Have you ever entertained your guest of honor, but you didn’t know how many shrimp to prepare for per person? So what we have to know is how many pound of shrimp for one person? Here we will look for the solution and find out how much should be consumed or the size that is sufficient for each person. Shrimp is a healthy and delicious seafood and many people like it so that it can be prepared for anyone’s dish.
It may be easy to measure rice for the preparation of a meal for everyone or a group, but when it comes to seafood such as prawns, it seems a little difficult for us to guess. So, for those of you who want to know how many pounds of shrimp are for each person, keep reading this article to the end!
We have to know that shrimp come in various sizes and everyone will also eat different portions, this is a point of difficulty in calculating how much to prepare for each person.
How Many Pounds Of Shrimp Per Person?
So, how many pounds of shrimp per person? Usually the serving size of shrimp is for one person or 1/4 pound, but this is not an exact calculation, as everyone has different servings and the size of the amount of shrimp they want to eat.
In this article, we will present you with a review of how many pounds a person needs to eat shrimp.
Of course, to answer a difficult question, we need to ask the correspondent. We need to discuss with small or large groups to determine the number of standards one needs. Well, let’s see again until the end!
Considering the shrimp size and portion
Shrimp consists of different varieties and different sizes. Among the varieties of shrimp are colossal shrimp, large shrimp, jumbo, small, medium, and there are even extra small shrimp like those available in grocery stores.
In addition to complete shrimp, you can also buy shrimp with tails or without tails, as well as shrimp that have been shelled out or products that are still complete with shells.
Well, all these details will affect how much shrimp you need to give to the guests you will be entertaining. Shrimp tail also affects the weight in the scales and affects the portion of food. This will be very clear when you cook and serve a large amount of shrimp. This also needs to be considered when you are going to buy how many pounds of shrimp in the market.
Ok, in this talk we have to discuss also about the size and how the size of the shrimp can affect the need for how many pounds of weight.
A little help, when a shrimp is categorized as jumbo, small or medium, it refers to how much it weighs not its size. So, shrimp of a certain size will be included in the weight (as an estimate of the same is not something certain). This will help you in deciding how many servings or servings.
Also see: 5 Fruits to Avoid for Weight Loss
The problem is, when you buy jumbo shrimp, maybe a pound you only get 8 tails or 10 tails. Maybe it’s only for two or three people. If you buy jumbo shrimp, you may need to give half a pound or a full pound for one serving/person.
If you buy small shrimp, you might get up to 60 for a pound. This amount can serve many people, sometimes it can be for 4-5 people. It’s different if you buy the jumbo shrimp earlier which can only be enough for 2 or 3 people.
Ok, below is a table that shows you quickly how many shrimp for one person.
| Size of Shrimp | Amount of Shrimp Per Pound |
| Extra Small | 61-70 |
| Small | 51-60 |
| Medium | 41-50 |
| Large | 31-40 |
| Extra Large | 26-30 |
| Jumbo | 21-25 |
| Colossal (rare) | 10-20 |
Remember! It’s not an exact science, but it does give you some help and a general idea of how many shrimp for every pound you buy.
Shrimp size technically sometimes reach colossal size. But this is a rare size that you will most likely not find. Shrimp that have been categorized as extra colossal amount is about 10 tails or less for a pound.
But some shrimp also have a size that is not only small but extra small, sometimes these small shrimp can be 150 heads for a pound. It is very rare to find a small shrimp like this as rare to find a colossal shrimp.
More: 23 Foods That Start With U
Look For The “U”
Well, perhaps the best way to determine how much shrimp you’re getting when you buy it is to look at the “U” on the shrimp package.
U is also accompanied by a number on the package which can indicate that the number of shrimp is close to that amount or below the stated amount. So, if you find a small number it means you have to choose a bigger one. But if the number is large, then you can find smaller shrimp.
Usually not all shrimp packages have a U label, but all shrimp packages must make a number that is close to the number of shrimp. You can use this as a guide in buying shrimp.
Heads And Tails
The size of the shrimp is also influenced by the tail and head because most of the shrimp have been cleaned of the shell and head. But some don’t, so it affects the pound when you buy it. So, pay attention to the type of shrimp, so you determine the pound, sometimes if the shrimp is still intact with the head, you have to buy a little more than the clean one.
While the information from the table above, it is relative from the shrimp that has been cleaned from the tail, shell and head. In this case, the prawns no longer have the shell, head and tail so when you cook them, there’s nothing you need to do anymore except just cook them.
If you buy a whole shrimp, of course you have to remove the head, part of the shell, and the tail so that the weight will decrease drastically from the weight when you bought it.
Shrimp Serving Sizes
Well, now we clear the core problem or essence of our article. How do you know the right portion for each person? So, this is something you should know. Knowing the meaning of “portion” will help you to prepare a certain amount of shrimp or how many pounds you should buy.
This is a general recommendation, not something standard, you have to remember that not everyone will eat the right portion for him. Some will reduce the portion and some will sometimes exceed the portion. So, this is a natural thing in every portion of a person’s meal. In addition, you should know that the size of shrimp is also different, some are big and some are small.
In general, a pound of prawns (without shell, tail and head) will suffice for 4 people to serve as a main course. This can be different if you use jumbo prawns, this will usually consume more shrimp because it can only be enough for 2 or 3 people. But what we make is the size that is recommended for you. Shrimp of medium size.
Medium Shrimp
When you have medium shrimp on the market, you are likely to get up to 30 to 35 shrimp per pound. If you assume that your medium shrimp package is 32 shrimp, then you can give 8 shrimp per person.
This is a general recommendation, but we want to give more around 10 shrimp for one person to make it taste more sufficient.
Jumbo Shrimp
If you apply the same theory to jumbo shrimp, you adjust the weight for each person. So, the measurement will be the same, but the amount of shrimp you give will be lower, maybe you should give about 6 to 8 ounces per person.
So, if you can give medium shrimp, you can give about 8 shrimp/person, then you can give jumbo shrimp about 5 shrimp/person. When buying a pound of jumbo prawns, you’re likely only getting about 21-25 shrimp, so this stays as steady as you did in the first theory.
Small Shrimp
How about small prawns? Maybe this is the kind of shrimp you see in popcorn (for example). Maybe a pound you get 50-60 shrimp. This is our plan to give to 3-4 people.
Well, with this theory, chances are you can give 15 shrimp for each of your guests. This is more because the prawns you buy are below medium in size.
How Many Pounds Of Shrimp For Your Gatherings?
Ok, you already have a basic knowledge of how many pounds of shrimp per person. So, armed with this general knowledge or estimation, you can now arrange your meal plans.
When you make plans, of course you have to know how many people are expected to attend your event. In addition, what kind of shrimp will you buy.
Keep in mind that if you buy raw shrimp, the number of kilograms must be more because it will shrink as it cooks. On the other hand, if you buy cooked shrimp, it can be smaller in size because you don’t need to cook anymore, you don’t have to throw away the shrimp heads, shells and tails.
Ok, let’s take a look at the supplies for your little gathering.
Party Of 4
For a party of 4, according to the theory we’ve explained, you should spend 1 pound of shrimp. This is assuming that they will eat a quarter of your shrimp per person. So, with 1 pound you can get four servings of shrimp.
However, that’s just a general estimate, so if we were to buy prawns that were more than a pound, we’d get more food, it could also be an estimate that something came off target. However, this is up to you.
This can also be your guess, sometimes some guests eat more than their portions, so it’s better for you to provide more food than not enough.
Likewise for a party of 10, you should provide 2.5 pounds of shrimp according to the theory above, but you should provide more shrimp for unexpected purposes as above. And so on, target the number of attendees, then can only think about the amount of food we provide, of course we will provide more food than the target present, so that the food is sufficient and also avoid unexpected things like the case we have described above .
