The Newton of Ypsilanti

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The March of the Morels (They’re Almost Here!)

Beth Ellis

No matter our politics, our beliefs, our values, our faith, there is at least one matter on which we can all agree: WE ALL LOVE MUSHROOMS. Right?! No? Okay, maybe not everyone - mushrooms are actually one of the most polarizing foods we eat, right up there with cilantro, smelly cheese, and olives. In our own cooking adventures, we have marveled at the near-surgical precision mushroom-haters can employ to extract mushrooms from a risotto or a soup. Many mushroom lovers really love mushrooms, though, and for an even smaller subset of people, the morel mushroom is just about the most exciting food in existence. The emergence of the morel heralds the coming of spring, and many Michigan foragers guard their morel hunting spots closely. Right around now, they’re beginning to check their secret spots for the first signs of the mushrooms, because once the heads are visible, there is a harvest window of only a few days. Skilled (and/or lucky) foragers can sell morels to chefs eager to put them on menus, but most morel hunters are just hoping to put morels on their own plates. Morels are notoriously difficult to cultivate, so for the most part, they are only available during their brief growing season (late-April to mid-June in Michigan). More than a few poems have been written about the morel, and they read like Victorian love poetry - morels are elusive, mysterious, shy, bashful, and precious gems whose beauty goes unnoticed by all but the fastidious few. 

We are perched on the cusp of morel-hunting season here in southeast Michigan; there was a sighting just south of us earlier this week! If you want to give morel-hunting a try, check out some of the resources we have linked below. Morels are fairly distinctive looking, but there are a few toxic look-alike species which are generally lumped together as “false morels.” And be prepared to channel your inner criminal persona, as one writer described morel hunters thus:

“These are the… people who, if you come upon them in the forest, always look suspicious and paranoid, like someone waiting for a drug deal. They walk slowly through the pines, heads bent. When they see you they try to look casual, like they just happen to be taking a little stroll. Never mind the basket they carry or that funny, curved knife in their hands. They barely offer a wave before scooting off to a quieter part of the forest.”

Should you be so fortuitous as to find a morel or two (or even a patch!), you’ll find countless recipes for cooking them. We think that the best way to prepare them, though, is to simply sauté them with a little butter and salt, and eat them right out of the pan! It’s certainly not a complicated recipe, but it’s a shame to hide this mushroom’s flavor with elaborate preparations. If you do want to get a little fancy, the great chef and food writer J. Kenji López-Alt recommends a sauté with a few more ingredients that highlight the morel’s delicate earthiness. López-Alt’s recipe post also includes some excellent graphics if you’re not sure how to clean and trim your morels.

 Let us know if you get lucky!

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