You have Morels already? My brother told me yesterday that buddies of his are finding the black ones, which is early. No Morels yet that I know of. I found one in my courtyard garden under the crabapple tree some years ago. Pretty cool.

Yummy.

Never had morels. How will you cook them?

I am a Morel virgin...I've never tasted one before and am sorry for it!!! Those look fantastic Annie. I did see one very like that in my garden a few times, but I have a policy about not going around munching on unkown plants/foliage/& fungi, LOL!

Wow, I didn't even think about the mushroom rinse water having spores in it for next year. Very clever.
I really liked hearing of your Morel hunting- thanks for sharing!
CMK

I've never had Morels either, what do they taste like? One of our sons gets lots of Chanterelles on his property but they're the white ones. I love Chanterelles but very rarely do I get to eat them. Me, I just have to buy what's available at the grocers :(.

Annette

I've eaten magic shrooms before....;-)

Wow! My husband is the mushroom hunter in the family and Morels are his favorite. I have never seen them so huge though! In our northern climate they tend to be 1/2 the size of the ones in your post.

Morels taste like....Mushrooms!
Hard to describe they flavor. They have a stronger flavor than the ones at the supermarkets - like the fancy ones you can buy (I can't afford to buy them, but had them at a fancy Italian restaurant - once).

Morels sell for $80 a pound in some places, but the bigger ones are worth even more.

I found most of them under a cedar tree by the veggie garden/new orchard. They grow there EVEY year. They were all nice sized this year. I found the two biggest ones up in the Big Wood and found the three little greys under the cedars on the south side of the back yard. Wahoo!
Once you spot one, you get so excited, and start running around everywhere searching for more! :)

The great thing about Morels is that they are so easy to identify and the only mushroom in early spring (at least here in Okie), so even an amateur can easily ID them and safely go "Shroom Hunting" for Morels.

They are very early this year because our spring is early this year. Usually Morels start popping up in mid-to-late April.

I usually just slice them and then saute them in a little olive oil. Add salt and pepper and that's all. A glass of red wine or Chablis and some fat-daddy Italian bread and you've got a great feast!

Love it!

Don't wash them UNTIL you get ready to cook them or they will turn to slim. Like I said, save the rinse water and toss it back out where you found them growing.

The Heathen will NOT eat them. He is scared they will poison him, so I get to eat them all by myself. :)
~Annie

We always have them in our woods garden too, sometimes in the gravel paths and you have to step carefully lest you crush them! This year I found a nice batch on the roots of an old stump in a hosta bed, and a few more on the paths where they always grow. I saw another one pop up this afternoon but I forgot to pick it.

My husband went trout fishing this weekend and we are going to have fresh grilled trout and morels tomorrow!

I didn't think about tossing out the water on the spot where they grow, I'll do that this time!

Sandy

One year, I dumped the rinse water under the apple tree. For the next three years, they grew there.

The experts say to use a mesh bag when gathering Morels so that the spores can fall through the openings in the bag. Save those mesh onion bags - they are perfect for this.

But if you rinse out the bowl or bucket that you carried them in and dumped that rinse water back out where you found them, it does the same thing, right? Maybe even better, me thinks.

I've had great luck doing this. In fact, every year there are more and more mushrooms growing under the cedars by the garden. Today was just the first day. I am sure there will be more to pick in the following days - there always is, but this was the most Morels I have ever found on the very first day.

Good hunting...and bon appétit!

~Annie

Now...why won't the Garden Web post my French spellings with the accent marks? This is ridiculous!

Grrrrrr...........

My mouth is watering, but with 3 ft. of snow on the ground still this week, we have a ways to go. We found some last summer on the side of the lawn...unfortunately they were already past their prime. Same 3 years ago when I found them in the strawberry bed. I've never found them in the same place twice, except for a few years in a row after a burn...which is the best place to find them in Alaska.

Looking at them, don't you wonder who was the first person who thought I'm gonna eat this thing? They don't look all that edible if you don't know what they are.

That's interesting about putting the water with spores back into the garden. I never would've thought of that. Not that I've ever hunted for morels. We probably don't have them around here.

Sandy,

Not sure what part of Utah you live in, but I know they grow there too.

Check out the Link I provided below. There are links there to other sites like "sightings" and etc.
But you will see they grow just about everywhere.

~Annie

Here is a link that might be useful: The Great Morel

Mom would soak them in water not only to get the dirt out but also the bugs, slice them, then dredge them in flour, and fry in butter. The mushroom hunters around here have their own secret hunting grounds and I've seen them come into the local small town market with HUGE morels that you can hardly believe are real.

Yes, there are incidents of huge brawls breaking out over hunting ground RIGHTS! They keep there places a secret. I have had hunters come by here and ask if I knew where they were some growing. Are you kidding? If I knew, do you think I would tell you? Seriously. If I ever caught anyone on my land foraging, I would beat them with an ugly stick. Private Property - Keep out! But seriously, my big dogs keep strangers away. Been here 17 years and never had anyone prowling around yet, anyway.

Yes, they are very good fried like that. Yum!
I found one two years ago that was bigger than my hand. That is the biggest one I have ever found, and only the one.

I found four more 'Shrooms early this morning. Nice big ones too. It's so fun to find them! Like hunting for Easter Eggs!

I have never found any bugs in mine when I soak them, but you definitely want to get all that soil off and out of them, and then remember to throw the rinse water back out where you found them for next year's crop. I now have two gallon size zip-lock bags full waiting in the fridge for the Spring Feast. :)
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sandyslopes:
Animals will eat them too, like deer, so I am sure that the early humans saw this and took notice.
They are hideous looking things for sure, aren't they?

I was raised a city girl now a farm girl I love the mushrooms of all kinds. I will have to tell my hubby about the rinse water he is a farm boy and weve been married over 50 years and Ihave never heard anyne telling about the rinse water. Ours here appear when wild phlox appear and lilacs bloom. Can't wait

I have wonderful childhood memories of my Mother picking wild mushrooms in our huge back yard - several acres of reclaimed farmland. Never when my Father was home - always when he was on the road!! lol. she must have learned from her Dad. She did them in a cream sauce then put them on toast - so good. I never learned the trick to what was good or not good.

Nancy.

Nancy, that sounds so delicious!
I'll make some and let you know how they turn out.
Thanks for the idea!
~Annie

I've never had one. They look delicious. And much bigger than I thought!
Renee

I had never eaten them either until I moved to this part of the state. They grow in abundance in this area. People come from quite a distance to pick them. I've heard people at work talking about looking for them already, but have not heard of any found yet. They are delicious!