DON GAMBERO
Red, bright, fleshy, compact, and flavorful. In Sicilian dialect, they call it l'ammaru russu, but for chefs and their customers, it is the red shrimp of Mazara del Vallo Don Gambero, a treasure rich in organoleptic properties, appreciated for the tastiness of its compact, white flesh that encapsulates the flavor and salinity of the waters in which it is caught. From Sicily with Love
Mazara red prawn: excellence in taste
The Mediterranean waters that bathe Italy’s largest island have always given us unique, one-of-a-kind ingredients. But nothing quite reaches the top step of the flavour podium like the Mazara del Vallo red prawn.
Red, bright, meaty, firm and intensely tasty. In Sicilian dialect they call it ammaru russu.
For chefs and their guests, it’s a true treasure, rich in organoleptic qualities and loved for its compact, white flesh that captures all the salinity and brininess of the waters where it is caught.
Don Gambero red prawns live at around 700 metres depth, where strong sea currents help make the meat beautifully firm, while the high rate of evaporation the Mediterranean experiences in the warm season enriches them with minerals that give them their unmistakable flavour.
Every day, the boats fish for the finest catch between the Egadi Islands, Sciacca and Trapani. They can stay at sea for over a month before returning to port, but the catching, freezing and packing all take place within just a few hours: everything happens directly on board, and only the very best of the catch becomes Don Gambero.
Don Gambero: more than Mazara del Vallo red prawns
As soon as they are caught, the red prawns are blast-chilled in the certified on-board laboratories with a very strong thermal shock. Processing is done quickly, with no rinsing and no glazing, in order to preserve all the freshness of the product. The prawns are then packed in special trays that keep their structure, flavour, aroma and nutritional values unchanged.
But Don Gambero doesn’t stop at red prawns. To the age-old craft of fishing, they have added innovative processing methods that combine true craftsmanship – all the prawns, for example, are peeled by hand so they don’t break – with state-of-the-art packaging techniques.
The result? A gourmet ingredient of outstanding quality, with unique organoleptic properties, ready to cook. Just one product? Not at all: Don Gambero has more than 40 items in its range.
Alongside our much-loved red prawns – available whole, as tails only, or as tartare – there are other products such as mazzancolle, pink and purple prawns, and scampi, to name only the shellfish. If we look more broadly at the catch, we also have to mention molluscs, squid and octopus.
And does it end there? Again, the answer is no. Because the evolution of gourmet seafood reaches its peak in top-quality, ready-to-use products. This is the market innovation introduced in recent years by Don Gambero: freeing chefs from all those time-consuming steps that add no real value to the dish, and leaving them free to interpret and create their recipes.
There is no added value in having a chef peel a prawn: the people who peel shellfish all day have developed exceptional skills that save time and space and, above all, reduce the build-up of waste. The real challenge is to give chefs back time and resources.
For example, the fact that the red prawns are packed in flat 100 g portions allows for very fast defrosting (just 10 minutes in lukewarm water) and immediate use: once defrosted, you simply open the pouch and et voilà – you’re ready for gourmet creativity.
With Don Gambero products, “quick and good” also means truly delicious. Enjoy your meal!
From Sicily with love: how a red prawn becomes a gourmet icon
There is a very specific area off the coast of Sicily where Don Gambero fishes its legendary red prawn. It corresponds to FAO zones 37.1–37.2. For anyone not fluent in marine jargon, these are the waters reached by the fishing ports of Mazara, the Egadi Islands, Sciacca and Trapani. And if you’re wondering why it’s known worldwide as the Mazara del Vallo red prawn, the answer lies in tradition: this is where the very first fleets of boats specially equipped for its capture were historically based.
Today, Don Gambero’s fishing vessels follow strict quality and safety standards, both in how they fish and in how they preserve the prawns in optimal conditions. As soon as they are caught, the crustaceans are immediately blast-frozen on board at –50°C using IQF (Individual Quick Freezing) technology and sorted by size and weight. Sizes range from 4 to 6 cm and from under 25 grams per piece to over 50, from fourth to first grade – and then there are the Kings, which exceed 60 grams.
These are products that are not only delicious, but above all extremely safe – so safe that they can even be enjoyed raw.
