dried shrimps

[+ friendofsheila]

in the package of shiitalke mushrooms was a a package of dried shrimps, really small ones.  

If I just soak them and then put them in a stir fry will they be almost like regualr shrimps?

[CuriousByNature]

7 minutes ago, friendofsheila said:

in the package of shiitalke mushrooms was a a package of dried shrimps, really small ones.  

If I just soak them and then put them in a stir fry will they be almost like regualr shrimps?

I soak them in hot water first, or in Chinese cooking wine.  This softens them up but they will not be like regular shrimp.  They don't reconstitute fully.  You can use them as they are if you want a chewier texture, but many people soak them first so that the texture is softer.  They are used more for their umami flavour than for 'shrimpiness', and the flavour is more intense and concentrated than fresh shrimp.  I like using shrimp paste as well.

[BSR]

3 hours ago, CuriousByNature said:

I soak them in hot water first, or in Chinese cooking wine.  This softens them up but they will not be like regular shrimp.  They don't reconstitute fully.  You can use them as they are if you want a chewier texture, but many people soak them first so that the texture is softer.  They are used more for their umami flavour than for 'shrimpiness', and the flavour is more intense and concentrated than fresh shrimp.  I like using shrimp paste as well.

Dried shrimp and shrimp paste are staples of Filipino cuisine.  I have a love/hate relationship with Filipino food.  Some dishes I love, others I hate, and dried shrimp is deep in the “hate” category.  “umami flavour”??  More like Chelsea Harbor at low tide.  You couldn’t pay me enough to eat it.

[mike carey]

I hear what @BSR is saying. To me a little shrimp paste, also known as blacan in Malay, is good, anything more is far too much. It overpowers and has an incredible pungency that I find unpleasant. But to me that's similar to Vietnamese fish sauce, Worcestershire sauce and even anchovies (although for me anchovy fillets make a pizza), add a little to all sorts of dishes and it adds so much [good] to them. Dried shrimp would be a bit different, perhaps too big to blend into a dish and probably too strong to be the main event, but you can solve that by grinding them in a mortar and pestle. This article may help.

Blachan: Transform Your Cooking with Intense Flavour

KOOKSSECRETS.COM

---

Discover the unique taste of Blachan, the pungent shrimp paste that transforms dishes with its intense flavour.

 But the thing is, whether you use them now or it takes 100 years to use what you have, they'll still be the same,

[pubic_assistance]

On 8/23/2025 at 7:27 PM, friendofsheila said:

If I just soak them and then put them in a stir fry will they be almost like regualr shrimps?

No. 

I use them for a dish I make with left over rice. Reconstitute shrimp in warm water and rice wine. Pan fry garlic,  ginger and whole pepper corns, in sesame oil, add old rice, stir until browned, then add shrimp and half a cup of seafood broth (or chicken broth). Cook down into a thick texture. Garnish with chopped scallion..

Edited August 25 by pubic_assistance
grammar

[+ nycman]

7 hours ago, pubic_assistance said:

I use them for a dish I make with left over rice.

Sounds delicious, and I can’t wait to have you make this for me. But you do realize the only measurement you gave us was a ”half a cup of seafood broth”. I’m just not that talented in the kitchen and if I tried to make this, it would be an awful soup.

PS I know it’s not supposed to be a soup. It was a joke you morons. 

[mike carey]

Public flirting? Again?

Grin

But to be serious for a moment more than I ever have been, anyone who can cook knew what you meant. We've all had that horrible realisation when what was supposed to be soup ends up being able to stand up by itself on a plate or on some toast, or when too much water turns the rice into a paste. Even if it is dried prawn flavoured paste.

[pubic_assistance]

3 hours ago, nycman said:

But you do realize the only measurement you gave us was a ”half a cup of seafood broth”

Yeah. sorry. 

People who cook, have a bad habit of assuming you understand volumes. We just share ingredient combinations that seem to work. 

Of course, thats why I never bake. Too specific and scientific. 

Will let you know when I have left over rice to fry..so we can face-time the recipe. 🤣

Edited August 25 by pubic_assistance
grammar

[mike carey]

Facetime???

[pubic_assistance]

5 hours ago, mike carey said:

Facetime???

I can play Gordan Ramsey and film myself cooking while I swear a lot......😆

[+ nycman]

6 hours ago, pubic_assistance said:

I can play Gordan Ramsey and film myself cooking while I swear a lot......😆

[+ friendofsheila]

On 8/23/2025 at 4:39 PM, CuriousByNature said:

I soak them in hot water first, or in Chinese cooking wine.  This softens them up but they will not be like regular shrimp.  They don't reconstitute fully.  You can use them as they are if you want a chewier texture, but many people soak them first so that the texture is softer.  They are used more for their umami flavour than for 'shrimpiness', and the flavour is more intense and concentrated than fresh shrimp.  I like using shrimp paste as well.

thank you CBN

[+ friendofsheila]

On 8/24/2025 at 7:43 PM, pubic_assistance said:

No. 

I use them for a dish I make with left over rice. Reconstitute shrimp in warm water and rice wine. Pan fry garlic,  ginger and whole pepper corns, in sesame oil, add old rice, stir until browned, then add shrimp and half a cup of seafood broth (or chicken broth). Cook down into a thick texture. Garnish with chopped scallion..

this sounds like the leftover fried rice dish someone taught me only theay add egg.  only now instead of chicken pieces I can put in shrmp.

thank you Pa. 

[samhexum]

3 hours ago, friendofsheila said:

this sounds like the leftover fried rice dish someone taught me only theay add egg.  only now instead of chicken pieces I can put in shrmp.

thank you Pa. 

@pubic_assistance, the only appropriate response is, "you're welcome, Half Pint."

[+ friendofsheila]

the shrimps smelled like ammonia when I opend the package, so I didn't use them.

[BSR]

10 hours ago, friendofsheila said:

the shrimps smelled like ammonia when I opend the package, so I didn't use them.

I think that is their natural odor:  Chelsea Harbor at low tide.  My brother and I used to eat dinner before my parents every time they had bagoóng (Filipino shrimp paste), then lock ourselves in our rooms to avoid the stench.  Even hours later, you could still smell the stink of ammonia/seafood-gone-bad.  Just thinking about it triggers my gag reflex.

[+ MikeThomas]

Google AI...

If your shrimp smells like ammonia, it indicates spoilage, and you should not eat it. This smell is a result of bacteria breaking down the shrimp's proteins, converting them into ammonia and other compounds, which can lead to food poisoning if consumed.

[mike carey]

4 hours ago, MikeThomas said:

Google AI...

If your shrimp smells like ammonia, it indicates spoilage, and you should not eat it. This smell is a result of bacteria breaking down the shrimp's proteins, converting them into ammonia and other compounds, which can lead to food poisoning if consumed.

This sounds a bit like a case of AI not being capable of factoring in the significance of one word in the question that it was asked. I'm not saying the advice is wrong but would note that an earlier poster said that an ammonia-like smell is a characteristic of dried shrimps. Generative AI seems to be a bit like the internet as a whole. 'I found it on the internet' gives you a start in searching for the answer, but you often need the filter of separate experiences, of caution in general, before taking it as the whole answer.