How to Store and Thaw Seafood

Your seafood has arrived! Now what?!? This quick guide will help you with next steps:

Storing:

1. While unpacking your order, make sure everything is still frozen. It should be, but if that is not the case, contact us immediately at info@marithymeseafood.com
2. Our seafood is packed to make for an easy unload into the freezer. There should be no loose pieces. Everything will either be individually boxed or bagged. After inspection, GENTLY place those items directly into the coldest part of the freezer (the closer to the bottom, the better!)
3. Handle your seafood carefully. Due to the vacuum sealed nature of our products, you want to avoid popping that seal. This is what preserves the flavor and nutrients, that we have worked so hard to preserve. If you notice a popped seal, we would recommend eating that piece first, to minimize any chance of future freezer burn.

Thawing Vacuum Sealed Fish:

1. The key is to thawing seafood is to maintain a safe food temperature. The ideal way to thaw your seafood is in the refrigerator overnight. Leave the seafood in the vacuum sealed pouch and place in your refrigerator. It will slowly thaw over the next 12 hours. After 12 hours, your seafood should be thawed. At this point remove the seafood from the vacuum seal pouch and place on a plate or sheet tray lined with paper towels. Proceed to your recipe of choice, or cover with plastic wrap and place back in the refrigerator.
2. In a hurry? You can also thaw out our vacuum sealed pouches by placing them directly in the sink, or a bowl, filled with COLD water. Your seafood will thaw out in about 30 minutes. ***NOTE: DO NOT USE HOT WATER. If hot water is used it will begin to cook the fish, and will compromise the quality and safety of the product.***

Thawing Shellfish:

1. SHRIMP: Our shrimp are IQF (individually quick frozen), meaning you can thaw out as many, or little, as you may need. Simple remove your chosen amount and place in a bowl and fill with COLD water. They will thaw out in 20-30 minutes and will be ready for secondary prep (peeling and deveining), or ready for the grill or low country boil. Cooking the whole bag? Just open the top, fill it with cold water, reseal it, and leave in your sink.
2. DUNGENESS CRAB: Our Dungeness Crab was cleaned and steamed at time of harvest. Thaw them in their bag over night in the refrigerator, or follow the same method for thawing shrimp. Again, COLD WATER ONLY. Once they are thawed, they are ready to be steamed, boiled, or baked for 5-6 minutes.
3. Jumbo Crab Cakes: DO NOT THAW. Our proprietary crab cakes are loaded with crab! Over 70% actually! If you thaw them before cooking, they will fall apart. Once your oven is preheated to 350, remove them from your freezer, place them on a parchment or foil lined sheet and bake them for 30-35 minutes.
4. Shrimp and Okra Gumbo: Our gumbo is cooked and ready to eat. Leave the gumbo in the vacuum sealed pouch and either thaw over night in the refrigerator or in cold water for about 30 minutes. Once thawed, remove from pouch and gently warm in a sauce pan over medium heat.