Sole Dieppoise

Scrub and debeard the mussels, peel the prawns reserving their shells, finely dice all the shallots, slice the mushrooms, chop the parsley, zest the lemon, and cut the butter into cubes.

Place the prawn shells in a small saucepan with 100ml of the white wine and the fish stock. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, cook for 8 minutes, then strain through a fine-mesh sieve, pressing the shells firmly — discard the shells and reserve this prawn-enriched stock.

In a wide saucepan over high heat, combine the mussels, 1 diced shallot and 100ml white wine. Cover and cook for 3–4 minutes, shaking the pan once, until all the mussels have opened — discard any that remain shut. Remove the mussels from their shells and set aside; strain and reserve the mussel liquor through a fine-mesh sieve lined with muslin.

In a small saucepan, melt the 20g butter over medium heat and gently cook the 2 remaining diced shallots for 4–5 minutes until softened and translucent but not coloured.

Add the flour to the shallots and stir constantly for 1 minute to form a pale roux.

Gradually whisk in the reserved prawn stock, reserved mussel liquor, and remaining 100ml white wine, whisking continuously until smooth. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat and cook for 5 minutes, stirring often, until the sauce coats the back of a spoon.

In a separate small pan over medium-high heat, sauté the mushrooms in a dry pan for 3–4 minutes until golden and any liquid has evaporated — season with salt and white pepper, then set aside.

Lay the sole fillets in a single layer in a wide, shallow sauté pan. Pour the veloute sauce over the fish and bring gently to a bare simmer over medium-low heat — poach uncovered for 6–8 minutes until the fish is opaque throughout and reaches an internal temperature of 63°C on a meat thermometer, the safe minimum for fish.

Carefully lift the sole onto warmed serving plates using a fish slice. Pour the sauce back into the saucepan over medium heat, stir in the double cream, and reduce for 3 minutes until the sauce is glossy and lightly thickened.

Remove the sauce from the heat and whisk in the cold cubed butter piece by piece until fully emulsified and silky.

Add the reserved mussels, peeled prawns, sautéed mushrooms, lemon zest and half the parsley to the sauce and warm gently over low heat for 1–2 minutes — do not boil or the cream will split and the shellfish will toughen.

Spoon the sauce and seafood generously over the sole, scatter with the remaining parsley, and serve immediately with lemon wedges alongside.