Like hot dogs and hamburgers, shrimp cocktails are indelibly associated with summer, bringing a refreshing element to any picnic or cookout. Just strip the shell off, dip in the bowl of red cocktail sauce, and enjoy. But at some point in your life, a less-than-appetizing question may have popped up as you lifted one to your mouth and zeroed in on the thin black line running along its back: Is that, um, poop?
Naturally, the thought of eating, ahem, fecal matter is enough to turn anyone’s stomach, not to mention maybe even put them off shellfish for life. Grossness factor aside, you might also wonder if that thin black line in shrimp can get you sick. Given that animal poop can carry a ton of different diseases, are you putting yourself at risk with every shrimp you eat—and if so, what kind of repercussions can you expect?
Sea-king answers (sorry!), we reached out to a few food safety experts to ask if that little black line is really full of crap—or if it represents something else entirely. Before you panic and swear off shellfish forever, read on to find out the real deal.
What’s that black line in shrimp?
The dark line running through the backs of shrimp goes by many names—the dorsal tract, back vein, or sand vein, Tori Stivers, MS, a seafood specialist at the University of Georgia Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant, tells SELF. The marking is made up of the shellfish’s stomach, midgut, and intestine. Those structures support its digestive process, so yes, that black stuff is waste, she says.
As for what you’re actually seeing there? Shrimp are called bottom feeders for a reason: They munch on foods found in the muddy depths of the ocean, like plankton, worms, microscopic animals, and organic debris such as sand. So that black line is likely a combination of all those things in various stages of digestion, Dave Love, PhD, a senior scientist at the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future, tells SELF.
Can eating shrimp poop make you sick?
Now that we’ve established the dark line is the shrimp’s intestines—okay, yes, its poop—should you worry about eating it? While it may seem a little icky (or a lot), the general consensus is that it doesn’t pose a health risk…provided that you prepare it the right way.
“Eating the shrimp’s digestive tract doesn’t make you sick—as long as you cook it thoroughly,” says Dr. Love. That means steaming, baking, frying, or otherwise preparing it until it reaches 145°F. At this internal temperature, the shrimp will take on a firm texture.
To be clear, that’s not to say you can’t get sick from eating shrimp in general. You certainly can, but the food poisoning risk related to shellfish typically comes from eating it raw or undercooked, says Dr. Love. For instance, just like ground beef, raw shrimp can contain bacteria like E. coli. But if you cook it thoroughly, the heat will kill off the bacteria (as well as other potentially harmful pathogens that may be lurking) before it can wreak havoc with your digestive tract. So you may want to skip raw dishes like sashimi and spring for a cooked one like a curry, stir-fry, garlicky pasta, or zesty taco instead.
