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Most home cooks grow up hearing the word “vein” and never question it, tossing shrimp into sizzling pans without a second thought. Yet that thin, dark strand is the shrimp’s digestive tract, a tiny tube that once carried sand, grit, and half-digested food. Cooking makes it safe to eat, but it doesn’t magically change what it is, or how it can feel between your teeth. That’s why, especially with larger shrimp, many people quietly insist on deveining before the shrimp ever hits the plate.
