Morel
Morchella esculenta · Morchellaceae
Also called Common Morel
The great prize of spring: a honeycombed hollow cone, best hunted on disturbed chalky ground.
Edible with caution. Morels are toxic raw and must be cooked thoroughly. Slice lengthways to confirm the hollow interior.
Read the full foraging safety guidance.
Season
March to May
Where it grows
- Chalky soil
- Woodchip
- Disturbed ground
- Old orchards
Identification
- Cap
- 4-12cm, pale tan to ochre, a pitted honeycomb of irregular ridges and hollows.
- Gills / pores
- None.
- Stem
- White, hollow, continuous with the hollow cap.
- Flesh
- Completely hollow from cap tip to stem base when sliced lengthways.
- Spore print
- Cream.
- Smell & taste
- Pleasant and earthy.
Lookalikes
False Morel (Gyromitra esculenta) has a brain-like lobed reddish-brown cap and is NOT hollow inside. Early morels are lobed rather than pitted.
In the kitchen
Cook for at least 10 minutes. Superb with cream, chicken and sherry. Dries beautifully.
Also caution
Chicken of the Woods
Laetiporus sulphureus
Vivid sulphur-yellow and orange brackets on standing trees, with a texture famously like chicken breast.
Wood Blewit
Lepista nuda
A late-season woodland mushroom with a striking lilac flush and a perfumed smell.
Field Blewit
Lepista saeva
A pasture mushroom with a dull buff cap and an unmistakable violet-blue stem.