Ate at Crazy Cajun's in Port A this weekend (one of those boil and dump place). When I started peeling the shrimp there was a thick (1/8" - 1/4") layer of a bright orange gelatin substance along the back and in the heads. It wasnt in every shrimp, but a majority of them.

I have eaten lots of shrimp and have never seen anything like that. I asked the waiter, he said that he had never seen it either. He asked the cook who said they were farm raised and meant that they ate well.

Anyone ever seen anything like this before?

It's the vein. Shrimp were probably treated with a preservative or a moisture retention agent

We have been buying Gulf shrimp at Heb and seen the same thing. The vein is there as well, but along with it is a soft "vein" running along side, some 1/8" wide that doesn't pull out as easy as the vein does. Was wondering what it was as well. Never seen it before.

Oil spill tumors

What I saw wasnt the vein, the vein was clearly intact under the layer of orange crud

^^ yep same with ours, we just pulled it out along with the vein.

It's a souvenir from your good friends at BP.

Obesity really IS an epidemic. Even the shrimp are fat!

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Picture of a Gulf Shrimp with tumors, taken today, lying there like this in the shrimp display at a grocery store!
"Discovering eyeless shrimp, lesioned fish and other mutated and underdeveloped seafood, fisherman in the Gulf are pointing fingers at the BP spill. Biologist Dr. Darryl Felder told the news agency that Gulf seafood populations are dropping at alarming rates and that species richness is "diminished."

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but BP says everything is booming.

That shrimp report was done by the best source for Gulf of Mexico news in the world, Al Jazeera.

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Ate at Crazy Cajun's in Port A this weekend (one of those boil and dump place). When I started peeling the shrimp there was a thick (1/8" - 1/4") layer of a bright orange gelatin substance along the back and in the heads. It wasnt in every shrimp, but a majority of them.

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It's shrimp roe. Just wash it off. No biggie.

Htown, I think you are right. I didnt think of that...

Makes sense, I must've had all females!

I can assure you it wasn't Roe. Roe is black and located near the back of the head. You pick up a whole shrimp with roe and it is unmistakable

does roe turn colors when cooked?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eekim/3897330759/

There is typically orange roe in female gulf shrimp.

Rinse, cook and eat.

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There is typically orange roe in female gulf shrimp.

Rinse, cook and eat.

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The authority on all things food has spoken. Do no doubt the fido or he will ban you from his kingdom

I don't know that from cooking, but, from Trout fishing. You get a shrimp with a head full of roe and it looks kinda alien in a gross way like a parasite has taken over. A full egg sac is even grosser, but, those are on the belly side. Nothing ever is on the backside lateral line except the vein.

I'm guessing at the additives being the cause, because I've never seen live or flash frozen shrimps with this goo. The only time I ever get shrimp like that are from the HEB seafood counter. Based on the characteristics of the shells and knowing what sulfites and brining solutions do I'm making an educated guess.

I have no idea what the thick orange line is that runs along the vein. I get my shrimp in Galveston from a place along the Galveston Channel. Shrimp boats offload directly into the back of the place and immediately get sorted and put out for sale. I get one of these "orange goo" shrimp out of every 20-30 or so shrimp, so I doubt it's due to preservatives/processing.

Actually Tex that fits right with my theory. What do you think those boats do to keep them from spoiling?

A Port A place uses farm raised shrimp? Dang BP