The 'Red Shrimp with Lemon' from Burgos Alejandro Serrano wins the 8th International Creative Cuisine Competition of the Red Shrimp in Dénia

The burgalés Alejandro Serrano, of the Restaurante Alejandro de Miranda de Ebro, has won the first prize of the VII International Creative Cuisine Competition of the Red Shrimp Dénia held this Tuesday morning at the Municipal Market of Dénia.

In addition to being the winner, Chef Serrano has also received 2.500 € for having achieved the first classification and a check worth 500 euros thanks to Gastroequipa, while Alex Primo, second classified, has obtained 1.500 € and Ismael Bilbao, 1.000 €, for occupying the third place. Along with the cash prize, the three finalists were also given a trophy designed specifically for the event by the sculptor Toni Marí.

Serrano, with his recipe Red Shrimp with Lemon, he has obtained 141 points of the jury, and he has been only one point away from the second place, Álex Primo, from the restaurant Cyrus DAD, from Puerto de Sagunto, and his plate Red Shrimp from Dénia and Acid Sea Suquet. Behind them, in third position and 11 points, the plate of Ismael Bilbao, from Dianense Samaruc restaurant, Red shrimp from Dénia in pickled orange blood and Valencian garum.

In the words of Vicent Grimalt, Mayor of Dénia, "The high participation of the chefs is what allows the contest to continue making year after year, placing Dénia on the map of gastronomy". For its part, Cristina Sellés, president of AEHTMA., has stressed that "The red shrimp is the claim, but the goal is to keep people coming to know our town and our kitchen".

The eight participants began to prepare their dishes at 9:30 am in the central area of ​​the Municipal Market. Starting at 11:30, and in 30-minute intervals, the students of the Cdt de Dénia have taken the dishes to the jury's tent, located at the entrance of the Mercat on Carlos Street Sentí. After 13:15 p.m. the awards ceremony has begun.

The president of the jury, Julia Pérez, has been accompanied by the also prestigious critic José Carlos Capel and by the chef Alberto Ferruz, of BonAmb in Xàbia (Alicante); Ricard Tobella, chef de cuisine Quique Dacosta Restaurant in Dénia (Alicante); Ricardo Costa, of The Yeatman in Porto (Portugal); Miguel Barrera, from Cal Paradís in Vall d'Alba (Castellón); Benito Gómez, from Bardal restaurant in Roda, (Málaga), Jesús Segura from Trivio restaurant in Cuenca and Javi Estévez from La Tasquería, Madrid.

Elaborate recipes

In addition to the three winners, the rest of the contestants have opted for very eye-catching dishes. Daniel Mesa, of the Spring Hotel Bitácora (Arona, Tenerife), has presented Treasury of Dénia. MªTeresa Salado and Gicelia Gómez, of the CDT of Alicante, have elaborated Red shrimp from Dénia and her marrow with creamy pumpkin. Adrián Merenciano, from Flote Restaurante (Castellón de la Plana), has presented Red prawn from Dénia allipebrada; Micaela Medina, from El Nou Embolic Gastrobar (Pinoso, Alicante), has created Sea and Mountain of Red Prawn with rabbit, while Juan Carlos Reyes, from ABaC Restaurant, in Barcelona, ​​has proposed Prawns with pil-pil, small artichokes and soasadas.

Tribute to José Carlos Capel

Before the awards ceremony, the president of Aehtma, the organizer of the contest, Cristina Sellés, announced the tribute from the organization of the contest wanted to José Carlos Capel, food critic, president of Madrid Fusion and member of the Royal Academy of Gastronomy. From the organization they wanted to thank their generosity and unconditional support to the contest since its creation, in which he has participated as a jury from the first edition to the present.