- Firm Texture
- Mild Flavor
- Perfect for Boiling
The perfect boiling shrimp. These easy-peeling, firm shrimp are in the middle of the flavor spectrum and have the prettiest cooked color.
Florida Hoppers, also known as Pink Shrimp (Penaeus Duorarum), produced locally in the high-salinity waters of St. Joe Bay, may be the perfect boiling shrimp. These easy-peeling, firm shrimp are in the middle of the flavor spectrum and have one of the prettiest colors after cooking. Unlike most shrimp that have a distinct color, Hoppers are chameleons that match the color of the bottom they are sitting on. From the almost translucent green hue they exhibit in St. Joe Bay, to the golden brown color caught off the shores of Cape San Blas, to the distinct nearly cooked pink color of the hoppers caught off the Florida Keys, hence called Key West Pinks, these shrimp can always be identified by the ever present, circular spot right in the middle of the shrimps’ sides.
These succulent shrimp migrate off the grass flats of the bay from the middle of March to early May. When you gaze out over St. Joe Bay on a Spring evening and see the sunset procession of shrimp boats heading out for the night, rest assured, the “hopper run” is underway.