Specially Selected Black Tiger Shrimp
EDITOR’S NOTE: This review is about the cooked, farm-raised black tiger shrimp that were a limited-time special at Aldi in 2024. Aldi is also selling raw wild caught Specially Selected Black Tiger Shrimp during the 2024 holiday season.
Shrimp are always a favorite in my house. If I want to serve a light, satisfying meal I know the whole family will enjoy, I pick up a couple of bags of frozen shrimp, a bottle of cocktail sauce, and some bagged Caesar salad kits from Aldi. Most of the frozen bagged cocktail-style shrimp at Aldi are sold under the grocer’s Fremont Fish Market private label.
This week, I spotted some extra jumbo frozen black tiger shrimp at Aldi and couldn’t resist picking them up as a treat for the holidays. These are actually sold under the Specially Selected brand. That’s not a company. Rather, it’s an Aldi house brand that focuses on gourmet-style foods such as small batch bread loaves, specialty mac and cheese, and ice cream.
Specially Selected Black Tiger Shrimp are an Aldi Find, which means they’re only in stores for a short time. Each store gets one shipment, and they’re gone after that sells out. Aldi does not offer online ordering if these are sold out at your local store.
We bought these ourselves for review. I paid $10.99 for a 16-ounce package at my local store in 2024. That’s around 69 cents per ounce. The package states it contains 16-20 extra jumbo shrimp, which comes out to between 55 and 69 cents per shrimp. The package I bought had 20 shrimp.
These are Best Aquaculture Practices certified. The shrimp were farm raised and are a product of India.
Ingredients are shrimp (Penaeus monodon), water, and salt. If you’re looking out for allergens, these naturally contain crustacean shellfish (shrimp).
There are about five 3-ounce servings per package. One serving has 70 calories, no fat, 200 mg of sodium (9% DV), no carbohydrates or dietary fiber, no sugars, and 16 grams of protein.
The shrimp are sold fully cooked. The bag has directions for thawing the shrimp.
To thaw in the refrigerator (recommended), place frozen shrimp in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil (I used a reusable silicone stretch seal from Aldi). Refrigerate overnight (approximately 12 hours). Drain excess water and serve.
For a quick thaw, place frozen shrimp in a strainer. Rinse with cold running water for about 5-7 minutes, lightly tossing and turning the shrimp. Let drain for about 3 minutes and serve.
The package says that for best taste, serve the shrimp within three months of purchase. If thawed, store in the refrigerator and use within three days.
These are good shrimp. They’re meaty, tender, and flavorful. They’re also quite large and filling.
The Verdict:
Specially Selected Black Tiger Shrimp are great if you want extra jumbo shrimp. They’re sold fully cooked and require only thawing. They’re delicious with cocktail sauce, or however you want to serve them.
