Foragers and chefs alike go crazy for morel mushrooms in early Spring. Here are my 4 favorite fresh morel recipes!
The season for morel mushrooms is brief, around April to late May, and after that, it becomes rare for people to even think about it.
But because mushrooms are a favorite among foragers, professional mushroom hunters and chefs in the United States, they make the most of it for the rest of the year.
Morel mushrooms are characterized as having a meaty texture, a fragrant, nutty flavor, rich and earthy flavor.
Much to my surprise, even this distinctive honeycomb appearance is rich in nutritional value.
Compared with other edible mushrooms, the fresh morel mushrooms are rich in vitamin D, potassium, and copper which are beneficial to the heart.
Yet foraging or mushroom hunting for species of morel mushroom may entail extra caution as it has several poisonous look alike wild mushrooms.
You should be careful of these false morels, especially that some of them are deadly.
For a complete guide on how to forage for morels, check out my post.
For morel mushrooms, they are best cooked when fresh.
They can also be preserved if you want to continue enjoying its distinct flavor throughout the year.
Finest Fresh Morel Recipes You Can Try At Home
If you want to try some delicious fresh morels mushroom recipes, this page will be your guide to satisfying your taste buds!
So get your ingredients, cooking utensils, and cooking skills ready to try out different ways to cook this delicious ingredient.
1. King of the Plate (Morels with Flour)
Courtesy of Jim from Imperial
Ingredients:
- pounds of morels (sliced morels)
- 1/2 cup Flour (or more)
- 4 tablespoons of butter or margarine
- Salt
- Pepper
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Directions:
Preparation
- Coat Morels in flour (either in gallon zip lock bag that has flour in it or using a plate covered in flour)
- Melt butter in a frying pan over medium heat (don’t overheat it!!!!!)
Cooking
- Sauté mushrooms (gently) in butter/margarine. Turning when needed.
- Remove from the skillet and salt and pepper to taste.
- Enjoy the mushrooms with homemade bread (warm) with butter and you have a meal better than any that has ever been served to royalty.
2. Pan-Fried Morels
This easy recipe is courtesy of Tiffany who won the 2017 Recipe of the Month Contest.
Ingredients:
- Morel mushrooms of coarse
- 2 cups Organic Flour
- ¼ tsp Cayenne Pepper Powder
- ¼ tsp Onion Powder
- Plenty of Sea salt for brine
- 2 Eggs
- ½ cup Milk
- 1 Stick of Butter or Ghee
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Total Time: 27 minutes
Equipment:
- 3 large mixing bowls
- Skillet/frying pan
- Tongs
Instructions:
Preparation
- First you will brine your morels in a cool salt water bath using water and salt.
Your brine should be as salty as the ocean to properly do its job and you will need to let them soak for 30 minutes.
Don’t be squeamish if this is your first time preparing morels, there will be little critters emerging from your mushrooms.
This is totally natural, the brine brings them out and with a quick rinse you will have nothing to worry about.
- Mix your egg and milk in a bowl.
- Mix your flour and spices in a bowl.
- Melt your butter (or frying oil of choice) in a pan on medium-low heat.
- Now you will begin by dipping your morels in the egg and milk mix and then rolling in your flour. I like to repeat this process a second time to create a nice crispy batter.
Cooking
- Fry the morels slowly to ensure they get the proper steam to develop that lovely flavor and keep the stomach woes at bay.
I like to aim for at least 6 mins each side. If your oil gets too hot remove the pan from your broiler and reduce the heat placing the pan back on the broiler once desired temperature is reached.
- Salt to taste and enjoy nature’s bounty!!!
3. Morel Mushroom Sauce
Courtesy of Jim Baymiller, Memphis TN.
Ingredients:
- 4 Boneless Chicken Breast substitute with butterflied walleye fish, pheasant breasts, or veal cutlets
- 3 tbsp butter (no substitute)
- 3 cups morels (sliced 1″ long)
- ½ tbs dried parsley
- ¼ tsp pepper
- ¼ cup green onion (thinly sliced)
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 2 cups whipping cream
- 1 tsp Lawrey’s salt
- ½ tsp Dijon mustard
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Directions:
Preparation
- Chop morels into small slices not more than 1 inch long
- Chop green onions into thin slices
- Finely chop parsley if using fresh parsley
Cooking
Chicken (or substitute)
- Sautee boneless chicken breasts in a few tablespoons hot butter until done. Keep warm until the sauce is finished.
Cream Sauce
- In a 12″ non-stick large skillet, heat 3 Tbs. butter (no substitute) over med.-high heat until foaming.
- Add 3 Cups small gray morels – for larger morels cut into slices no more than 1″ long.
- Sautee, stirring occasionally, for 15-20 min. until slightly crispy.
- Add 1/4 C. thinly sliced green onion tops, 1/2 Tbsp. dried parsley, 1/4 tsp. nutmeg, 1/4 tsp. pepper, 1 tsp. Lawrey’s salt, and cook for a few minutes.
- Turn heat to higher and add 1/2 C. dry white wine and reduce to almost a glaze.
- Turn heat to med. and add 2 C. heavy cream and 1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard.
- Reduce slightly over slow boil until thickened- about 10-12 min.
- Plate and serve morel sauce over chicken and enjoy!.
4. A Grandmother’s Fried Morel Recipe
Courtesy of Laurie L
Ingredients:
- a batch of raw Morels halved, cleaned & soaked
- 2 cups cornmeal
- ¼ milk
- 1 country egg
- 1 cup bacon grease
- 1 tbsp black pepper
Prep Time: 14 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 24 minutes
Equipment:
- wide shallow bowl
- large cast iron skillet
- thick paper bag
Directions:
Preparation
- One batch of dry Morels, halved, cleaned & soaked “a while” or overnight in salt water with a heavy plate weighing them down in the water, then rinsed well & drained at cooking time.
- In a wide shallow large bowl: mix 1 Country Egg with 1/4 c. milk
- In a thick paper bag: add 2 c. cornmeal with 1 t. black pepper mixed in.
- In a deep well-seasoned cast-iron skillet, melt bacon grease 1″ deep.
- Get it good and hot but not smoking.
- Now dip your fresh mushrooms in the milk and egg mixture and let them soak a little while your grease is heating.
- Pick a handful out of the bowl and shake them a little to get off some of the liquid excess then drop them in the bag of cornmeal.
- Hold your hand on the bottom of the bag so it doesn’t break, and gently shake.
- Add more mushrooms, shaking gently after each addition.
Cooking
- When they are all coated very well, start laying them in a single layer in the hot skillet.
- Try to only turn them once, that way your coating stays on better.
- Don’t salt, bacon grease is salty.
- When golden brown, drain on paper and serve.
Here are some of the great recipes for fresh mushroom morels you can try at home or for a special occasion.
You can also buy morels at a farmer’s market or in a grocery store.
