Inspired by a chowder we had in a lovely little fish café on a trip through County Cork a few years ago, this is a fragrant, sophisticated, incredibly tasty fish soup that is even lovelier with a few blobs of dill oil floating greenly on the surface.

400g mixed chowder fish – cod, coley, ling, haddock, in 2.5cm dice

1 tspn smoked salt

½ tspn fresh ground black pepper

400g raw unpeeled prawns

Light olive oil

200g carrots, scrubbed and chopped

200g onions, peeled and chopped

2 tbspns tomato puree

½ tsp fennel seeds

a good handful of fresh dill stalks or a tspn of dried dill

1 tbspn dried tarragon or a drizzle of Pernod

30g butter

50g flour

70mls double cream

Salt & pepper to season

Dill Oil and lovely bread and butter to serve

• Rub the fish all over in the smoked salt and pepper, put back in the fridge

• Preheat the oven to 220C. Peel the prawns and place the shells and heads in a baking tray with a good drizzle of light olive oil, and bake for 10 minutes

• Put the roasted shells and heads in a large saucepan or wok with the carrots, onions, tomato puree, tarragon, dill and fennel seeds, and 2 litres of water. Bring to the boil, and turn down to a bare simmer for 1 hour. Strain into a bowl, and clean out the wok or saucepan

• Put the peeled prawns in your blender and add a couple of ladles full of the stock and blend very well. Add this mix back to the stock

• Put the wok or pan back on a medium heat. Melt the butter, and stir in the flour till you have a nice sandy textured roux, then start to pour in the prawn stock, stirring continuously till you have a nice smooth, thickened soup. When you’ve added all the prawn stock, drizzle in a little Pernod, stir in the cream, then correct the seasoning with unsmoked salt and pepper. The whole process can be paused here

• When you’re 10 minutes away from serving, bring the soup back to a boil, and add the fish. Simmer till it’s just cooked. Serve in soup bowls with a drizzle of dill oil, and some lovely bread and butter