CERTAIN dishes have the magical effect -of opening your eyes - and tastebuds - to combinations which seem illogical but which can prove to be sublime. Some years back, I tried a dish of brill with shiitake mushrooms and vermouth, cooked by Paddy Foyle when he ran Rosleague Manor near Letterfrack in Connemara.
Not only were the tastes plosive and unctuous, but the fleshiness of the fish and the comparable fleshiness of the mushrooms made fora mixture that was both lush and refreshing. Mushrooms and fish have been 90 the menu ever since, and since we are in mushroom season, it is time to explore what the fruit of the sea and the mystery of the forest can offer us.
One of my favourites is a variation on a combination offered by Antonio Carluccio. His original dish - from his book A Passion for Mushrooms unites prawns with morels and oyster mushrooms in a ragout. Perfect, if you have access to the luxurious morel. If you don't, don't worry, for the oyster mushroom alone works splendidly.
Some of the other combinations of fish and mushrooms which Carluccio offers include turbot with honey fungus; monkfish with chanterelles; seafood and mushroom salad; and squid with oyster mushrooms. As Carluccio points out, these dishes look appetising, too, with the shape and colour of certain mushrooms providing, an attractive or even a dramatic element of contrast".
Ragout of Prawns and Morels Serves 4 16 large prawns (about 600 g 1 1/4lb in their shells) 40 g 1 1/2 oz dried morels plus 400 g/14 oz fresh oyster mushrooms or champignons 1 small shallot, finely chopped 80 g/3 oz butter juice of half a lemon 1 glass dry sherry salt and pepper to taste 1 teaspoon flour 1 tablespoon chopped parsley For the saffron rice 600 ml/1 pint chicken stock (cubes will do) 240 g/8 oz long grain rice 2 sachets saffron powder 50 g/2 oz butter Shell the prawns. Soak the dried morels for 20 minutes. For the saffron rice, put the stock in a pan, add the rice, saffron and butter and simmer until the stock has been fully absorbed. While the rice is cooking, fry the shallot in the butter and as soon as it starts to colour add the chopped oyster mushrooms to the sliced champignons. Stir-fry for a few minutes. Add the morels with a little of their soaking water (strained), the lemon juice, sherry, salt and pepper. Add the prawns and cook for five minutes: Stir in the flour to thicken the sauce slightly, and cook for a further five minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and serve with the saffron rice.