Few things fill a Valencian with more pride than paella. and everyone has the duty to know and defend the traditional recipe. Rice is the heritage of the capital of Turia and that is why it is promoted throughout the world.
This obsession with gastronomy has led the Valencia City Council and other organizations such as Visit Valencia, the Tourism Center of the Provincial Council of Valencia or the Hotel Federation to organize the Paella World Cup.
This tournament is held on September 20th of each year at international paella daywhich coincides with the date of the rice harvest. This year the event took place in the Marina of Valencia and chefs from all over the world came.
In total, the competition included 12 participating countries from as far away as Japan. Here, it is not mandatory to stick to the traditional recipe and that means that the best paella in the world is that of a Puerto Rican chef. Beyond the rice, you would not guess any ingredient.
The best paella in the world does not follow the traditional Valencian recipe
The award for the best paella in the world 2024 was won by Puerto Rican chef Joe W. Padilla Castro thanks to his proposal called Mediterranean Lionfish Whisper Paella.
Just by looking at the name, you can already imagine what its star ingredient is.. A look at the most important products the Puerto Rican chef used:
- Lionfish.
- Sea snail.
- Boriken players.
- Fish stock base.
- Valencian seafood.
Valencia holds a competition to choose the best paellas in the world
The reason behind this annual international competition is extending a dish so typical of Valencian gastronomy to distant lands. It is therefore not surprising that the podium was completed by two other foreign chefs.
In second place was the Colombian chef Miguel Angel Castro and in third place the Japanese chef Shingo HinokioThe jury was composed of winners from previous editions and representatives of institutions such as the Marché Central and gastronomy professors.
This year’s motto was Paella: a universal language and the least important thing is the winner of the prize. For a whole week, competitors and guests learn new cooking techniques to improve their rice processing. In addition, the use of Valencian products is encouraged.
It is also a luxury opportunity for them to discover key points in the history of Valencian paella such as Sueca, La Lonja, the Central Market of Valencia or the Albufera.
