flipDiri ak djon-djon (black mushroom rice)
Diri ak djon-djon (black mushroom rice)
Why this dish? Djon-djon, a small black mushroom from Haiti, tints the rice a deep-water gray. It is served on great occasions — exactly the kind of festive dish shared during a sèvis, when honoring the lwa, and its dark color evokes the marine depths, the "anba dlo", where Lasirèn reigns with the dead.
A fragrant rice cooked in the soaking water of djon-djon mushrooms, which colors it a deep gray-black, seasoned with épis (Haitian herb base), sometimes enriched with peas and seafood.
You want to see where I truly come from? Look at this rice: it has taken the color of anba dlo, the land under the water where the ancestors sleep. It is my little black mushrooms that give this hue — never throw away their soaking water, for that is where all the flavor lives. It is cooked for feast days, when the drum calls; serve it steaming, and keep the first plate for the spirits' table.
- •Dried djon-djon mushrooms — a handful (color and umami, signature of the dish)
- •Rice — as needed (base)
- •Épis (thyme, garlic, parsley, onion, pounded hot pepper) — to taste (Haitian aromatic base)
- •Fresh peas — a ladleful (garnish)
- •Oil — a drizzle (cooking)
- •Salt — to taste (seasoning)
Diri ak djon-djon (black mushroom rice)
A fragrant rice cooked in the soaking water of djon-djon mushrooms, which colors it a deep gray-black, seasoned with épis (Haitian herb base), sometimes enriched with peas and seafood.
Why this dish? Djon-djon, a small black mushroom from Haiti, tints the rice a deep-water gray. It is served on great occasions — exactly the kind of festive dish shared during a sèvis, when honoring the lwa, and its dark color evokes the marine depths, the "anba dlo", where Lasirèn reigns with the dead.
You want to see where I truly come from? Look at this rice: it has taken the color of anba dlo, the land under the water where the ancestors sleep. It is my little black mushrooms that give this hue — never throw away their soaking water, for that is where all the flavor lives. It is cooked for feast days, when the drum calls; serve it steaming, and keep the first plate for the spirits' table.
Ingredients (period version)
- Dried djon-djon mushrooms — a handful (color and umami, signature of the dish)
- Rice — as needed (base)
- Épis (thyme, garlic, parsley, onion, pounded hot pepper) — to taste (Haitian aromatic base)
- Fresh peas — a ladleful (garnish)
- Oil — a drizzle (cooking)
- Salt — to taste (seasoning)
Ingredients
- Dried djon-djon mushrooms (or dried porcini/morels) — 15 g (color and umami)
- Long-grain rice — 300 g (base)
- Garlic cloves — 3 (aromatic)
- Fresh thyme — a few sprigs (aromatic)
- Onion — 1 (aromatic)
- Peas — 150 g (garnish)
- Oil — 3 tbsp (cooking)
- Salt — 1 tsp (seasoning)
Method
- Soak the djon-djon in 600 ml hot water for 20 min; strain and reserve the black water (discard sand).
- Sauté the onion, garlic, and thyme in oil.
- Add the peas, then the rinsed rice; stir for 1 min.
- Pour in the black mushroom soaking water (top up to ~550 ml), salt.
- Cover and cook on low heat ~18 min until absorbed, rest 5 min, fluff with a fork.
How it was made : Djon-djon (Psathyrella) grows in certain regions of Haiti and is harvested dried; it has become the emblem of festive cuisine. Rice was cooked over a wood fire in a cast-iron pot (chodyè), the mushroom water replacing broth. Rice, imported then cultivated, became the base of Creole meals.
The contemporary twist : Top with a shrimp or a piece of grilled fish for the mermaid's marine touch.
Lasiren · Charactorium
