**I wrote an ode to the mighty and yet largely unsung hero of the seafood world in my last post and forgot to come back and add the recipe. Yeah… well. So! Here it is! Enjoy.

Shrimp cocktail is a splurge, whether you're popping crustaceans at a raw bar or poaching a batch yourself. Each bite should feel like a luxury: plump, snappy, well-chilled meat with a clean, oceanic sweetness that gleams on your palate.

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Nailing that profile is all about poaching the shrimp just right. First, the water must be judiciously seasoned to underscore shrimp's natural brininess. Second, the shrimp must reach, but not exceed, their ideal doneness. That's hard to do well because small, lean shrimp go from raw to rubbery in an instant and because it's hard to monitor the temperature of so many pieces. There are a few unusual steps I take to ensure proper seasoning. First, I brine the shrimp in water laced with both salt and sugar. Then, I also poach them in that brine with more salted water, which enhances the seasoning effects of the brine rather than diluting it as plain water would.

THE ORIGINAL SEAFOOD COCKTAIL

Before modern freezer technology made highly perishable shrimp widely available, cocktail sauce's best mate was the oyster. Popularized in 19th-century San Francisco, the oyster cocktail (or shooter) was shucked bivalves dropped into a glass with their liquor, ketchup, Worcestershire and Tabasco sauces, vinegar, and horseradish. It has been largely eclipsed by the shrimp kind but is still a popular briny bracer. There are few restaurants to this day on the SF waterfront where you cannot find an oyster shooter!

In his book On Food and Cooking (2004), food science writer Harold McGee notes that poached shrimp tastes best when cooked to 140 degrees, and my sous vide tests confirmed that. I cooked batches of jumbo (16-20) shrimp to temperatures ranging from 130 to 180 degrees. At 140 degrees, they were juicy, tender, and just resilient enough to swipe through the cocktail sauce.

As you can see, there are many sizes and, in fact, many varieties of shrimp. Most commonly available are white and pink varietals from the Gulf of Mexico, Mexican brown shrimp, and shrimp that have largely been cultivated using farming techniques in Thailand, sometimes called prawns or tiger prawns. I like to use 16-20 per pound size as they have enough body and character to really enjoy.

Sous vide is great for poaching; just bring the water to 140 degrees and cook the shrimp for 45 to 60 minutes. My question was how to consistently hit that target without relying on sous vide. Drop shrimp into hot water, and if you're not careful, they can overcook in a flash, even if you pull the pot off the heat.

The best approach is to heat the shrimp and water together—a method I call "cold-start poaching." That way, they cook gradually, so there's minimal risk of overshooting the mark. The other key is to monitor the temperature of the water, not the shrimp, which makes it easy to hit the target without temping individual pieces. Once I figured out how high to heat the water (160 degrees), my method worked perfectly, as long as I used the prescribed size of shrimp and volume of water. The results, I promise, are worth the splurge.

SCIENCE!

Poached Shrimp's Sweet Spot for Doneness—and How to Achieve It.

The texture of poached shrimp is just right when we confirm that they're cooked to 140 degrees. At this temperature (the same target doneness we like for lobster), the flesh is nicely plump and tender as well as snappy—perfect for swiping through the cocktail sauce or any other dressing (some ideas at the bottom of the post.) Since it's fussy to take the temperature of shrimp as they cook, we temp the water instead. Provided you use the prescribed size and amount of shrimp and water, the shrimp will reach 140 degrees when the water hits 160 degrees.

TRACK THE WATER TO TRACK THE SHRIMP

We've calibrated the method so that when the water temperature hits 160 degrees, the shrimp hits 140 degrees.

Cold-Start Poaching (does poaching make you a poacher? ;)

Extra shrimp credits:

CHIPOTLE LIME COCKTAIL SAUCE SERVES 8 (MAKES ABOUT I CUP) TOTAL TIME: 10 MINUTES

1 cup ketchup, 1 cup prepared horseradish, 2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro, 2 teaspoons minced canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce, 1 teaspoon grated lime zest plus, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Whisk all ingredients in a bowl until combined.

CREAMY CHERMOULA SAUCE SERVES 8 (MAKES ABOUT 1 CUP) TOTAL TIME: 20 MINUTES

1 cup lemon juice (2 lemons), 1 tablespoon honey, 1/2 cup olive oil, 2 garlic cloves, minced, 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander, 1/2 teaspoon table salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt, 4 teaspoons minced fresh mint, 4 teaspoons minced fresh cilantro

Combine lemon juice and honey in a blender. With the blender running on medium-high speed, slowly add canola oil and olive oil until incorporated. Continue to process until mixture is smooth and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add garlic, smoked paprika, cumin, coriander, salt, and pepper and blend until combined, about 10 seconds. Add yogurt and blend until thickened to dipping sauce consistency, about 10 seconds. Transfer sauce to bowl and stir in mint and cilantro. Season with salt to taste.

CREOLE REMOULADE SERVES 8 (MAKES ABOUT I CUP) TOTAL TIME: 10 MINUTES

1 cup mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard, 1 tablespoon Louisiana-style hot sauce, 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley, 2 teaspoons capers, minced, 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce, 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest plus 1 tablespoon juice, 1 garlic clove, minced, 1/2 teaspoon Zartarains Seasoning.

Whisk all ingredients in a bowl until combined.

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