Ways to Cook Seafood
Bake, Grill, Steam, Fry and More! There are many ways to prepare your seafood.
Download Our
Seafood Cooking Chart to see the options for cooking a variety of seafood.
Cook
Cook your seafood to recommended food temperatures. Proper cooking will kill most bacteria. Buy a small kitchen thermometer for at-home food safety.
Suggested Minimum Internal Cooking Temperatures
(Temperature to be maintained for at least 15 seconds)
Solid portions of fish, shrimp and lobster
145 deg F/63 deg C.
Stuffed Seafood
165 deg F/74 deg C.
Other Cooking Guidelines
• Raw shrimp in shells - Cook until pink and firm. Allow 3-5 minutes to boil or steam 1 pound of medium-size shrimp in their shells.
• Peeled shrimp - Cook until pink and firm. Boil for 1-3 minutes.
Oysters, mussels and clams in the shell—Thoroughly scrub shells. Steam for 4-9 minutes or boil for 3-5 minutes after the shells open. Discard any that do not open.
• Shucked shellfish(clams, oysters and mussels without shells) - Cook until plump and opaque. Boil for 3 minutes, fry in oil at 375 deg F/191 deg C. for 10 minutes or bake for 10 minutes at 450 deg F/232 deg C.
• Boiled lobster - Cook until shell is bright red; boil 5-6 minutes per pound after putting lobster in pot and water has returned to a boil.
• Scallops - Cook until milky white or opaque and firm. Depending on their size, allow 3-4 minutes total cooking time.
• Hard-shell crabs - Cook until shells turn pink; simmer 10 minutes after putting about 3 pounds of crabs in pot and water has returned to a boil.
Chilling Seafood
• Bring a small ice chest when grocery shopping if you have a long trip home or if it is a warm, sunny day.
• Refrigerate fish as close to 32 deg F/0 deg C as possible. Use within 24 hours.
• Refrigerate live mussels, oysters and clams in shells at about 35 deg F/2 deg C on a tray draped with a moist cloth for up to 2 days. Do not place on ice or allow fresh water to come in contact with them. Make sure they are still alive by tapping any open shells before cooking. If they do not close, throw them away.
• Shucked oysters, scallops and clams may be refrigerated in their own containers as close to 32 deg F/0 deg C as possible. Surround the containers with ice for best results.
• Refrigerate live lobsters in moist packaging such as seaweed or damp paper strips or drape with a moist cloth for up to 24 hours. Do not place them in airtight containers, water or salted water. Make sure they are still moving before cooking.
• Refrigerate fresh, peeled shrimp in a tightly covered container as close to 32 deg F/0 degC as possible. Use within 2 days.
• Frozen seafood should be wrapped airtight and stored at 0 deg F/-18 deg C or below for no more than 6 months.
• Defrost and marinate seafood in the refrigerator. Defrost in the microwave, ONLY if you are going to cook the seafood right away. Never defrost or marinate seafood at room temperature.
• Refrigerate cooked seafood, tightly covered, for up to 2 days in the coldest part of your refrigerator.
• Don’t keep seafood too long in the refrigerator or freezer. If in doubt, throw it out.
Artwork is for display purposes only and does not necessarily reflect specific items. Not responsible for typographical errors.
