虾仁 (xiārén): shelled shrimp

Meanings

1 shelled shrimp
2 shrimp meat (peeled, no head/tail/shell)

Characters

虾

kernel; edible inside; (also) benevolence

Examples

我点了一份虾仁炒饭。

Wǒ diǎn le yī fèn xiārén chǎofàn.

I ordered a serving of shrimp fried rice.

妈妈在剥虾仁。

Māma zài bāo xiārén.

Mom is peeling shrimp.

Tips

culture

虾仁 specifically means peeled, deshelled shrimp ready for cooking — what English menus call 'shrimp meat'. Famous dishes: 龙井虾仁 (Lóngjǐng xiārén, Longjing-tea shrimp, a Hangzhou specialty) and 虾仁炒蛋 (shrimp scrambled with egg). The 仁 ('kernel') is the same character used for the edible inside of nuts (杏仁 'almond kernel').

memory

虾 = 'shrimp', 仁 = 'kernel/inside-meat'. Just like 杏仁 'almond kernel', 虾仁 means 'the meat inside the shrimp' — i.e. the shrimp once you've removed its shell.