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A little fun fact: Sushi grade fish is always previously frozen to kill any potential harmful parasites. There really is no such thing as fresh seafood when you buy it in stores. And many of us have never tasted fresh shrimp since we don't catch and cook it ourselves on the same day.

Congratulations on your success so far! I have been on my own crusade to slim down, and have found yoga to be invaluable. If you find the right kind of class (ie. power, ashtanga, vinyasa yoga) the workout can be very intense for cardio and muscles. It's a good way to work and stretch all of your muscles, rather than concentrating on a few major groups. Also, it's brought me a much closer awareness of the state of my body: what it needs and what it doesn't. Ultimately though, find a workout/class you enjoy or it will never last!

karacooks - is right on! If you want freshest possible shrimp it's got to be frozen JUST THAW IT RIGHT! Upon harvesting shrimp and it hits the deck it sterts to deteriorate, as in rot, so it has to be iced or frozen stat! The question should have been saltwater shrimp versus fresh water and the origin. I feel the Mexican Guaymas Whites are the best available and they are frozen. The Guaymas whites are the sweetest and claenest tasting of all. In the mid '79's the Japanese signed a 30 year contract with the Mexican Government Co-operativo to purchase the entire catch of these shrimp so they weren't available anywhere but from Japan. A few years ago the contract expired and the Mexican Gov't saw the error by locking in a price and wouldn't renew the contract so now they are available here in the U.S. Try the Catalina Seafood Company in San Diego put in a little effort and get the best.

I'll only use frozen shrimp or scallops for that matter if added to a stew... otherwise you need the fresh stuff to grill/sear.... oh yea - I have made the mistake.

I have never seen fresh shrimp in our area so I have to buy frozen. I like knowing i have them in the freezer ready to go for a quick meal. I am 5 minutes away from making shrimp cocktail, shrimp scampi, or chinese shrimp stir-fry. If I had access to fresh shrimp, I would love it. But I don't. I am sure the flavor is probably better but there is nothing I can do about this except move somewhere south - such as FL, LA or GA.

Personally, I have no problem with frozen shrimp. However, my question has to do with what is being sold as "fresh". I live in Miami, FL. I recently went to Homestead, FL to a "farmer's market". While there I realized much of the product sold was from California, not locally grown produce. So I wonder if the non-local mentality has carried over to other categories.

To my question. There is a fish monger selling head on green shrimp at the same farmer's market. However it says it comes from the Gulf. Is it possible to buy Gulf shrimp that has never been frozen on the Atlantic side of the state? I guess I should ask the question this way...Does anyone have experience buying head on green shrimp that you know for certain has not been frozen?
Maybe the better question is...how can I tell if head on green shrimp has been recently caught? these shrimp are displayed as Alton Brown recommends with piles of ice in a free draining container.

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

@dbisping, you are looking for Cook's Illustrated Online. This isn't that.

I grew up cleaning fresh shrimp on the Atlantic Coast, and as a result I hated shrimp. The someone told me about cooked, frozen shrimp. I thaw them in cold running water and I never by any chance cook them or add them directly to hot preparations--but, for numerous salads, cocktails, sushi and garnish preps, they are awesome.

I agree that they taste flavored. Much better than I could.

@dbisping: Our intent, in this post, was to draw attention to a writeup elsewhere on the Internet and ask for the opinions of our Serious Eats community on the topic—that is, whether frozen shrimp have their merits.

At Serious Eats, we aim to foster discussion about a wide variety of topics, some of which we on staff or as writers spend time exploring ourselves, some of which, like this, are simply intended as conversation starters. We believe that there's a great deal of collective knowledge in our online community and want to tap into it whenever possible. Posts like this allow us to do so.

I totally agree. If you thaw slowly and cook them properly, frozen shrimp are delicious. There also soooo cost effective: buy at a warehouse store and use only what you need. No waste=money saved! I feel the same about the frozen scallops I get at the warehouse store.

Deadeye Dick by Kurt Vonnegut is a prime example. Definitely a non-food book that happens to include descriptions and recipes.

Luckily, I live within 10 miles of the Pacific Ocean, so fresh shrimp aren't quite an extravagance. I will say that uncooked, peeled, tail-on shrimp rock since they tend to be a whole lot cheaper than the fresh variety and much easier to work with. They work remarkably well as a mix-in for paella and stir frys, but I'd never use 'em for ceviche.

As just about everyone else has already remarked:
1) There is no such thing as "fresh" shrimp unless one gets them right at the dock, since essentially all shrimp you can buy at the markets are pre-frozen or were once frozen.
2) I always keep a bag in my freezer. I often make a soup, then throw a handful straight into the broth with some Thai chiles, ginger, a squirt of Siracha and whatever else is on hand. Tom Yum-ish, I guess.