Andrew Shyka knows that Maine shrimp season starts right about this time of year. The Orrington resident has been eating the small crustaceans for more than five decades. And he’s back at it again this winter.

“I can do 5 pounds in about an hour with some Cajun music and one beer,” he said the other day while buying supper at McLaughlin Seafood in Bangor. “They’re sweet and tender. I eat them about once a week. They’re good with cocktail sauce and horseradish.”

Shrimp season began in December and runs through the end of April, which means seafood lovers who wait for local shrimp to be sold in markets and at roadside stands have 11 more days than last year to enjoy the tasty treats right off the boat.

While Northern or pink shrimp – known scientifically as Pandalus borealis – has always been overshadowed by lobster, it has been an intermittent player in Maine fisheries for half a century. Like all fisheries, shrimp has had its peaks and low points, and in recent seasons, the industry has been in a slump.

But not this year.

According to Robin Alden, executive director of the Penobscot East Resource Center in Stonington, this year’s stock is high. That’s good news for the shrimp industry, for fishermen and for a loyal following of shrimp lovers willing to peel off pesky shells for bite-size bursts of succulent, briny flavor.

“It’s out there again. It’s worth buying. It’s not depleted,” assured Alden.

And there never has been a better time to buy locally. Last week, the National Marine Fisheries Service reported that while U.S. shrimp imports are up nearly 12 percent, farmed shrimp from the coasts of Thailand, Vietnam and Ecuador may be raised in polluted waters.

But there’s an even better reason to buy Maine shrimp: The flavor is extraordinary. It also happens to be high in protein and a good source of vitamin D. It’s easy to cook – boil or saute for only a minute and it’s done – and a cinch to freeze.

“People in the state of Maine haven’t tried Maine shrimp the right way,” said Dick Bridges, a shrimper in Sunset. “Maine shrimp taste so much to me like lobster when you cook them right. I love them. There’s something about fresh shrimp right out of the water. I dip them in boiling water for a minute, just long enough to get the shells off. Then I dip them in a cocktail sauce or butter mixed with rice vinegar – that’s good with clams and lobster, too.”

Bridges goes out shrimping for about three months in the winter when he’s not lobstering. He catches them by dragging a net along the seafloor where the shrimp live. For the first month, shrimpers go about three miles out to sea for their catches. In January, when the spawning females come closer to shore, shrimpers can tow for them there. Bridges tries to haul about 200 or 300 pounds a day and sells them for $1 a pound, even as the market price hovers around 50 cents. Last winter, Bridges hauled between 8,000 and 10,000 pounds.

Is it worth it?

“My wife says no. I say yes,” said Bridges. “It’s a vacation for me. I’ve been shrimping since 1964. I love it. I could talk about it for hours. I haven’t made any money to speak of, but when you get 10,000 pounds in winter when you’re not making anything, it puts bread and butter on the table.”

Bridges boils his shrimp and slathers them in cocktail sauce, which is the most popular way to eat any kind of shrimp. But purists say putting Maine shrimp for too long into anything other than your mouth is a mistake – the flavor is that delicate.

Chef Brian Hill at Francine Bistro in Camden likes to prepare shrimp in a seviche, as a mousse or “like eels”: a quick splash into hot olive oil with garlic, parsley, lemon zest, lemon juice, piment d’espelette (a Basque chili) and Maine sea salt from Quoddy Mist in Lubec.

“This is the cool thing: We cook it for 30 seconds. They’re still translucent on top, and they keep cooking on the way to the table,” said Hill. “They’re already perfect. By the time you warm them this way, they’re done.”

In addition to kicking off shrimp season, December and January are also the most popular months for fresh shrimp. Toby Fox, manager at McLaughlin’s, said he recently sold 300 pounds in three days. One customer drove from LaGrange and waited for an hour for the shrimp to be delivered. Over the holidays, he expects to sell about 1,000 pounds of shrimp.

Buyers say shrimp are small this year. But it’s early, and fishermen are waiting to see whether consumers are ready to eat one of Maine’s tenderest bounties again. Steve Beathem, producer manager and shrimp buyer at Maine Shellfish in Ellsworth, said Maine shrimp has a limited market. It sells to Europe, to Japan and primarily to places along the New England coast. It may be that shrimp lovers don’t want to peel the smaller shrimp, he speculated. A pro can pick up to 20 pounds in an hour, but amateur pickers are lucky to get a pound done in the same period. “Do you want to go home tonight and peel 5 pounds of shrimp?” Beathem asked. For some cooks, the answer may be no. Lobster may be worth the extra picking work for most seafood lovers, but shrimp isn’t as compelling – at least to the uninitiated.

Summertime is a different story, however. Beathem and Ried McLaughlin, who owns the fish store in Bangor, peel and freeze shrimp in the winter for summer markets. Fried shrimp, said McLaughlin, is just as popular as fried clams, and he processes up to 4,000 pounds when his takeout stand opens in summer. Beachem, who sells to fish shacks on the coast, says he processes a little more than 100,000 pounds a year.

But Beachem, McLaughlin, Hill, Bridges and Andrew Shyka, who probably already has purchased another bag of shrimp and is playing Cajun tunes, agree: Nothing compares to fresh.

“Eating Maine shrimp is very exciting,” said Hill.

Maine Shrimp Bisque

Serves 8 as a first course or 4 as a main course

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 1/2 pounds Maine shrimp, shelled and deveined

1 small onion, chopped

1 celery stalk, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

2 teaspoons dried tarragon

1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon zest

1 cup dry white wine

1/4 cup Madeira or medium-dry sherry

3 cups bottled clam juice

1 cup heavy cream

3 tablespoons long-grain white rice

2 tablespoons tomato paste

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a large pot, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter. Add the shrimp and saute over medium heat until just cooked through, 2-4 minutes. Transfer the shrimp and juices to a bowl.

Add the remaining tablespoon of butter to the pan. Add the onion, celery and carrot, and cook until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the tarragon and lemon zest and cook 1 minute. Add the wine and sherry, raise the heat, and boil for 2 minutes. Add the clam juice, cream, rice and tomato paste. Simmer, covered, until the rice is very tender, 20-30 minutes.

Set aside eight shrimp for garnish. In a food processor, working in batches, puree the cooked shrimp with the liquid base until quite smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and adjust the amount of liquid if necessary. Cook and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.

When ready to serve, reheat gently and serve, garnished with reserved shrimp. (Adapted from “Recipes from a Very Small Island” by Linda Greenlaw and Martha Greenlaw)

Cook’s note: If you have shrimp shells, you can make a flavorful stock to use here in place of bottled clam juice. Simply simmer the shells in 4 cups of water for about 15 minutes. Strain through a sieve, pressing the remaining liquid out of the solids.

Stir-fried Shrimp with Garlic and Peas

Serves 4

1 pound fresh Maine shrimp, heads off, shells on

1 cup water

1 1/2 teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 clove garlic, sliced

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon dry sherry

2 teaspoons sesame oil

3/4 pounds frozen peas

2 tablespoons peanut oil

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and minced

1/4 teaspoon chili-garlic paste, optional

1/4 cup minced scallions, green and white parts

Juice of 1/2 lime

Peel the shrimp and simmer the shells for 5 minutes or so in the water while you work on the rest of the recipe. Marinate the shrimp in a mixture of 1/2 teaspoon of the sugar, 1 tablespoon of the soy sauce, the sliced garlic, salt, sherry and 1 teaspoon of the sesame while you assemble the other ingredients. Drain and discard the shrimp shells, reserving 3/4 cup of the stock.

Parboil peas for 1 minute, then plunge them into ice water. Drain and set aside.

When you are ready to cook, preheat a wok or 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat for 3-5 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of the peanut oil and raise the heat to high. When it begins to smoke, add the minced garlic and, immediately thereafter, the shrimp and marinade. Spoon it quickly out of the wok or skillet.

Put the remaining peanut oil in the wok, still over high heat, and, when it smokes, add the ginger, followed immediately by the peas. Cook, stirring occasionally, 3-5 minutes. Add shrimp stock and let it bubble for 1-2 minutes. Return the shrimp to the wok or skillet and stir. Add the chili-garlic paste, the scallions and the remaining sugar and soy sauce. Stir and cook for 1 minute. Turn off the heat, drizzle with lime juice and the remaining sesame oil and serve. (Adapted from “Fish” by Mark Bittman)

Cook’s note: When I prepare this dish, I add the delicate Maine shrimp as the very last ingredient, tossing it to cook by the very hot heat of the other ingredients. For a tasty complement, serve on a mound of savory grits or polenta.

Peel ‘n’ Eat Maine Shrimp Boil with East-West Sauces

Serves 8-10

2 pounds fresh Maine shrimp, shells on

8 thin lemon slices for garnish

Far Eastern Dipping Sauce

1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/3 cup water

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons white vinegar

2 tablespoons grated or minced fresh ginger

2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

1 tablespoon of snipped chives or finely chopped scallion parts

All-American Cocktail Sauce

1/4 cup chili sauce

1/4 cup ketchup

2 heaping teaspoons fresh or prepared horseradish

1 tablespoon finely chopped red or sweet white onion

2 teaspoons lemon juice

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the shrimp and cook until pink, 1-2 minutes. Have a large bowl of ice water at the ready. Drain shrimp quickly and then transfer to ice water. Drain again and refrigerate.

To make the Far Eastern Dipping Sauce, combine the brown sugar and water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar and cook over medium heat until lightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, sesame oil and pepper. Cool to room temperature and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Sprinkle with chives or scallions before serving.

To make the All-American Cocktail Sauce, whisk together the chili sauce, ketchup and horseradish. Stir in the onion and lemon juice. Serve immediately or refrigerate up to 3 days.

To serve, present the shrimp on a platter garnished with lemon slices, and surround with small bowls of the sauces. Invite guests to peel their own shrimp and dunk. (Adapted from “Dishing Up Maine” by Brooke Dojny)

Cook’s note: If you don’t have chili sauce, use a total of 1/2 cup of ketchup.