# Salting Shrimp



## jcw8tc (Jan 30, 2009)

I know there is other information out there about this but had a few specific questions if anyone would mind answering. 

I only get to go to the beach for 1 week a year at most so want to make the best of it this year as I actually get to stay for 10 days. Last year I was buying small frozen packages of shrimp and it seemed like after 2 minutes I either would reel in a fish or reel in bare hooks. For those reasons to save some money and have the bait stay on longer I have been reading about salting shrimp. I can buy frozen shrimp locally for much cheaper for more. A few questions I have. I can get raw with shell on or cooked and cleaned. Does it matter? I saw at the WalMart today some 150 count which looked like a nice size but they were pre cooked and cleaned. I have already bought a few bags of 60-80 count that are raw with shell on. Should I salt them with the shell on or peel them? 

Also one last question. Most seem to talk about kosher salt. Is that preferable to pickling salt. The pickling salt seems to be the same (pure salt) only finer and about half the price.

Thanks for any help.


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## RW_20 (Oct 16, 2007)

http://www.pierandsurf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=54459


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## SmoothLures (Feb 13, 2008)

Don't use cooked shrimp, and shell the raw shrimp first. You can cut it to size before you salt it too,but it'll shrink so make it a bit bigger than what you want.


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## mwhuffman (Jun 16, 2004)

First of all, welcome aboard! I, like you, have to drive a ways to get to the surf and only get to go a few times a year. So, I've learned by trial and error a few things which may help you out. I've tried buying shrimp locally (meaning, at home) and brining them. I would buy uncooked, with the shells on. Peel, cut to bait size pieces and cover liberally with kosher salt and refrigerate overnight. The kosher salt is more coarse and soaks up more moisture in the shrimp. The problem with doing this was the shrimp I was buying had already been frozen, as most shrimp are when you live hundreds of miles from the ocean. When thawed, then brined, it didn't work out as well as I'd hoped. The shrimp looked shriveled and shrunk up a lot more than I thought it would. I was advised to use only fresh caught dead shrimp that hadn't been frozen. Don't use 2-3 day old bait shrimp. Most beach locations have a seafood market that sells fresh fish and shrimp. If you can't find one, buy fresh shrimp at a grocery. If it looks good enough for you to boil and eat, it'll make good bait. If it doesn't, I'd pass on it.


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## dnice (Apr 17, 2009)

Like mwhuffman said...
You can wait till you get to the coast and buy your shrimp at a local grocery (instead of walmart), they will be fine for use the next day and the rest of your stay.

So far I have used uncooked only, with shells on. I only use the kosher salt because its the cheapest in my store.

peel them before you salt them


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## Fish'n Phil (Nov 11, 2002)

Salting gets pretty messy so I stopped. I get the smallest frozen raw shell on shrimp at Wally World. I was watching a North Carolina TV last weekend and they recommended flipping and cutting the shrimp from the underside to prevent squishing the shrimp... I don't know if this would make a difference. To lessen bait stealing you could try smaller pieces of shrimp or smaller hooks.


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## ToferLee (Apr 24, 2009)

Well you have several options. Buying live shrimp is the best, but requires a lot of attention. Experimenting with some salted shrimp right now and heading out in the morning so I'll let you know how that goes. I peeled them and layered them in kosher salt for about a week in the fridge so I'll give them a try. The absolutely best places i've seen to go for shrimp is a fresh seafood market. They have fresh shrimp already peeled and ready to go if you want to salt it. I've also read that you can get some live shrimp and put it out of the water on some newspaper thats on ice and they'll stay alive for hours in kind of a slow motion state. Another option is gulp Alive shrimp work well. Frozen will do if you have no other option but I try not to use them except as a last option. The more important thing i've learned with shrimp is how you hook them. The front of the head or just before the tail if using whole shrimp or threading it on the hook for cut shrimp. Hope that helps.


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## Kinghunter (Mar 24, 2009)

*salted*

Go to local fresh sea food and buy shell them fish the day then salt.Local produce more for me.


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## captmikestarrett (Apr 28, 2004)

Are you all aware of the Evil Dick Shrimp receipe for croaker and drum?

Just to save a response here it is. 

Get shrimp and peel them. Cut in half or proper size for hooks. 
Add kosher salt and a table spoon of garlic powder.
Place mess in small tubberware bowls and refridgerate overnight. 
Use one bowl at a time and keep the rest in the cooler. 
Will last four or five days. 

Thanks Evil Dick for this killer cheap bait. 

Capt Mike


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## Seachaser (Sep 27, 2004)

Cheap tricks. Go to dollar store and get several boxes of un iodized salt. Buy fresh dead shrimp. Pour a box in the bag or box it came in. The longer it sits, the better it gets. A little salt will toughen shrimp in a hurry. When you get back home take the remainder of shrimp and cut and salt. After a few days, you can freeze them until next time. Best advice I ever got: "If you will not eat the shrimp don't expect the fish to eat it either."


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## TROPHYman (Apr 16, 2009)

I USE ROCK SALT FOR MY SHRIMP WHICH I BUY FRESH, PEEL AND CUT IN HALF.......INITIALLY AFTER SALTING DRAIN THE LIQUID, BUT I FIND THE LONGER I KEEP IT IN THE SALT THE TOUGHER IT GETS.
THE SAME THING GOES FOR CLAMS......THEY GET LIKE LEATHER FOR ME, I SALT AND STORE THESE FOR LONG PERIODS.
MOST OF THE TIME I GET SHRIMP AT PUBLIX MKT. $5.99 A LB....NICE SIZE.:fishing:


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## mwhuffman (Jun 16, 2004)

Lotsa good info here...I'd heard the garlic recipe before, but haven't tried it. Maybe next time I go.....?:fishing:


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