I have lots of reasons to buy raw shrimp in their shells, from less handling to the option of grilling them shell-on to hold in juices and flavor. The tastiest reason might be that those shells can be saved and briefly cooked into a homemade stock.
All summer, as I peel shrimp to grill, like for last week’s Wasabi-Dusted Grilled Shrimp recipe, or to cook with garden-fresh vegetables, like Shrimp and Summer Squash Enchiladas, I collect the shells in a gallon zip-close bag and store them in the freezer. By the time I start thinking about fall soups, I have at least one bag bursting with shells and ready to be turned into stock.
With all those shrimp shells in each stock batch, I use fewer vegetables than in Homemade Vegetable Stock and instead pile in complementary herbs and lemon so that the shellfish stays dominant. As I make further batches through winter, I swap home-dried herbs for fresh, using about a third of the volume. Delicate shrimp shells cook for less time than dense root vegetables, even when added straight from the freezer to the pot, but otherwise the stock-making principle is the same. The result looks quite similar too, so be sure to label the frozen containers or cubes.
If you have them, other shellfish scraps can go into the stock. Crab and lobster shells won’t release as much flavor because they’ve already been cooked, but they often have bits of meat stuck inside that add depth. Skip the flavorless hard mollusk shells, like from oysters, mussels and clams.
Fin fish bones can become stock too, especially the head and tail. But choose the type of fish wisely. Oily fish like trout, lake whitefish and salmon release that oil into the stock, along with a stronger fishy taste. Yellow perch, halibut, cod and other neutral fish give the stock a more balanced flavor.
Homemade Shrimp Stock
Makes 6-8 quarts
2 small onions
2 cloves garlic
2 celery ribs
2 lemons
1-gallon bag frozen, uncooked shrimp shells (about 8 cups)
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup fresh parsley
1 tablespoon fresh basil
1 tablespoon fresh oregano
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
1 tablespoon fresh tarragon
3/4 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 teaspoon coarse salt
Make sure the onions and garlic are clean, but don’t peel them. Cut the onions in quarters and the celery ribs and lemons in half.
Into a 10-quart stockpot, place the shrimp shells, unpeeled garlic and cut onions, celery and lemons. Add the bay leaves, parsley, basil, oregano, thyme, tarragon, peppercorns and salt. Fill the pot with water to within about 2 inches of the rim.
Bring to just below a simmer over medium heat and cook, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Use a spider or large slotted spoon to pull most of the shells and vegetables from the stock, and then strain through a colander lined with cheesecloth to remove the remaining solids. Let cool before dividing into containers or cubes and freezing.
Julie Laing is a Bigfork-based cookbook author and food blogger at TwiceAsTasty.com.