How long does shrimp last

Keep raw shrimp on the bottom shelf at 4°C (40°F), in a container that will not leak. FoodSafety.gov prints this row as 3–5 days. The bold number is three days. There is no second official row for shell-on and peeled. This page does not write one. The counter is not safe. Keep the lid on so the smell does not travel. Fridge layout is in the fridge article.

Shrimp you have cooked is a leftover. The FSA lists a leftover at 2 days. FoodSafety.gov’s leftover row is 3–4 days. The bold number is two days. The cook temperature for shellfish is 63°C (145°F). A sooner date on the pack wins.

Get perishable food into the fridge within 2 hours of cooking it or bringing it home, and within 1 hour if the kitchen is above 32°C (90°F). USDA FSIS and Turkey’s Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry both publish that cutoff. A closed deep pot stays warm; a shallow box cools.

A chart is a window, not a verdict on the container in your hand. A sour smell, a slimy surface, or mould means it is finished, even on day one. This page is not medical advice.

• An ammonia or bleach smell. A sea smell on its own is not that.
• Sticky or slimy flesh. Do not rinse it to check.
• Mould on the shell or the meat.
• On cooked shrimp, a sour smell, cloudy liquid, or a slippery surface.

A little drying on frozen shrimp is a quality loss. An ammonia smell comes before the chart.

Portion raw shrimp, press out the air, and freeze it closed. FoodSafety.gov prints the freezer as 6–18 months. The bold number is six months. The months are about quality. USDA says food held continuously at −18°C (0°F) stays safe. The ministry’s fish line does not print the name shrimp; this page does not paste that line onto raw shrimp.

For cooked shrimp the ministry lists fish, raw or cooked, at 2–4 months. The line is named fish, not shrimp. FoodSafety.gov’s leftover freezer is 2–6 months. The windows do not match. The bold number is the shorter one, 2–4 months. Thaw in the fridge. Do not refreeze what has thawed.

Thaw in the refrigerator, not on the counter. Do not refreeze a portion that has thawed. The ministry states the same rule: thaw frozen food in the fridge and take out only what you will eat.

• Shrimp keeps a week in the fridge. The raw row is 3–5 days. The bold number is three days.
• Cooked shrimp keeps the same time as raw. The cooked row is 2 days. FoodSafety.gov’s leftover line, 3–4 days, is wider.
• The freezer month is a use-by date. For raw shrimp 6–18 months is about quality. The bold number is six months.

The windows assume a generally healthy household. Pregnancy, young children, older age, or a weakened immune system are reasons to keep the shorter figure, to skip raw or undercooked food, and to reheat leftovers until the centre is steaming. USDA’s figure for reheating leftovers is 74°C (165°F).

Raw shrimp behaves like raw fish. The cook temperature for shellfish is 63°C (145°F). In pregnancy, for young children, in older age, or with a weakened immune system, do not sort shrimp that smells of ammonia or feels slippery by tasting it. Finish a cooked leftover in two days. Heat does not undo mould or a spoiled smell.