Professional question for sushi chefs?

Question

I want to order some Ebi shrimp so I can make my own sushi. What is the most common size for them. I assume they come precook IQF. Also how big is a case and what kind of price would I be looking at per shrimp?

Answer 1

I am a former chef and worked in Japan, and I would say the best are the 25-30 count, and when you poach instead of slitting the back, do it on the front were the leg were, this keeps them flat, and skewering them to lay them flat in an insert and cooking them there also make sure they are flat for the top of sushi. I would buy the frozen unpeeled, there better and you can cook them a little at a time, they stay fresher.

In Japan they would put 6-8 on each bamboo skewer and then drop them in the boiling cooking medium, only enough to turn colour then out and in an ice water bath to stop the cooking and keep them crisp and crunchy.

Answer 2

Your best bet is to go to a nearby sushi restaurant and ask them where they get their shrimp or offer to buy some from them directly. As long as you aren't opening up a store down the street, they'll be receptive, especially if that means you and your guests are more likely to eat sushi at their restaurant in the future.

Answer 3

If you're looking for Asian style types of shrimp try Asian markets and stuff...like Asian Foods they have Asian stuff or even check out China Towns they usually have stores that sell stuff that's not all Chinese or whatever...and Shrimp is expensive espically if your not by the coast...and it also depends on if the shrimp is fresh or not (frozen is probably less)...and in bigger cities there are Japanese Markets...just go online and check 'em out!  Good Luck..my mom worked as a pro sushi chef and she got all her stuff from the Asian wholesaler and for home use she got 'em from the markets