More morels, please!

Though the morel season is behind us, there’s no reason why we can’t enjoy these savory fungi dried year-round.

Prized for their nutty flavour, these mushrooms are common in French cooking, taking a simple sauce from ordinary to extraordinary. Their distinguishing features include a cone-shaped, honeycomb-like cap and a hollow stem. Morels come in a variety of colours, including the most common, yellow, white, and black.

These guys (fun-guys, that is) can be a bit pricey, but you really don’t need a lot to take your dish to the next level. And if you’re wondering whether dried morels can live up to their fresh counterpart’s reputation, don’t fret—dried and reconstituted morels are chock full of the rich umami flavour that made this fungi a star in fine French cooking.

If you’re wondering what to do with these funky fungi once you have them, cooking them up can be as simple as plopping them in a skillet with a spot of butter, or incorporating them into a creamy soup. Another popular way of cooking up morels is to bread and fry them. And because of their rich, savory flavour, they’re an excellent addition to a vegetarian meal, adding the richness and depth sometimes lacking in a meatless dinner.

How do you cook your morels?