Foraged chicken of the wood mushrooms are used in this recipe, but of course you can substitute with some that are more readily available, for example, closed cap or chestnut. Prep the chicken of the woods by brushing off any exterior dirt/grit first with a dry brush then by slightly wetting it under a tap. Don't run the mushrooms directly beneath the water. Then trim off the woody edges that were touching the tree as they are a bit too tough to eat.
Heat a large saucepan up over a medium heat and add the oil plus the mushrooms and fry them gently. Season them with salt and pepper, then transfer them to a bowl after frying for 4-5 minutes and set aside until later. Add a little more oil then add in the sliced onions and fry gently until translucent and soft. Add salt, pepper, the smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, crushed garlic. Stir through the onions to coat.
Add in the mustard, a squeeze of lemon juice and the wine. Cook the alcohol in the wine off for a couple of minutes then pour in the vegetable stock. Stir again. Bring to a gentle simmer. Simmer gently with a lid on until the liquid reduces by around half.
Re-add the mushrooms and stir through the sauce. Simmer the mushrooms in the sauce for around 3-4 minutes until they have absorbed flavour from the sauce. Remove from the heat. Add most of the chopped parsley, reserving a few pieces for garnish and then add the crème friache / quark. Stir through until the sauce becomes creamy. Season with more salt and pepper to taste then serve up over the rice and garnish with a few parsley leaves.
