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Spring’s Most Sought-After 'Shrooms
Six delicious morel mushroom recipes.
Spring has sprung, which means it’s officially morel season. These relatively rare 'shrooms are one of the most highly prized foods in the world, and for good reason: It’s all but impossible to cultivate them, and therefore they must be foraged and found in the wild. But morels are well worth the effort—or premium price tag—as their uniquely smoky, buttery, nutty, and even sometimes sweet flavor is unparalleled.
Fortunately, foraging for these specific 'shrooms is fairly safe because they have a distinctive look. If you come across fungi with cone-shaped caps featuring sponge-like crevices, odds are good they’re morels. However, there is a mushhroom known as a false morel. This imposter is more red than brown, with a more shriveled-looking cap. Of course, if there’s any uncertainty in identifying your found treasures, it’s best to avoid eating them. (Better safe than sorry!)
If you’re not one for digging in the dirt and are instead planning to shop for morels, you’ll likely find one of a few main varieties at your local farmers’ market: Chinese morels; orchard morels from California; blonde morels from Oregon and Northern California; Turkish morels; and burn morels, which appear after forest fires and are the most common variety.
However you acquire them, it’s best to use morels within a few days of forage or purchase. Our friends at FreshCap suggest cutting the mushrooms in half and then soaking them in cool salt water to clean them. If you’re not ready to cook the fungi right away, you can store them loose in the refrigerator, but best to avoid any airtight bags or containers.
When you are ready to prepare your morels, options abound. Here are a few of our favorite recipes.
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Six Recipes That’ll Make Morel Mushrooms Sing This Spring
Sautéed Morel Mushrooms
The rich flavor of morels makes them the ideal candidate for a simple preparation. This recipe involves an easy-to-execute sauté, but if you feel compelled to zhuzh it up, you can stuff the stems with mashed potatoes, à la Martha Stewart.
Morel Mushroom Risotto
Mushrooms are always an ideal addition to risotto. Morels make this dish extra tasty and timely for spring.
Fried Morels
This is the most standard way to prepare and consume morels, and for good reason. These fried fungi are easy to make and deliciously addictive. Serve with a splash of fresh lemon.
Asparagus and Morel Pizza with Garlic Confit
If you want to impress guests—or just treat yourself—this pizza recipe is the way to go. It’s super seasonal, fresh, healthy(ish), and a gorgeous addition to any tablescape.
Morel Mushroom and Quinoa Salad
If you’re looking for lighter fare, this airy yet satiating salad will hit the spot. It pairs morels with protein-dense quinoa and flavorful pine nuts, garlic, shallot, arugula, and goat cheese.
Morel and Scallion Omelet
You can also toss morels into an omelet, much as you would any mushroom. This recipe pairs them simply with scallions and a touch of Dijon mustard.
And if you can’t find morels, you can sub in other mushrooms, like portobellos, in any of the above recipes, though the flavor won’t be exactly the same. Additional spring mushrooms to test out in your kitchen include porcini, wood ear, oyster, and hen of the woods.