Sweets from the Deep in defense of Georgia shrimp
photo by Joe Loehle
B Y james files
The shrimp boats are heading out once again. In 1969, this was a celebrated event. On the radio a sweet voice would sing, “The shrimp boats is a coming, there’s dancing tonight,” followed by the smooth bass of the announcer intoning, “You’ve been listening to Jo Stafford on WMOG, the sound of the Wonderful Marshes of Glynn.” And when the shrimp boats docked, there was indeed dancing. With diesel fuel at five gallons to the dollar – instead of the other way around – and the price of shrimp often near what it is today, most shrimpers could afford to shed their white boots and party with the best of them at Bennie’s Red Barn on St. Simons Island. With the price of shrimp hardly above what it was back then, the hope of easy money is behind today’s shrimper. He now plays primarily for the love of the game. The cost of maintaining a boat, coping with regulations and licensing and paying for fuel often has him working hard to break even, much less match the pay he makes at odd jobs in the off-season. Even so, many do persist. And we should appreciate that. Many of us happily gobble down plates of sweet wild Georgia white shrimp at bargain prices, thankful that the rest of the country is eating tasteless pond-raised Asian imports. The monster tiger shrimp at the big box store looks fine, but the chunk of cotton that winds up on the plate tastes much more like the bag it came out of than the shrimp that we get from the fish market or the docks. If this sounds like a Georgia boy bragging on the home team rather than being objective, I suggest you go online and search for taste test results. There have been many. Tiger shrimp vs. white shrimp. White shrimp raised in ponds vs. wild. Low salinity vs. high salinity ponds. Gulf vs. Atlantic. We win them all. Tiger shrimp are inferior in taste and texture to white
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shrimp. Shrimp raised in ponds and fed grain taste like the grain rather than shrimp. Shrimp raised in low salinity ponds consume algae, not smaller sea life, and the taste carries through. And while New Orleans throws the best Mardi Gras party, we have the best shrimp. Phil Flournoy, marine biologist onboard the Lady Jane (shrimpcruise.com), explained the phenomenon of sweet Georgia shrimp this way: “In the Gulf (of Mexico) the tides are measured in inches and the water circulation in the estuarine environment is very limited. In addition the waters of the gulf are relatively shallow and subject to evaporation, which concentrates certain elements, especially iodine. Organisms that live in this environment absorb those chemicals into their flesh and it gives them a bitter taste. Our tides run from 7 to 9 feet and combined with the massive fresh water runoff from the five major rivers reaching the Georgia coast (Savannah River, Ogeechee, Altamaha, Satilla, St Marys) our estuaries are flushed of chemicals twice a day.” But don’t take our word for it: Go out and catch yourself a mess of sweet Georgia shrimp (or buy ‘em fresh at City Market in Brunswick) and taste for yourself. We’ll even throw in some tasty recipe ideas, free of charge.
How to cook those shrimp: