Pork-stuffed morel mushrooms

 

The combination of morels and pork sausage meat is a good example of how dishes are adapted in each region, depending on what’s available locally. 

Morels are highly prized by both mushroom hunters and gourmets. For the former, because finding them is the challenge. They’re difficult to hunt down and to complicate things even more, they don’t grow in the same place every year. The latter love them for their deep but delicate aroma and slightly sweet flavour. This all makes them a delicacy that you’ll find in pride of place on restaurant menus when they’re available.

The fact that they’re hollow inside makes them easy to stuff with a variety of fillings that vary depending on the region and/or type of cuisine of the places where they’re made. However, they have many other culinary uses as well. You can find them stuffed with sausage meat, such as botifarra, as in the recipe we’re going to share with you here, or with foie gras. They can also be sautéed to go with meat dishes or served with pasta or scrambled eggs, to give just a few examples.  

When you’re in the kitchen, remember that as always, when cooking with mushrooms it’s essential to follow the recipe closely. Morels must be completely cooked through since they’re toxic when raw.

RECIPE

Method:

Clean the morels thoroughly. Remove the skin from the botifarra, break up the meat and fry together with the raisins, pine nuts and finely chopped onion, seasoning with salt and pepper.

Once browned, add the cognac. Generously fill the mushrooms with the stuffing. Place them on a baking tray lightly greased with butter, drizzle with olive oil and cook for about 20 minutes.

Ingredients for pork-stuffed morel mushrooms:

- 500 g morels
- 1 raw botifarra or other slightly spicy pork sausage
- 1 tbsp each of raisins and pine nuts
- ½ glass cognac
- salt
- pepper
- 50 ml olive oil
- 20 g butter

 

Bibliography:

Book: La nostra cuina. Menges d’aquí (Our cuisine. Local dishes)
Author: Maria Dolors Ribes Roigé / Josep Ma Troguet Ribes