Do me a favor: lie to me and tell me that good raw shrimp is supposed to smell like bleach

[Bossy Monkey]

or more specifically, trisodium phosphate.

My Aldi frozen shrimp from Thailand (no crack against Aldi; possibly one against Thailand) when thawed smelled distinctly of TSP. Who knew that one of the side benefits of getting older would be that you remember back before there was an EPA and we got all the really great chemicals all the time? Now thanks to globalization, we can get them in our food. What a deal!

(Note: I know what raw shrimp is supposed to smell like, or rather what it isn't supposed to smell like. I was marginally reassured that it didn't smell fishy at least. But I'm not sure that bleach or TSP is an improvement. Rinsed 'em an extra three times; hopefully that helped a little.)

Edit: series of brain farts corrected.

[flvegan]

1. An ammonia or bleach smell from shellfish means it's started to turn.

I'd be careful ingesting that.

[Bossy Monkey]

14. I ate a little; it didn't taste a lot better than it smelled. The rest is for the garbage.

Also it was pink before cooking, another bad sign I learn. Thanks!

[Lil Missy]

2. Okay, shrimp is supposed to smell like bleach.

I lied. Throw it out.

[Bossy Monkey]

15. Thanks both for lying and telling the truth; I will n/t

[Lil Missy]

37. You asked for a lie. I gave you one. Just don't eat that toxic shit.

[jobycom]

3. Actually, they make bleach smell like shrimp, because otherwise it would be odorless.

Hey, it was something to say. Chunk the shrimp and move to the Gulf Coast and buy your little sea roaches off the boats that catch them.

[Bossy Monkey]

16. There's still a shrimping industry over there? Over here everybody's gone into

recreational (wink wink) bait shrimping.

[trof]

4. Well, I wouldn't eat 'em.

I posted about foreign and farm raised shrimp in the Ecology forum a while back.
Basically, they're vile. Loaded with herbicides, antibiotics, and other bad stuff.

If you live more than 100 miles from the Gulf of Mexico chances are you're buying foreign and farm raised shrimp at groceries and restaurants.
ESPECIALLY Red Lobster and Captain D's.

Sorry, but I'd dump 'em.
:-(

[Bossy Monkey]

17. I'll dump them. I'm going to try to find out where Publix gets their shrimp

but suspect that it's from the same place. That's why it wasn't a crack at Aldi in the OP. (By the way, they do use trisodium phosphate in shrimp farming in Asia, though maybe not in Thailand.)

[Rabrrrrrr]

5. I cannot lie when health is at risk. Toss those shrimp!

[Bossy Monkey]

19. Will do, thanks. If I die, turn me into a Match Game clue, will you? n/t

[Xipe Totec]

6. You're on a coastal state, right?

So why are you buying frozen shrimp from Thailand?

:shrug:

[Bossy Monkey]

21. See trof's reply above. Our shrimping industry is dead.

Used to date a shrimper's daughter when it was dying. Frozen (or thawed posing as fresh) farm-raised shrimp, mostly from Thailand, is just about the only game in town.

[sarge43]

7. When in doubt, don't. Toss 'em. n/t

[Bossy Monkey]

23. Will do. Thanks n/t (either)

[Lost in CT]

8. Food Lion had a special again eh?... you cheap bastard... nt

[Bossy Monkey]

24. All these years later, I still don't buy anything from Food Lion that isn't brand name

and in a can or bottle. No produce, no meats. Probably unfair, but there you are.

[Lost in CT]

46. I am right with you on that one. nt

[amitten]

9. They sound like a good idea. If you wanna vomit.

(Toss 'em.)

[Bossy Monkey]

27. One way or another I'll be tossing them.:) (also a response to your reply below) n/t

[Incitatus]

10. I would return those. nt

[Bossy Monkey]

28. Good advice; I may just throw them out though n/t

[Midlodemocrat]

11. Either return it or toss it. Don't eat it.

[Bossy Monkey]

30. Will do, thanks n/t

[Jamastiene]

12. No fuckin' way, man.

Throw that shit out if you know what's good for you. If you WANT to have a major trauma happen in your stomach, digestive system, intestinal tract, and bathroom for about a week while you die slowly and painfully, then bon apetit. Otherwise, throw that shit out, for real.

[Bossy Monkey]

31. Hopefully the two or three I ate will turn out to be survivable. The rest

will be sleepin' with the landfill. Thanks.

[Bossy Monkey]

13. Thanks to all replying. The good news: I'm not dead yet.

The bad news: Shortly I might wish I were. I am blessed with the immune system of a shark; hopefully it will come through for me. I will be throwing out the rest of the shrimparoni and cheese, and the frozen shrimp. If you don't hear from me again, tell everyone that John's last words were: Support Obama, but don't buy your frozen shrimp from Aldi. Now I'll try to make some individual replies before the trots set in.

[amitten]

20. I'm afraid for you now. n/t

[Bossy Monkey]

47. It turned out ok, but thanks very much for your concern. n/t

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

18. trisodium phosphate is odorless.

So I don't know what it is you think you're smelling.

[Bossy Monkey]

22. We must have kept the bleach next to the trisodium phosphate when I was a little kid n/t

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

26. Possible.

Or what you could be smelling is iodine. It is an issue with certain kinds of shrimp (it's natural, depends on where the shrimp come from).

And it is vaguely reminiscent of chlorine bleach.

[Bossy Monkey]

29. Considering all the "You are going to die replies" above, I'd certainly welcome iodine

but the shrimp were going pink, so I'd say the likelihood is that they were going bad. As I ate a maximum of three, I'd say the likelihood is also that I'm going to live. (Knock on wood.:))

[TK421]

25. Dude, don't mess around with seafood that you have doubts on eating

particularly when they have a funny smell....amongst other things, bad seafood will get you ill beyond comprehension if eaten. I had it happen to me ( with bad scallops ). DON'T fuck with it..toss them.

[Bossy Monkey]

33. Thanks, will do.

Now lie to me and tell me you had more than three bad scallops. (Explanation: I only had about three of the shrimp before bailing.)

[TK421]

40. a plateful? I don't know, but maybe seven or eight?

:shrug: and to be honest I didn't really feel anything until about 3-4 hours later on that night. I won't give you details on it, but let's just say the visual is not a pleasant one :hurts: This smiley represents what I went through then

Funny thing is...you can have bad beef and get an upset stomach from it ( again, that has happened to me ) but with seafood? Something about bad seafood that will REALLY fuck you up

[Bossy Monkey]

43. Sorry you went through this, and hope that I'm not going to.

I think I found the answer at my bottom-most reply, and will stick to this until and unless the explosions start a couple of hours hence.

[TK421]

44. Hmmm...it seems, by now if you haven't had any strange symptoms

you might pull through the night just fine. If I'm wrong, well..I wished you the best and that's all I can do on the internet....

Look at those shrimp

[mainegreen]

32. If you feel like vomiting and shitting profusely, by all means, eat them.

I've experienced 'ammonia shrimp'. Not pleasant.

They're bad. DO NOT EAT.

[Bossy Monkey]

34. Smell like chlorine, not ammonia. Hopefully, the poster above who suggests it's just iodine

is right. I'll be finding out shortly, won't I? (Only ate 2 or 3, and the rest is for the landfill.)

[Midlodemocrat]

35. Did you purchase said shrimp at Food Lion by any chance?

[Bossy Monkey]

38. No, but it's a much better story that way, isn't it?:) n/t

[Midlodemocrat]

41. LOL. Just wondering if you knew about the expose ABC did

where the meat people were bleaching beef, chicken and fish. Maybe 6 years ago?

[MajorChode]

36. Lots of fish is treated with sodium phosphate

It's not a big deal unless they keep doing it over and over. My concern here would be the bleach smell which indicates something much more nefarious.

[Bossy Monkey]

39. I'm still hoping for iodine or bromine; anyway it's been over an hour and I'm not

dead or running to the bathroom yet. (Knock on wood.)

[Bossy Monkey]

42. Orrrr, it could just be the sodium triphosphate, listed under ingredients

per the Wikians: Many people find STPP to add an unpleasant taste to food, particularly delicate seafood. The taste tends to be slightly sharp and soapy and is particularly detectable in mild-tasting foods. The increased water holding properties can also lead to a more diluted flavor in the food. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_tripolyphosphate

So perhaps I'll yet live to post universally ignored music polls another day. Regardless, thanks everybody for your concern, and if I do die I'LL POST FROM THE GREAT BEYOND! (Eat that, Harry Houdini!):P

[Bossy Monkey]

45. Update: Two hours later, and I'm still not dead, nor wishing I were

EXCEPT TO THE DEGREE THAT WE ALL WISH WE WERE DEAD IN GEORGE BUSH'S AMERI--sorry, pure reflex. Still can't get used to the idea of the god guys winning, and then actually getting inaugurated.:)

[trof]

48. Found the article I posted a few days ago. Very 'interesting'.

The green dumpster behind Red Lobster was nearly empty when I lifted the lid. Through the effluvium of yesterday’s supper, way down, sat a couple of pretty blue boxes. I hitched myself over the rim, leaned in, and took one.

I am not a regular dumpster diver. I was driven by a hunger for knowledge. Inside the restaurant, where the décor, ambience, soundtrack—all but the smell—reeked of the sea, I asked the server who laid before me the first plate of Red Lobster’s “endless shrimp” where they came from.

“Farms,” she said.

“Where are these farms?” I asked.

“Different places.” She gave a shrug. “Do you want another beer?”

I ate only eight grilled shrimp from Red Lobster’s “endless” supply. Something was stuck in my craw. An hour before, I had been in a community hall in Brownsville, Texas, with forty-three angry, tearful American shrimpers. In a country awash in shrimp, they were going bankrupt. They had gathered to hear more bad news: severe new rules limiting what they could catch.

“What about Red Lobster?” I asked the group.

“Red Lobster!” one man shouted. “They’re our enemy. They haven’t bought a shrimp since the 1980s.”

The restaurant walls were covered with shrimp boats—striking photos of trawlers at docks, at sea, in sunset silhouettes. The Gulf of Mexico was a mile away. Yet, while I sat eating, real shrimp boats sat rusting, their outriggers raised as if surrendering.

The box from the dumpster gave me a clue: “Product of Ecuador. Farm Raised.”
http://www.orionmagazine.org/index.php/articles/article/4395/

[Bossy Monkey]

50. Sorry I missed this; thought the thread had died days ago.

Red Lobster is the enemy for so many good reasons. Try to find a gluten free menu. Every other chain at least makes an effort; Darden sneers at the very idea.

As I mention above, shrimpers at this end of the country are all done; I guess the Gulf Coast isn't far behind. On the bright(ish) side, recreational bait shrimping is a blast; I've done it once, back when I was dating the shrimper's daughter.

[old mark]

49. I would never recommend eating any type of fish that has a non-standard aroma.

That shit could fuckin' kill ya!

I would also take the wrapping back to Aldi's manager and tell him about it - there might be a ton of that posionous stuff watitig for someone else to take it home.

No one should eat that stuff, seriesly.

mark

[Bossy Monkey]

51. Answer at #42; not poisonous, just not very good

I'm all done with Aldi shrimp and if I can manage it Thai shrimp, but in the end I didn't even throw out the shrimparoni and cheese and have continued eating it. It's fine. I doubt I'll use any more of the package; garbage day is Tuesday and it rests in the freezer until then, but then we say farewell. Unless I reeeeeally get desperate...:)

[old mark]

52. Go to Burger King instead......nt