What Color Are Shrimp When Cooked? A Guide to Shrimp Colors

Even before you think about how sick you could get from cooking animal protein, it’s scary enough. But seafood, in particular, may seem tough to get right. While no one wants overcooked shrimp, getting sick with food poisoning would be even worse. But as long as you know what to look for and how to tell if the shrimp are done, you should not have any problems making tasty dishes with them.

Shrimp can be cooked in so many different ways. It can be used to make a lot of different dishes, from shrimp scampi to shrimp cocktail to grilled shrimp skewers. You should not be afraid to make delicious meals with shrimp now that you know how to tell if shrimp is undercooked no matter what method you use. These ways of telling if shrimp are done will work even if they are covered in barbecue sauce or baking in a dark oven.

The color of shrimp can vary greatly depending on whether it’s raw or cooked. Raw shrimp are often grayish or translucent when alive. But once cooked, they turn a range of pinks oranges, and reds. The exact shrimp color depends on multiple factors. Read on to learn what makes cooked shrimp turn color, what the colors indicate and how to control shrimp color when cooking.

Raw Shrimp Colors

Raw shrimp pulled straight from the ocean can display a variety of natural shell colors like green, brown, pink, red, or blue. But the edible meat inside is typically a translucent grayish white when raw. Here are some details on raw shrimp meat color:

Fresh raw shrimp meat has a wet sheen and should not be yellowish or opaque A white or blue-tinged translucence indicates freshness
As raw shrimp starts to spoil, the flesh becomes more yellowish or chalky looking. Avoid eating shrimp with yellowing meat.
Some raw shrimp contain natural astaxanthin pigments that lend a red or pink tint to the meat. But most often, raw flesh is nearly colorless.
Dark black spots on raw shrimp are melanin pigments contained in the shell. These harmless melanin spots can leach into the meat during cooking.
Raw shrimp meat can also appear more red or pinkish towards the tail part of the body compared to the head. This color variance is natural.

Why Cooked Shrimp Change Color

Raw shrimp flesh is nearly colorless because it contains very little myoglobin protein that lends color to meat. But cooking denatures the myoglobin, causing it to turn red and pink. Here are some details on the science behind the color change:

Myoglobin proteins contain iron atoms that change oxidation states when exposed to heat. This causes the color shift from grayish to pinkish tones.
The longer shrimp are cooked, the more pink or reddish the myoglobin becomes. Light pink indicates just cooked, while deep red means overcooked.
Acidic ingredients like lemon juice or tomatoes can brighten the pink color. Alkaline ingredients like baking soda can cause a redder hue.
Antioxidants in spices like paprika or saffron can chemically interact with myoglobin to produce more vivid red tones.

Typical Cooked Shrimp Colors

While raw shrimp are often translucent white, cooked shrimp display a beautiful range of pink and red hues:

Just cooked: Light pink, translucent, with a pearly sheen
Properly cooked: Vibrant coral pink, opaque and firm
Overcooked: Dark reddish pink, bordering on orange, firm and rubbery
Seasoned: Reddish, orange, or coral pink depending on spices and sauces
Grilled: Opaque and deep orange or red from browning reactions
Fried: Opaque light pink with golden outer breading
Broiled: mix of translucent light pink on the inside, reddish-orange on the outside
Baked: Soft solid pink throughout

What the Color Means

The color of cooked shrimp can indicate doneness, freshness, and overall quality:

A natural pink or orange hue when properly cooked indicates fresh, healthy shrimp
An unusual white color when cooked could mean old, frozen, or spoiled shrimp
Gray, yellow, or chalky flesh means undercooked shrimp that may pose health risks
Overly red or dark orange shrimp is often a sign of overcooking and poor texture
Bright, vivid coloring with sheen results from high-quality fresh shrimp
Dull, murky colors signify lower quality or mishandled shrimp

Controlling Shrimp Color

Follow these tips to achieve your ideal shrimp color when cooking:

For lighter pink, boil or steam. For richer reddish-orange, sauté, grill, or roast.
Avoid overcooking to prevent unappealing dark red or orange flesh.
Add acidic ingredients like lemon, lime, or tomato early in cooking for brighter color.
Use antioxidant spices near the end like paprika, saffron, turmeric for more intense hue.
Oak wood smoking imparts an orange-red tone. Fruit woods like apple lend a pinkish tint.
Searing shrimp briefly over high heat before a gentler cooking method helps retain moisture and color.
Natural shell pigments can be used to paint cooked shrimp for decorative effect.

With the right techniques, you can achieve beautiful, appetizing shrimp colors. Now that you know what makes shrimp change from gray to pink when cooked, you can better monitor doneness and quality. Keep these color cues in mind for picture-perfect shrimp every time.

what color are shrimp when cooked

Look at the color of the shrimp

One of the easiest and most common ways to tell if your shrimp is undercooked is to look at the color of it, according to Substitute Cooking. But you might need to really get a good look at raw shrimp first to notice the big change its appearance undergoes as it cooks. When shrimp is raw, it tends to look quite gray in color and even a bit translucent. However, after shrimp has been cooked, it should do a 180-degree turn and be white with pops of pink or red. You also shouldnt be able to see into the shrimp anymore.

Most likely, your shrimp are not done cooking if they still have a hint of gray or are see-through. Wait until the shrimp have a nice even color and no translucency before taking them up. And dont forget to check all sides of the shrimp.

Evaluate the shape of the shrimp

There is another characteristic of cooked shrimp that you can eyeball. Just like looking at the color of the shrimp, you can take note of the shape of the shrimp, according to Substitute Cooking. But you will, again, need to really get a good mental of raw shrimp to compare to the state of being cooked your shrimp are in when you check them. Gray, raw shrimp tend to be quite flexible without their shells. They also appear to be longer because the shrimp lie straighter than when they are fully cooked.

Shrimp that are undercooked will likely still be somewhat straight or have a very slight curve. As Substitute Cooking explains, those that are so tightly wound that they look like the letter “O” are overcooked. The sweet spot is getting a good curl on the shrimp to form something similar to the letter “C.” Thats because the muscle in shrimp shrinks as it cooks, according to Yummly. So, the more cooked your shrimp are, the tighter the curl will be. Therefore, shrimp that are only slightly curled and look somewhat like the letter “U” are most likely undercooked and need a bit more time.

Big Mistakes Everyone Makes When Cooking Shrimp

How do I know if my shrimp is cooked?

Look for them to just barely turn pink on one side before flipping. As soon as the shrimp start to curl into a C, remove them from the pan and let the residual heat continue cooking the shrimp. If poaching, steaming, or boiling, look for similar cues. They will also turn pink and form a C when done.

What is the difference between prawn and shrimp?

Shrimp and prawns have plenty of similarities, but they are not the same animal. Their differences involve their biology. Shrimp bodies are encased in a sort of accordion shell, with a membrane between the segments. Prawns have a shell where each segment overlaps the one below it. There are no big differences between them when it comes to their nutritional value; they are both a good source of protein, and relatively low in calories.

What does a brown shrimp look like?

Aside from their namesake color, they can also appear gray in hue with some green and red pigmentation. You might also see a purple band in their tails. The brown shrimp you find at the fishmonger have very likely been boiled already because this variety is ideally cooked while the shrimp are still alive.

What does a white shrimp look like?

Despite having “white” in their name, the raw flesh of this shrimp type can range in color from translucent white to reddish-brown. Once it gets cooked, however, it turns white with a pink tinge. The color a white shrimp develops depends on its food and the water turbidity in its habitat, which are usually estuaries and coastal areas.