Maine Shrimp or Pandalus borealis

You can park all day for free at the site of Gloucester's Fiesta, except when there's a Fiesta. Yesterday I noticed a sign at the edge of the lot that read "Native Shrimp" with pictures of the large headed tiny shrimp I know as Maine Shrimp. I went in to ask about them and found InterShell's retail store where you can buy fresh fish and other stuff like Asian sauces, wasabi, sesame seeds...

InterShell's retail store has native shrimp "every day" and you can get them shelled and cleaned ("we dip them in salt brine first. Most of the roe gets washed off.") or you can buy them just as they come out of the water -- head and shell on. The guy I talked to recommended steaming them heads on before cleaning and peeling ("the heads have a lot of flavor") and told me that I should use the broth ("that's a lobster bisque!").

Almost all the shrimp have a lot of roe which is visible on the outside of the shell. What a curious creature! I wondered if their species had figured out that only a few males were actually necessary -- about five per five pounds, by the looks of it.

I googled a site that helped explain a lot. It begins, "These sex-changing crustaceans are also called native shrimp and they’re harvested from the cold waters of the Gulf of Maine. They’re considered to be a delicacy — some people eat them raw – and are only available for several weeks in the dead of winter." The site -- http://foodpluspolitics.com/2008/01/19/about-maine-shrimp/ - also has a nice looking recipe for shrimp seviche and tips about handling and preparation.