All about shrimp nutrition and healthy shrimp recipes
Shrimp
Shrimp are ten-footed, filter feeding critters that live in schools near the bottom of fresh and salt water and taste really good! Not sure they have ten feet... count them! Did you know that the difference between shrimp and prawns is that they have different gill structure? Usually, they are referred to interchangeably, with prawns sometimes meaning large shrimp with a count less than 15 per pound. Shrimp are really easy to cook in many recipes and are a healthy addition to your diet. Now that you know some basics, check out what else there is to know about shrimp.
Shrimp Nutrition... Similar to Chicken!?!
Shrimp are really tasty, relatively inexpensive healthy source of protein without a lot of fat. If you compare a serving of shrimp that is 1/4 pound to half a chicken breast, the nutritional values are almost the same. Take a look at the nutrition for both shrimp and chicken below. Shrimp and chicken breast have similar amounts of protein and calories while remaining low fat. The main difference is that shrimp have higher cholesterol, but is has been found that shrimp in the diet increases so-called bad cholesterol or LDL slightly, it also boosts good cholesterol or HDL enough to possibly offset the increase in bad cholesterol. A study titled "Effects of shrimp consumption on plasma lipoproteins" showed that shrimp consumption by healthy people will not adversely affect the overall cholesterol profile and can be included in "heart healthy" nutritional guidelines
Shrimp Nutrition Label:
Chicken Nutrition Label:
Buying Shrimp and Shrimp "Count"... How Many Shrimp are in a Pound?
Have you ever noticed, that when you buy shrimp there is a label with a number divided by a slash? Shrimp are sold by the "count", which tells you the approximate number of shrimp in one pound. For instance, if you buy 16/20, there are between 16 and 20 shrimp per pound. Buying shrimp by the count is more reliable than by a generic label such as "jumbo" because you will know how many are in there and won't have to rely on the stores labeling which may vary.
Fun Facts: Why do shrimp turn pink?
Lobsters, crabs, and shrimp have a variety of different colors present in their bodies. The pink color is the carotenoid astaxanthin, which is hidden in dark colored protein chains. When you cook the shrimp, the dark proteins uncoil (called denaturing) letting you see the red pigment.
Shrimp Recipes:
Here is a list of all the different recipes that use shrimp and other crustaceans on Healthy2NITE. We hope that you enjoy them and add a few of your own.