above sea level.
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