Learning how to peel and devein raw shrimp is not difficult—in fact, it’s actually a bit of kitchen know-how you should keep in your back pocket.

Many shrimp recipes, like my recipe for Cuban Garlic Shrimp, are easier to eat (and look better) if you peel and devein raw shrimp before cooking. Peeling is self-explanatory. But deveining is basically removing the “vein” that runs down the back of the shrimp.

Some recipes say you don’t need to remove the vein because it’s flavorless and harmless. But for me, it’s gritty and gross (it is the shrimp’s intestinal tract, after all).

Frankly, it’s poop, and I think it ruins the shrimp’s natural sweet flavor. And yes, I know you can always buy it already peeled and deveined. But why pay someone for a task that is so simple?

Back to the topic. Here’s how to Peel and Devein Shrimp:

       Print this recipe.    

And in case you are a visual learner, here’s a great step-by-step video:

If you want to leave the shells on for a particular recipe, use a small pair of scissors to cut through the shell to reveal the vein. Use the tip of the scissors to remove the vein.

In the food world, cranberry beans are Cinderella-at-the-Ball-until-Midnight.

(Indulge me, you know how much I love drawing analogies between food and storybook, movie or television characters).

You have to appreciate the fleeting magenta-speckled loveliness of cranberry beans because, sadly, after you cook them, the streaky reddish-pink color disappears. Vanishes. But, just like Cinderella, it’s what’s on the inside that really counts.

Cranberry beans (aka Supremo, borlotti or shelly beans) are packed with fiber: a half-cup serving will give you almost 40% of your daily need! They’re also loaded with protein, have few calories and NO fat.

Sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it?

If you find these beans in the farmers market, they should have a soft leathery pod. Inside, the pod should be moist and the bean tender.

They’ve got a very subtle chestnut flavor and won’t overpower a dish. In fact, they’ll add a nice creamy succulence whether served hot or cold. I cook them up for 30 minutes or so, cool them down and then serve them with a drizzle of olive oil and a splash of lemon on top of heirloom tomatoes. Yes.

The one downside to these beans is that you have to shell them (hence the name shelly beans), and that can be time-consuming. But, sit your kids down… tell them about Cinderella, and that midnight is approaching. Challenge them to shell as many as possible in 15 minutes… before the spell is broken.

And watch the fun begin…