Neo-prawn is commonly known as Ma Xia, Neo-prawn with knife forehead, and more people call it Neo-prawn with knife forehead. Penaeus monodon is a kind of freshwater culture and seawater culture. The reason for its name is "the culture around the base". The shape of Neopenaeus monodon is like prawn, but its shell is softer than prawn, and its body is not as big as prawn, generally about the size of middle finger. Guangdong coastal estuaries have high yield, thin body fat shell and delicious and refreshing meat. The young shrimp (below 6cm) of Neopenaeus monodon is dark green to dark green, and the adult shrimp (above 6cm) is light brown, and the body surface is covered with dense light brown spots. Some people in the market use white shrimp (prawn) to pretend to be a new prawn, so pay attention to the color and spots when choosing. It's easy to identify.

Why is it called Neoprawn with a knife?

Because it belongs to sand shrimp, also known as Neopenaeus monodon, because wild shrimps like to live in shallow sea with sandy and muddy bottom and low salinity, they usually hide their bodies at the bottom of the sea, only protruding their eyes and breathing at the front end of their heads to escape from the enemy and wait for food. When the tide rises, they will climb into some slow-flowing inner bays to live.

After discovering this feature, fishermen pull nets or build stone foundations in the inner bay to trap prawns themselves. The fishermen of the older generation called these traps the base fence (that is, they were caught with cornerstones), so the shrimps caught with the base fence were also called Neopenaeus monodon.

More than a decade ago, most of the new prawns were wild shrimps with strong vitality. Nowadays, the new prawn with a knife amount on the dining table has become an artificial breed, and its physique is far worse than before, and its adaptability has also declined.

Bamboo shrimp-Penaeus japonicus

Penaeus japonicus was first cultured in Japan, and it is also the main species. In recent years, Fujian, Guangdong and other coastal areas in southern China have also begun to cultivate. Japanese prawns are also called bamboo shrimp and car shrimp, which are generally called bamboo shrimp.

Penaeus japonicus has blue-brown stripes on its body surface and blue tail tip. The shell is thin and hard and the meat is thick. Shrimp is not big, and the common weight of a single shrimp in the market is between half and one or two.

There are generally three ways to cook the prawn: one is to cook the prawn with water, then mix the sauce with seasonings such as soy sauce, sugar and shredded ginger, and eat it with the cooked prawn, so as not to lose the delicate flavor of the prawn because of cooking, which is convenient and delicious. Second, eat raw. This is the simplest way to eat, that is, peel the live prawns and dip them in green mustard to eat them raw. The taste is slippery and the aftertaste is sweet. The third is frying, which is the general practice of frying shrimp. You can go to a restaurant to eat once. Generally, seafood restaurants have this dish called Neoprawn with Knife Amount for two people.