I love fish and seafood, and I’m pretty good at cooking fish on the stove or in the oven. But I seem to overcook shrimp and scallops, so I’ve been avoiding them. Is there a way to know when they are done? Maybe a thermometer reading?
This was a question that came up during our weekly live chat, where we help you level-up your skills in the kitchen. Here’s how to tell when your shrimp and scallops are perfectly cooked.
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Answered by Aaron Hutcherson
What’s cookin’, friends? I’m Aaron, a food writer and recipe developer for Washington Post Food. I’m a classically trained chef who loves the comfort and soul food I grew up with and exploring other cuisines. Need help in the kitchen? I’m always happy to help. Email me at aaron.hutcherson@washpost.com or join my weekly live chat.
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For shrimp, you need to cook them just until they turn pink. However, this happens very quickly. Even for larger shrimp, and depending on the heat of the skillet, you only need a minute or two per side.
The key to keeping shrimp from overcooking is to keep a watchful eye and move quickly to get them in and out of the pan.
A live chat reader added: “My problem with cooking shrimp is that some in the pan will be completely done while others still have large gray areas. My solution is to pick out the done ones and put them aside, but do you have any better suggestions?”
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That is indeed the best solution: Remove the cooked shrimp from the pan as soon as they are done while the rest finish cooking.
For scallops, finding the freshest, untreated, dry-packed scallops is the key to a great cook. (Similarly, you should look for shrimp that hasn’t been treated with chemicals.)
While you can use a thermometer — the FDA recommends cooking most seafood to an internal temperature of 145 degrees — it would be time-consuming and cumbersome to measure the temperature of each scallop. And like shrimp, they also cook quickly. Sight and touch are much better indicators for doneness. Scallops are cooked when they are firm, nicely browned and opaque all the way through.
If the reason you end up overcooking scallops is because you’re waiting for them to get nicely browned, make sure to pat the scallops dry, do not overcrowd the pan, and cook them for only 2 to 3 minutes per side over high heat. Some people mostly just cook scallops on one side until nicely browned to keep from overcooking them, which is especially useful for smaller scallops. And again, remove each scallop from the pan when it is done to your liking.
Here is a guide from Washington Post recipes editor Ann Maloney with more scallop tips.
Shrimp and scallop recipes
