Mina found wild morels in Leeds

Mina Said-Allsopp is my foraging heroine – she knows just about everything there is to know about all things to do with wild food. Of course, it goes without saying that she has found wild morels! (In a supermarket car park in Leeds, West Yorkshire, of all places...)

Here, she shares with us her story of finding them in Leeds for the first time:

I found my first wild morels last year, in 2011, after spending years dreaming and searching for them. They were growing in the wood chip around the parking lot of a local supermarket.

I was so unbelievably excited that I could barely control my urge to do a wild dance around them. The only thing that stopped me wasn’t people thinking I was crazy, but me being afraid that if they looked at me too long they would notice the morels!

I returned to the spot several times over the next three weeks and picked a few more each time. I never used a basket (in case people looked in it and saw my little treasures) but put them into paper bags. It was the most clandestine foraging I have ever done!

“ It had been quite dry before I found the mushrooms, but they only came up when the rain started. Apparently they grow much bigger and faster if they get plenty of moisture, so the biggest ones I found were clustered around where the rainwater drained off onto the woodchip. ”

The find was a total surprise and all the more awesome for it. We go to that supermarket quite often and I spotted them while walking past the flower beds.

I dried the lot of them. This is apparently supposed to intensify the flavour so I thought it would be a good idea. I didn’t want to take the slightest risk that they would go funky while I was still trying to think of a recipe. They were way too precious for that!

I used them to make a roast chicken. I sautéed some onions, garlics and herbs and added in the rehydrated, chopped mushrooms, the water I’d soaked them in and some fresh breadcrumbs. Then I separated the skin from the meat of the chicken and stuffed the space with the mixture before roasting it in the oven. It was just divine.

Next time I shall leave the chicken to soak up the flavour of the mushrooms a bit longer before chucking it in the oven, but even with the few minutes it had it still tasted amazing.

Morel season is still not quite over (early May) and there are people still finding them around the country. Leeds soil is not the right stuff to find wild morels growing in the woods so my top tip is to keep an eye on wood chip.

Here's some more tantalising images... 

Finding wild morel mushrooms (in London)

My wonderful friend Emma posted this picture on my facebook wall recently – two of my favourite things – pizza and morels! She agreed to answer some questions about her experience of finding these wonderful springtime fungi.

When and where did you find your morel mushrooms?

North Essex, Hatfield Forest area, after a spring walk in the rain on Saturday 28th April. 

What was the weather like when you found them?

It had been raining A LOT and the day itself was particularly damp; we had to welcome the spring with wet feet and freezing fingertips.

Describe the area where you found the morels

They were on a verge of grass at the roadside, next to the forest and woodland area (Hatfield).

We also found Oxslips (similar to Cowslips, but longer stems and the colour of primrose) in the woodland, and gathered in a circle to dance in celebration of their existence! Some of the spring walkers were less impressed by this, especially the 12-year-olds who promptly bolted...

Had you expected to find the morels? Or was it totally unexpected?

I hadn't expected to find them (others may have). I wouldn't have known they were morels myself.

They were spotted by a friend of our spring walk guide (Bob Gilbert) who was looking out for mushrooms. He also found St George mushrooms, a blewit and a Giant puff ball.

I ran off after Oxslip dancing to find some more morels – I loved their creepy bodies and wonky hats.

How many did you find and what did you do with them?

I'd say we found about 8-10, some in worse condition than others! We took them home, identified them, and then they were whisked away!