Mushroom Hunting for Magical Morels

The following column was written by Graelyn Brashear:

My fiancé came home from a hike with a friend and pulled out his camera to show me a photo.

“Look at this strange mushroom we found,” he said. My jaw hit the floor, and I said, rather weakly, “Can we go back? Like, right now?"

Hunting for morels was an important rite of spring during my childhood in Virginia’s Blue Ridge, so it was a bit of a thrill to know they pop up in our Pinelands, too. Here’s what you should know if you’re interested in foraging for some. Your hunt, however, must be a cautious one.

What it is:

The morel is one of the mushroom hunter’s choicest finds. Despite looking like a decaying sponge or the brain of some kind of alien creature, they are delicious. Really. 

If you’ve never tried fresh wild mushrooms, know that it’s an experience altogether different from eating the boring white kind you buy in the supermarket, or even chowing down on more flavorful shiitakes. Morels are delicate and nutty and absolutely delicious, especially sliced thin and lightly sautéed in butter.

To get an idea of just how prized they are, look for a packet of dried morels in your grocery store and check out the price tag. Dried, they'll run you about $200 a pound. Hence the jaw on the floor.

There are a few species of morels that grow in our area; all the “true morels” you’ll find in New Jersey are edible. The ones we look for most ardently are called simply morel (Morchella esculenta) and black morel (Morchella angusticeps).

Morels have a whitish stalk and a cap, or head, that looks like a pitted sponge. The black morel has a darker cap, with elongated pits and ridges; M. esculenta tends to be lighter, with pits that are more round.

The pits are key. If your mushroom looks sort of like a morel but has a cap that’s merely wrinkled with no clearly defined holes, and it's solid on the inside, DON'T EAT IT. It’s probably one of the false morels, a few of which are poisonous.

Where to find it:

Morels are famously elusive. Not only are they relatively uncommon in our area, they often blend in beautifully with their surroundings. We learned growing up to start keeping an eye on the ground when oak trees’ leaves are in the “mouse-ear” stage — just about a half-inch long and still rounded. In New Jersey, that translates to early May. Though, wet springs, unlike this one, make for the most successful hunting.

These mushrooms usually grow in wooded areas, favoring old apple orchards or areas with lots of beach, maple and oak trees. While I’m less familiar with their New Jersey range, morels do have a tendency to spring up in abundance in recently burned areas, which means some stretches of the Pine Barrens could be great places to look.

Why bother:

Because they’re tasty! And foraging for food in the wild can be a joy. A word of common-sense warning: If you’re not 100 percent certain of the kind of mushroom you’ve found, do not eat it. There are some seriously toxic species out there. While morels are very distinctive, it’s best to bring along somebody who knows what he or she is looking for.

On a related note, make sure you’re hunting in an area that isn’t contaminated. As with foraged plants, it’s wise to avoid eating anything found growing along a road or railroad bed, or on a lawn — those areas tend to be loaded with pesticides and other toxins.

Happy hunting! If you find any, let us know!