The easiest way to confront shrimp is to deposit them, fresh or frozen into a large pot for par-boiling. Fill the pot with a couple inches of water, add shrimp and simmer until pink. (This also works to defrost quickly if you bought the already cooked frozen ones). Turn off the flame, let it sit a few minutes, drain and rinse.

Buy “easy peel” or peeled, it makes things much easier! To peel boiled “easy peel” shrimp, find the slit down the back of a shrimp, insert your thumb under the shell and push to one side to remove half, repeat on the other side and detach the shell at the tail end. It may sound complicated, but it is easy and intuitive once you have the shrimp in your hands.