“At the age of seven I was the perfect hunter-gatherer. What magic to get up at the crack of dawn and follow my Father into the deep forest of my native French Comté to find wild mushrooms! The success of this dish will depend on the quality and freshness of the produce. The best time for wild mushrooms is between July and October—but at this time of year, Girolles can be found up to January. This dish is simple to make, with marvellous heady flavours from the forest and lots of juice ready to be mopped up with a good piece of French bread. The best mushrooms are Girolle, Lambs feet, Pieds Bleu, Chanterelle, Oyster mushrooms, etc. Many of these mushrooms have lost their wild heritage and are now farmed, but there are still loads to be found in the woodlands of Britain. Use the best mushrooms you can find for this rewarding and easy dish, packed with flavours.”
Difficulty rating: Easy
Serves (Yield): 4
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Special equipment: Large sauté pan
Planning ahead
The mushrooms can be prepared up to one day in advance.
Ingredients
For the mushroom fricassée
- 10g shallot, finely shopped
- 2 tbsp butter, unsalted
- 5g (1 clove) garlic, peeled and finely chopped
- 400g mixed wild mushrooms, (chanterelle, girolle, pieds bleu, or button)
- 1⁄2 lemon, juiced
- 4 pinches sea salt
- 2 pinches black pepper, freshly ground
- 10ml (half) lemon, juiced
To finish
- 15g black trompettes (optional)
- 2 tomatoes, vine ripened, quartered, de-seeded, diced
- 5mm, skin on
- 1 clove garlic, peeled, puréed
- 10g shallot, finely chopped, mixed
- 10g flat parsley leaves, chopped coarsely together
For the croûtons
- 1⁄2 small baguette, sliced into
- 20 slices,
- 3mm thick, toasted in the oven at
- 160°C until lightly golden brown and rubbed with a clove of peeled garlic.
Method
Preparing the mushrooms
- Scrape and remove all things reminiscent of the forest. Wash briefly (*1) in plenty of water, lift them on to a clean towel and reserve.
Cooking the mushrooms
- On a medium heat, in a large frying pan, gently sweat the shallots in butter for 2 minutes, sauté the wild mushrooms adding them to the pan in order of density except the the black trumpets, if you’re using them (*2).
- Season with salt and pepper and add the juice of 1⁄2 a lemon.
- Finally, add the black trompettes, the diced tomatoes and sauté for a further 10–30 seconds.
To serve
- Serve in a large bowl or 4 soup plates, sprinkle with the remaining parsley, with the croûtons in a separate bowl.
Chef’s notes (*)
*1 Ensure that the washing process is no more than 10–15 seconds maximum. If soaked for longer, the mushrooms will absorb water which will destroy both their taste and texture.
*2 If you add the black trompettes too early they will discolour the sauce.
Variations
The mushrooms would be wonderful with some fresh pasta or you could cool them, roughly chop them, and use as the filling for fresh ravioli.
