Morel Recipes!?

[Mayfly]

Ok, with all the chatter about Morel mushrooms on here I think its about time that we discussed what we do with them after we find them!? Do they dry? Do they go in the fridge? Can we freeze them? Are they best eaten plain and dipped in ranch? Or do we smother our steaks with them? Or as one person stated do we just fry them up with some butter and garlic? Whats your favorite way to eat the mighty Morel??

[dakids]

Favorite way?  Fried with butter and venison steaks. Fried with butter and garlic, or on top of an omlet.  I have never tried them raw.

[thunderpout]

First I gotta say Im not even a mushroom guy... never liked mushrooms, HATE any game hidden/cooked in cream of mushroom soup.  BUT I was turkey hunting years back down by Houston MN.  Got my tom the second day.... buddies still had to get theirs so I went trout fishing.... got some nice german brownies and a brookie or two... was told by the landowner whos land we were turkey hunting on, that I could find tons of morels on his land... found so many that I had a box of em for him... had butter & garlic pan fried trout fillets butterflied next to a big ole bed of morels sizzling next to em.....   Best thing Ive ever had... funny, I still dont like mushrooms, but morels are an entirely different animal.....

[Woody]

I've never had them fresh.   Our family usually dries them for use later.  We use a couple different methods to dry them. 

1- thread a needle with some string, then push the needle through the base of each mushroom.  Once all mushrooms are an a string, hang both ends of the string up and let the shrooms dry-it takes a few days or longer. 

2-using an old window screen lay out all the mushrooms, set the screen in an attic or some place out of the way and safe from mice and ants.  Again this take considerable time to dry completely.  They will be brittle like a fall leaf. 

So what do you do with these dried mushrooms you ask?  For one we put some in with a roast and they are delicious.  Especially when added in the gravy. 

[Mayfly]

So i got myself a haul of Morels this morning. A friend was kind enough to bring me out to a honey hole for my first morel experience. Anyways, we found about 25 - 30 shrooms and now its time to eat! I found a few recipes that I would like to try. Take a look at this one I found on-line...


This recipe has been the Wood family favorite for many years. You can substitute the crackers with flour if so desired.

1 big haul of fresh morel mushrooms
2 lbs real butter (or margrine)
1 doz eggs
1 box saltine crackers
Mushroom Preparation - Wash and cut fresh mushrooms into quarters, slicing long way. Soak in large bowl of salt water to remove and kill all those little pesty critters. Leave soak in refrigerator for a couple hours.

Note: if you are not going to cook your shrooms within the next day two after picking them, make sure to drain the excess water and keep covered with damp paper towel and refridgerate. This prevents your mushrooms from getting soggy and mushy. Drain excess water and lay on cookie sheet.

Preparing the Feast - Pre-heat skillet (cast iron preferred) and about 4 tablespoons of the butter over medium low heat. Crack eggs into large bowl and beat till blended well. Place a large amount of crackers into a ziplock bag and roll with a roller to finely crushed crumbs and place in large mixing bowl.

Place a hand full of cut and cleaned mushrooms into egg batter and coat real good. Individually cover mushrooms in cracker crumbs. Place in pre-heated skillet (cast iron preferred) and butter. Saute in butter for approx 5 minutes over medium heat turning as needed

Note: add more butter as needed and be carefull not to over heat the butter.

Serving Suggestions -You can eat'm as fast as the cook can cook them. The Wood family typically feasts with burgers and fresh vegee's. Good company and shroom'n stories of the day's hunt top off this great feast! It truly does not get any better than this!