Author’s Note:

Note from Eric Matthews – Head Chef, Chapter One in Dublin, Ireland.

This dish is a beautiful celebration of the wonderful things Ireland has to offer. Incredible Irish shellfish and seafood marry perfectly with Kerrygold Irish butter. The addition of seaweed and Kerrygold Skellig Cheddar cheese adds a deep element of umami. This dish is guaranteed to put a smile on anyone’s face.

Instructions:

  1. Firstly, heat 28 oz of Kerrygold Unsalted butter to approximately 160 degrees F. Set aside until poaching the fish.
  2. To make the ragout, you will need to steam the mussels, cockles and clams in one pot with a lid and steam the razor clams in a separate pot with a lid.
  3. Once each pot is hot, place the mussels, cockles and clams in one pot with ¾ cup of wine and place the razor clams in another pot with ¼ cup of wine and put lids on both. Cook until the shells open (about 2 minutes). Strain the cooking juices from each batch through a sieve and mix into another container or pot. Reserve this for the sauce.
  4. The cheese stock is one of the most amazing ingredients – it’s very versatile and an incredible source of umami. Place 3.5 oz Kerrygold Skellig cheese into a pot with 1 cup of water and bring to a simmer for 5 minutes, then sieve and set aside and reserve for the ragout.
  5. Sweat shallots, ¼ of the leek and the garlic in 1oz of butter. Once translucent, deglaze with the remaining 1 cup of white wine.
  6. Once evaporated, add the cooking juices from the shellfish. Reduce this by two-thirds. Add the cheese stock. Once you are happy it is not too salty (if it is, add a little water) add 1 cup of cream and reduce again by half.
  7. At this stage you should have a beautiful seafood cream. Finish with a squeeze of lemon and thicken slightly with corn starch. It should have the
    consistency of crème anglaise.
  8. Rehydrate the dried red dulse seaweed in the sauce and set aside.
  9. To cook the fish, place it in the butter at 160F for approximately 8-10 mins or until opaque and the skin peels away. As the fish cooks, pick through the shellfish to remove the meat from the shells and reserve for the last 30 seconds.
  10. To finish, finely slice the remaining leek and sweat in 1oz of butter.
  11. At the last minute, reheat the sauce and drop in the shellfish and half the sea herbs (purslane, sea aster and monks beard) and half of the chives.
    Taste for lemon and seasoning.
  12. Spoon half of this into the bowl, followed by the leeks with the fish on top. Follow that with more sauce, more shellfish and the rest of the sea herbs and chives.

Recipe by Eric Matthews – Head Chef, Chapter One in Dublin, Ireland.