{"id":1251,"date":"2024-02-22T16:09:21","date_gmt":"2024-02-22T16:09:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/the-red-shrimp-of-denia\/"},"modified":"2025-04-30T09:01:40","modified_gmt":"2025-04-30T09:01:40","slug":"the-red-shrimp-of-denia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/the-red-shrimp-of-denia\/","title":{"rendered":"The Red Shrimp of Denia"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3 class=\"opinion-leaf-subtitle\">The secret of the D\u00e9nia shrimp is not in being caught in its waters, or sold in its fish market, it is in the quality and respect that the people of D\u00e9nia feel for this delicate fruit of the sea.<\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Experts say that the best way to cook these shrimp is to boil them in their liquid element: sea water. The salinity will help them keep all their juices and not give up their essence to the cooking water.<\/p>\n<p>A large (prime) shrimp needs 2 minutes in 80 degree water. As it is not easy to guarantee exactly this temperature at home, the best way is to put sea water on the fire, when it starts to boil, turn it off and add the shrimps. This stops the boiling and lowers it to the desired temperature. Keep them for 2 minutes and remove them, being careful not to break them, to submerge them again but this time in cold sea water. This is how we cut the cooking time. As recommended by <b>Quique Dacosta<\/b>, the shrimp should be served at 15 degrees. If sea water is not available, we can use mineral water with sea salt in a proportion of 20 grams of salt per liter of water.<\/p>\n<p>The magic of the D\u00e9nia shrimp lies in the way it is enjoyed by its people, and the care with which they treat it. But be careful, if you are lucky enough to be invited to eat prawns in D\u00e9nia, never, I repeat, never use the cutlery, always with your hands, and suck the head as if your life depended on it. If not, they will make the most dreadful fool of themselves.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1496\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/pinto-dacosta-300x169-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"694\" height=\"391\"><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"js-headline\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.lagambaroja.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">The red shrimp of Denia, the first delicacy in the world with soundtrack<\/a><\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"summary-lead\">It is a symphonic work of 18 minutes, composed by Javier Pinto and will be performed next Saturday by the Agrupaci\u00f3 Art\u00edstica Musical de D\u00e9nia.<\/p>\n<p class=\"summary-lead\">Chef Quique Dacosta, whose restaurant in Denia has three Michelin stars, has participated in the process of composing the work.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1499\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/6-concurso-gamba-denia-300x300-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"530\" height=\"530\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/6-concurso-gamba-denia-300x300-1.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/6-concurso-gamba-denia-300x300-1-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 530px) 100vw, 530px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The main composer of the work is <strong>Javier Pinto<\/strong>, a member of the aforementioned musical group, who collected the sounds of the boats, the sea, the kitchen, and gathered all the necessary information to make the D\u00e9nia red shrimp sound, a task that has lasted two months.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;<strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.lagambaroja.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">The soundtrack of the Red Shrimp of Denia&#8221;<\/a>, <\/strong>was<strong> <\/strong>presented on Saturday, January 15, 2017 at the Social Center of Denia, a piece in three acts that has been inspired by the processes that surround the star gastronomic product of the capital of the Alicante region of the Marina Alta. That day, the centenary <strong>Agrupaci\u00f3 Art\u00edstica Musical de D\u00e9nia<\/strong>, which has fishermen and cooks in its ranks, was in charge of performing this 18-minute symphonic work written entirely for wind band and percussion, under the baton of its conductor, the Belgian <strong>Frank de Vuyst<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1502\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/participantes-concurso-300x300-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"511\" height=\"511\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/participantes-concurso-300x300-1.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/participantes-concurso-300x300-1-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 511px) 100vw, 511px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"js-headline\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.javier-pinto.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">6 <strong>INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION OF CREATIVE CUISINE OF THE RED SHRIMP OF D\u00c9NIA <\/strong> <\/a><\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h4 class=\"js-headline\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.denia.net\/la-banda-sonora-de-la-gamba\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">IS AIMED AT PROFESSIONAL CHEFS, PAYS TRIBUTE TO THE RED SHRIMP OF DENIA AND ENABLES THE LAUNCH AND PROMOTION OF YOUNG CHEFS WHO ARE COMMITTED TO CREATIVE CUISINE.<\/a><\/h4>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>This is a firm commitment of the public-private sector <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/\">to<\/a> achieve greater recognition and dissemination of the gastronomic product and also enable the launch and promotion of young chefs who are committed to creative cuisine.<\/p>\n<p>The Department of Tourism of the City Council of Denia with the collaboration of the Association of Hotel and Tourism Entrepreneurs of the Marina Alta <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aehtma.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">(AEHTMA)<\/a>, the Fishermen&#8217;s Guild and various collaborators are responsible for organizing this event.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1505\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/faenando-gamba-roja-denia.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"783\" height=\"444\"><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1508\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/cocinando-gamba-roja.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"780\" height=\"508\"><\/p>\n<p><strong>The PRE-JURY<\/strong>, composed of Rafa Soler (director of the competition), Quique Dacosta (chef Quique Dacosta Restaurante), Diego Mena (Rte. Mena), Fernando Gonz\u00e1lez (Grupo El Raset), Pepa Font (councillor for agreements and collaborations Ciudad Creativa Gastronom\u00eda), Federico Guajardo (chef Hotel Los \u00c1ngeles) and Jos\u00e9 Manuel L\u00f3pez (chef Rte. Peix i Brases), gathered on <strong>February 9th,<\/strong> chose, from among the <strong>more than 70 entries<\/strong> to the <em>6th International Creative Cooking Competition of the Red Prawn of Denia,<strong> <\/strong><\/em> to the<strong>following FINALISTS <\/strong>:  <\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Mr. Antonio Villaescusa, rte. MAESTRAL (Alicante)<\/li>\n<li>Mr. Jos\u00e9 Primo, rte. LA BORDA D&#8217;COSTA (Puerto Sagunto, Valencia)<\/li>\n<li>Mr. Lorenzo Anchelergues, rte. LILLAS PASTIA (Huesca)<\/li>\n<li>Mr. Ismael Cano, rte. VENTA DEL SOT\u00d3N (Esquedas, Huesca)<\/li>\n<li>Mr. Antonio Rubio, rte. MES\u00d3N CAMPERO (Linares, Ja\u00e9n)<\/li>\n<li>Mr. Hugo Sabater, rte. EL BOH\u00cdO (Illescas, Toledo)<\/li>\n<li>Mr. Jos\u00e9 Luis Ad\u00e1n, rte. BENAR\u00c9S (Madrid)<\/li>\n<li>Mr. Jos\u00e9 Carlos L\u00f3pez, rte. ORIGIN OF JOSE CARLOS GAMIZ (Puigcerd\u00e1, Girona)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you want to enjoy a &#8220;gastronomic&#8221; atmosphere in the Municipal Market of Denia, do not miss this event, on February 28th from 10.30 am and you will see how the 8 finalists prepare their best creation under the watchful eye of an exceptional jury.<\/p>\n<h1 class=\"js-headline\"><\/h1>\n<h3 class=\"js-headline\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.denia.net\/la-banda-sonora-de-la-gamba\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">MORE FROM THE SHRIMP&#8230;..<\/a><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p1\">If we had to define in some graphic way what a dish of D\u00e9nia red shrimp is, it would be, without a doubt, an explosion of marine flavor. The structure of the D\u00e9nia red shrimp makes it a nutritious food with an intense taste of the sea: a concentrate of iodine and salt that mixed with the flavor of its lean meat is, regardless of the way it has been cooked, a top quality food and always desired by gourmets.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">Another element that makes the D\u00e9nia red shrimp present in the most exclusive restaurants is that it is not easy to fish due to the fact that the locations it often chooses as its habitat mean that the number of units that can be fished is not very high. Living in places that are difficult to access, either on foot or by boat, means that the price per kilo of these crustaceans is often prohibitive, something that also happens with elvers. Everyone understands, therefore, that it is one of the most exclusive foods of the Community of Valencia.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1511\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/pesca-gamba-denia-bohosuitesdenia.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"776\" height=\"581\"><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">The D\u00e9nia shrimp also offers many peculiarities from the anatomical point of view that makes it easily recognizable: it has a red pigmentation different from the white pigmentation of the common shrimp and on the other hand it has a larger head, which is one of the parts of the D\u00e9nia shrimp where it treasures an exquisite flavor. The characteristics of the Gamba de D\u00e9nia has made it the star dish of many top restaurants both in D\u00e9nia itself and in the rest of the Community of Valencia.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">One of the restaurants where with the greatest art they create dishes from the red prawn of Denia is the Restaurant of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.quiquedacosta.es\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Quique Dacosta<\/a>, which has led this fruit of the sea to acquire international fame. In his menu &#8220;Local Universe&#8221; Dacosta has created three different dishes with the D\u00e9nia Red Prawn: a dish of crunchy crust of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.denia.net\/la-banda-sonora-de-la-gamba\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">D\u00e9nia Red Prawn<\/a> served as a snack, a dish of D\u00e9nia Red Prawn lightly cooked in sea water and finally a dish based on juice from the head of the D\u00e9nia Red Prawn in a sphere floating in a tea.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">As for the preparation, most of the great chefs are of the opinion that the best preparation of the Red Prawn of Denia is the one that is made using sea water to give it a good cooking. The salt in the seawater helps the shrimp to keep its juices intact. For a large shrimp, two minutes of cooking at a temperature of at least 80 degrees Celsius is recommended.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">The sea water should be boiled over high heat and when it reaches boiling point introduce the Denia Red Prawns and keep 3 minutes in the boiling water. When removing the shrimp, care must be taken so that it does not break. They are then immersed in ice-cold seawater. The shrimp should be served at a temperature of 15 degrees Celsius.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">In any case, many gourmets are of the opinion that the best way to taste the D\u00e9nia Red Prawn is with few additions: boiled in its own sea water and without adding any kind of sauces or garnish that will only mask its natural flavor, which is the best that this crustacean, exclusive of the coasts of D\u00e9nia, can offer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Where is the Red Shrimp caught?<\/a><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">On the other hand, the areas where the D\u00e9nia Red Shrimp can be fished are in very delimited fishing grounds located in the sea between Cape San Antonio and Ibiza. It is on this sea surface, which is really a trench, where we can find the highest concentration of D\u00e9nia Red Shrimp. It is usually found at a depth of 600 meters, in shady areas.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Due to the fact that at such a great depth there is practically no sunlight, the main food of the D\u00e9nia Red Shrimp is the algae that develop at these depths. Because algae cannot photosynthesize as food they are thinner than those found at shallower depths.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">On the other hand, at that depth &#8211; 600 meters &#8211; there are practically no predators that threaten the concentrations of D\u00e9nia Red Shrimp, which allows the shrimp to live calmly and achieve a good accumulation of fat.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">The D\u00e9nia Red Shrimp is not very abundant and is difficult to catch. It is usual that the fishing boats working in this area do not bring to port more than one or two boxes of D\u00e9nia Red Shrimp daily. However, despite such meager quantities, the fishing of the D\u00e9nia Red Shrimp continues to be a round business since it is paid in the fishermen&#8217;s market of D\u00e9nia at between 150 and 170 \u20ac per kilo.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b><a href=\"http:\/\/www.lagambaroja.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Red shrimp from D\u00e9nia or Palam\u00f3s?<\/a><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">An often sterile discussion has led many to argue whether it is Denia or Palam\u00f3s where the highest quality red shrimp is found. D\u00e9nia seems to be where the Red Shrimp is fished with more flavor and abundant juice. In addition, the differences between the Red Prawns from Denia and those from Palam\u00f3s are more than evident.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">One of the main differences stems from the fact that the feeding of one and the other is different. The Red Prawns of Palam\u00f3s have an ecosystem built on rocky soils while the Red Prawn of Denia has its special flavor for developing in water from the currents that go to Ibiza and in a chasm of more than 600 meters deep. However, in other places along the Valencian coast you can also taste good specimens of Red Shrimp such as Rafa&#8217;s (Roses), Els Pescadors (Llan\u00e7\u00e0), Piripi (Alicante), Avenida (Gata de Gorgos), Canyar (Valencia), Villa Mas (Sant Feliu), Can Jordi (Palma de Mallorca) or Sa Pedera d&#8217;es Pujol (Sant Llu\u00eds, Menorca). Also in Etxebarri (Axpe) or El Celler de Can Roca (Gerona).<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">La Lonja de D\u00e9nia: the best place to buy Red Shrimp from D\u00e9nia<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Undoubtedly, the best place to buy D\u00e9nia Red Shrimp is the Lonja of the port. The traditional auction is held daily, in which local restaurateurs bid for the lots of seafood and fish that arrive in the fishing boats.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>The best restaurants where to eat Red Shrimp in Denia<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">However, the temple of the Red Prawn of Denia in the city is undoubtedly the restaurant El Farall\u00f3. At first, the restaurant was simply a canteen that was fed by customers from a nearby campsite. In those days, <a href=\"http:\/\/elfarallo.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">El Farall\u00f3<\/a> offered tapas, wines or the most diverse types of supermarket products.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">I hope you liked it, see you in the next post, we will tell you the best places to taste the best dishes of the Valencian Community.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">www.bohosuitesdenia<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The secret of the D\u00e9nia shrimp is not in being caught in its waters, or sold in its fish market, it is in the quality and respect that the people of D\u00e9nia feel for this delicate fruit of the sea. &nbsp; Experts say that the best way to cook these shrimp is to boil them [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1127,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1251","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-denia-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1251","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1251"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1251\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1578,"href":"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1251\/revisions\/1578"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1127"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1251"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1251"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bohosuitesdenia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1251"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}