Morels are wild mushrooms with distinctive ridged caps that resemble honeycombs. They comprise a range of species that taxonomists have argued over ever since Christiaan Hendrik Persoon classified Morchella esculenta (the yellow morel, or common morel) in 1794. Different species are commonly referred to by color: yellows, blacks, greys, blondes, and whites. All are considered delicacies in mushroom circles.
The morel is the first mushroom of the year in most parts of the country. After a long winter or a lack of variety in ingredients, chefs flock to morels as an ephemeral luxury.”
— Iulian Fortu
“The fascination with morels comes from several angles,” says chef-forager Iulian Fortu, a partner in Washington, D.C.’s Poplar and owner of Arcadia Venture, a purveyor of wild and cultivated mushrooms. “Morels are unique in the edible mushroom world.”
Fortu identifies several reasons that mushroom connoisseurs are enamored with them.
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