# Fresh Shrimp



## patindaytona (Jun 17, 2006)

Does fresh shrimp bought at the supermarket such as Wal-Mart or Publix work well compared to the brown frozen stuff at bait shops?


----------



## creek (Dec 16, 2003)

Not for me. I prefer the local shrimp, most of what you get in a supermarket has already been frozen. For me the big question is do you fish shrimp in the surf hooked while still alive or do you pinch off the head and shell it.


----------



## patindaytona (Jun 17, 2006)

*Frozen Shrimp*

I'm talking about comparing "frozen"..sorry if I refered to it as "fresh". Frozen shrimp compared with bait shops vrs. Fish section of the supermarket.


creek said:


> Not for me. I prefer the local shrimp, most of what you get in a supermarket has already been frozen. For me the big question is do you fish shrimp in the surf hooked while still alive or do you pinch off the head and shell it.


----------



## tarponman62 (Feb 5, 2005)

Hey Pat,

There is a thread in the North carolina board from 8/7/06 called shrimp question and a bunch of us shared ideas on the subject.

Take look, Tight lines TM62


----------



## Railroader (Apr 13, 2005)

Pat, I buy my shrimp at the seafood dept in the supermarket...It's food quality, and you are not buying heads. A two pound bag of bait is just that...All BAIT! 

Don't worry if it's "farm raised"...It don't matter a bit, the fish have no clue where they came from!

There will be some disagreement with this, but I just go by all the fish I catch with "store bought" shrimp.


----------



## patindaytona (Jun 17, 2006)

*Shrimp*

Ok, TM62....will definitely take a look at it..thanks.QUOTE=tarponman62]Hey Pat,

There is a thread in the North carolina board from 8/7/06 called shrimp question and a bunch of us shared ideas on the subject.

Take look, Tight lines TM62[/QUOTE]


----------



## patindaytona (Jun 17, 2006)

*Supermarket Shrimp*

Sounds real good...i think that once you throw that shrimp in the water, it'll soak up the saltwater and it's no longer farm raised. Besides, that frozen shrimp I always get in bait shops stinks...once it's thawed, it's real mushy..cheap crap! Also, it's so brown too! I know that that shrimp in the supermarket is alot more "meaty"...i'll try it tomorrow morning and let you know what I catch..thanks.


Railroader said:


> Pat, I buy my shrimp at the seafood dept in the supermarket...It's food quality, and you are not buying heads. A two pound bag of bait is just that...All BAIT!
> 
> Don't worry if it's "farm raised"...It don't matter a bit, the fish have no clue where they came from!
> 
> There will be some disagreement with this, but I just go by all the fish I catch with "store bought" shrimp.


----------



## Digger (Jan 4, 2000)

OK my rank order and I have lived from the Chesapeake to Florida Bay and it does make a difference.

Live Local Shrimp is number one with out a doubt.

Fresh Local Shrimp(some places this is what B&T carry) some times you get it from Seafood shops I have also got it straight from the boat and roadside stands. 

Frozen Local shrimp I've hit a few B&T's that will freeze the surplus or plan for days when fresh is just not there.

Grocery Store shrimp I buy it frozen if that is how they get the stuff in and thaw out what I need.

Last but not least the Commercial Bait shrimp I never buy this junk.


----------



## patindaytona (Jun 17, 2006)

*Commercial Shrimp*

You're right that commercial shrimp is crap. I bought some and it's extremely tiny shrimp and they are all brown. I guess the grocery is the next best thing.


Digger said:


> OK my rank order and I have lived from the Chesapeake to Florida Bay and it does make a difference.
> 
> Live Local Shrimp is number one with out a doubt.
> 
> ...


----------



## rattler (Jul 3, 2004)

the easy peel dosn't stay on the hook worth a dern...


----------



## Surf Fish (Dec 16, 2005)

rattler said:


> the easy peel dosn't stay on the hook worth a dern...


Yeah it does, if you freeze it before you go fishing. Picky fish perfer devained shrimp....


----------



## jettypark28 (Jun 23, 2006)

*stink*

is what you want...more fish will find your shrimp if it smell more like shrimp. And not washout cooking shrimp from the supermarket, The only reason i use dead shrimp is to catch bait!! And the only time i use live shrimp is when Snook season is open. But i use Jumbo shrimp for them........If you are fishing with dead shrimp, Don't be like tourist. (Spot them a mile away)....big old dead shrimp, using a shark hook on wire leader, and a pound of sinker Keep everything small for dead shrimp.....That way at least you can catch whiting and croakers and anything else..and if you are on the beach.....alot of Rays...I belive in Big Bait equals Big Fish...IMO


----------



## Fisheadgib (Jan 7, 2006)

I buy my shrimp from a baitshop that sells live shrimp. The frozen shrimp they sell is fresh dead out of their tanks. I've spent a night or two on a bay shrimper and all the shrimp thats headed to market is dipped in a preservative to keep it from discoloring. I don't know how much this affect it's use as bait but it doesn't hurt people.


----------



## Surf Fish (Dec 16, 2005)

I've been buying fresh "eating" shrimp from a seafood market that has a dock where shrimp boats part. Figured it couldn't be any fresher than that. 

Then one day I saw a guy dragging a sack of frozen shrimp down the dock from one of the boats. So I asked the lady in the seafood market what's the deal with the frozen shrimp. 

She tells me that the shrimp boats flash freeze the shrimp when they catch them, and then when they get to the market, they are thawed out before they sell them...

So maybe there isn't any such thing as "fresh" shrimp anymore unless they're swimming when you buy them.


----------



## patindaytona (Jun 17, 2006)

*Tried them today*

Too soon to tell..I tried the so called fresh shrimp today...i was getting little pecks from the fish, so i guess they will eat it, but hard to say right now if they are really good bait. I bought mine yesterday in a sea food market. They were probably frozen earlier too. Is it bad to freeze shrimp if you bought them unfrozen?


Surf Fish said:


> I've been buying fresh "eating" shrimp from a seafood market that has a dock where shrimp boats part. Figured it couldn't be any fresher than that.
> 
> Then one day I saw a guy dragging a sack of frozen shrimp down the dock from one of the boats. So I asked the lady in the seafood market what's the deal with the frozen shrimp.
> 
> ...


----------



## Jigmaster (Apr 3, 2006)

*Shrimp its whats for Dinner*

I agree with Rail Roader on this one. I know of Comercial guys who when they cant Get Sand Fleas, resort to Grocery Store Shrimp! If fishing is your $$ bread n` Butter your not Paying the Bait Shop guy Top dollar to buy and use either Livies or Brown frozen Stinkers! Go down to the Grocery store..... yes even the Bargain Basement Store like Save Alot, >Publix At a premium wont catch you any more. 30-40 ct. Peel/cut em in 4ths 
40-50 ct. Peel/Cut em in 3rds these are the best. Coat them in Salt/Shake in a Zip-Loc baggie. Freeze the night before. 
Your good to go.


----------



## derekxec (Apr 26, 2006)

here a couple of the baitshops freeze live shrimp for dead bait so if you get there before its frozen they are still alive in the pack...if its not like that we usually just buy live or nothing...supermarket shrimp isnt that fresh they are prefrozen and shipped then thawed out when you get them but i guess its fresher than baitshop


----------



## Surf Fish (Dec 16, 2005)

patindaytona said:


> Is it bad to freeze shrimp if you bought them unfrozen?


Nope, not bad. I refreeze my leftovers and use them over again, might not work as good as "fresh" shrimp, but still works...


----------

