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Fresh Morel mushrooms


winesonoma

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A friend just dropped off 6 fresh Morel's. What should I do with them? :biggrin:

Bruce Frigard

Quality control Taster, Château D'Eau Winery

"Free time is the engine of ingenuity, creativity and innovation"

111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321

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1) Thank him/her profusely.

2) Lock the door.

3) Rinse them, then dry thoroughly.

4) Slice the long way into manageable pieces.

5) Saute in butter along with a couple of diced shallots until softened

6) Add a little dry sherry, if you have, and reduce til the sherry is gone.

6) Use as an omelette filling

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They grew out of some mushroom compost from the local landscaping place. 18 total and yes I trust the guy who gave them to me as to what they are. :biggrin:

Bruce Frigard

Quality control Taster, Château D'Eau Winery

"Free time is the engine of ingenuity, creativity and innovation"

111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321

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Reduce 2 cups of good chicken stock (not the broth from a can, the real stuff) with 2 Tbsp. of dry Sherry to 1/2 cup. Cook some orzo in lightly salted water and cool. Clean the morels and quarter length wise. Blanch six or so spears of asparagus and shock. Cut asparagus on a bias into 3/4 inch pieces.

Saute Morels and asparagus in butter, add orzo and sherried chicken reduction. Enjoy!

Tobin

It is all about respect; for the ingredient, for the process, for each other, for the profession.

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Synchronicity! I just finished a tour and, walking around the backside of the winery, I found almost ONE HUNDRED morels! I've called a couple of restaurants and apparently trading is big business around here and I might be able to negotiate a few gift certificates around town...

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I just reread that and want to make it clear that I in no way was being sarcastic about "precious, precious morels." Quite the opposite: I would treat morels the way Gollum treats the ring....

In Montana a couple of years ago, we gathered several dozen morels and packed them to travel back to the east coast in (big mistake) a plastic bag. We then got held over in Minneapolis for a night. By the time we got to Providence, we had rotten, awful morel mush. :sad:

Chris Amirault

eG Ethics Signatory

Sir Luscious got gator belts and patty melts

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3) Rinse them, then dry thoroughly.

I was surprised to read this. Do you folks rinse your precious, precious morels?

Morels tend to hold a lot of dirt in their folds. It is generally unavoidable.

Tobin

It is all about respect; for the ingredient, for the process, for each other, for the profession.

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If you have an overabundance of morels and can't use them right away, put them loosely in a wire colander or basket and allow them to dry at room temp.

Or if you have an oven with a standing pilot you can put them on the oven rack and allow them to dry.

Dried morels have even more concentrated flavor than fresh.

They don't change much in appearance if dried at room temp, just become lighter in weight and shrink just a bit.

"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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Regarding cleaning: I have discovered that the silicone basting brushes are great for cleaning delicate mushrooms, the gentle "fingers" are just enough to sweep out the dirt but not damage the flesh.

"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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Synchronicity! I just finished a tour and, walking around the backside of the winery, I found almost ONE HUNDRED morels! I've called a couple of restaurants and apparently trading is big business around here and I might be able to negotiate a few gift certificates around town...

You Go Girl! :laugh::laugh:

Bruce Frigard

Quality control Taster, Château D'Eau Winery

"Free time is the engine of ingenuity, creativity and innovation"

111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321

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Synchronicity! I just finished a tour and, walking around the backside of the winery, I found almost ONE HUNDRED morels! I've called a couple of restaurants and apparently trading is big business around here and I might be able to negotiate a few gift certificates around town...

You Go Girl! :laugh::laugh:

All this talk of cleaning -- the ones I have been picking are pristinely clean and already incredibly moist. I talked to Lissa Doumani of Terra and she told me to pick them, lay them on a cookie sheet, and drape them with a damp papercloth in the fridge until I bring them to her tomorrow evening. I am SO jazzed, you have no idea!

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Grill a steak and top with the morels sauteed with shallots, fresh herbs of choice, butter and red wine. Red meat, red wine and mushrooms...-swoon-

Looks like the winner, Unless the Veal chops look good. :biggrin::biggrin:

Bruce Frigard

Quality control Taster, Château D'Eau Winery

"Free time is the engine of ingenuity, creativity and innovation"

111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321

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Grill a steak and top with the morels sauteed with shallots, fresh herbs of choice, butter and red wine. Red meat, red wine and mushrooms...-swoon-

Looks like the winner, Unless the Veal chops look good. :biggrin::biggrin:

Veal chops, Morels, Shallots, Sage Cream Sauce, Yum. :biggrin::biggrin:

Bruce Frigard

Quality control Taster, Château D'Eau Winery

"Free time is the engine of ingenuity, creativity and innovation"

111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321

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Well, I ended up giving mine an egg dip and flour dip and deep frying them. I was actually a bit disappointed - maybe the morels were too big and tough (they were about the size of my fist!). Fortunately, it is raining here again and I think I will be getting more in the next few days...

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Well, I ended up giving mine an egg dip and flour dip and deep frying them. I was actually a bit disappointed - maybe the morels were too big and tough (they were about the size of my fist!). Fortunately, it is raining here again and I think I will be getting more in the next few days...

mmm..stuffers...

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I started a thread: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=60211 about Poularde de Bresse au Vin Jaune et aux Morille. Its really a great way to use morels. Here is a recipe: http://www.interfrance.com/franche-comte/g...oularde_en.html

If you want to go morel hunting here are some tips. http://nov55.com/mr/fnd.html

My version of Poularde de Bresse au Vin Jaune et aux Morille:

Poularde4.1.JPG

Poularde2.1.JPG

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