Ode to the grey Northsea shrimp
Jan surprised me during the Christmas vacation when he got back from grocery shopping. Here these are for you to peel, he announced , while pushing to me a kilo great fresh Nordsea shrimp. Apparently he had the plan to make shrimp croquettes with the boys and in that plan, I was the shrimp peeler.
Now, I do love to eat shrimp and sometimes I buy a little cheap platter of seefood in the Carrefour which at the bottom always holds a bunch of shrimp. While we share the bigger pieces, I always receive the gift of the shrimp as I am the only one patient enough to go and sit to peel them.
Now, I do love to eat shrimp and sometimes I buy a little cheap platter of seefood in the Carrefour which at the bottom always holds a bunch of shrimp. While we share the bigger pieces, I always receive the gift of the shrimp as I am the only one patient enough to go and sit to peel them.
Flabbergasted I took place at the table , installed myself and started the task. A kilo of shrimp is a bit daunting but I got going and Jan joined in as well. With a little beer, both of us worked through shrimp and shrimp and it was a sort of wonderful mindful activity.
I realized that at night I'd be able to smell the shrimp in my fingers again, despite washing my hands a couple of times. The smell would invade my skin and stick around...and I don't really mind so much.
I had flashbacks to my teenage years where I visited in summer a friend with a summer home in Oostduinkerke. On one of the nights the family had taken me to the fishery museum where her mother and I also had shared a platter of fresh nordsea shrimp. Also then we were the only ones with the patience to eat, but therefore we had profited of eating most of them. And gosh, what are fresh shrimp beautiful and a delicacy. That night in the bunk bed I was still awake when my friend was already asleep and I was smelling my fingers over and over again, recalling the taste.
I had to think that I've only eaten good shrimp around the North Sea. In other countries or in industrial products the shrimp don't resemble this delacacy. The little rubbery pink curls that are thrown in a salad or "sea food pizza" , god forbid, are a curse to these. How lucky we are to be able to taste this delicate and more and more rare product, while most of the world lives in ignorance.
I realized that at night I'd be able to smell the shrimp in my fingers again, despite washing my hands a couple of times. The smell would invade my skin and stick around...and I don't really mind so much.
I had flashbacks to my teenage years where I visited in summer a friend with a summer home in Oostduinkerke. On one of the nights the family had taken me to the fishery museum where her mother and I also had shared a platter of fresh nordsea shrimp. Also then we were the only ones with the patience to eat, but therefore we had profited of eating most of them. And gosh, what are fresh shrimp beautiful and a delicacy. That night in the bunk bed I was still awake when my friend was already asleep and I was smelling my fingers over and over again, recalling the taste.
I had to think that I've only eaten good shrimp around the North Sea. In other countries or in industrial products the shrimp don't resemble this delacacy. The little rubbery pink curls that are thrown in a salad or "sea food pizza" , god forbid, are a curse to these. How lucky we are to be able to taste this delicate and more and more rare product, while most of the world lives in ignorance.
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