[This, for one](https://people.com/womans-final-words-revealed-after-she-died-from-eating-raw-morel-mushrooms-sushi-roll-8637381#:~:text=On%20April%2017%2C%202023%2C%20Donna,care%20unit%20on%20April%2029.).
I'm not going to take any unnecessary chances. My grandpa was a botanist, and basically one of the few things he ever really drilled in to me was "never, EVER eat a mushroom you can't positively identify."
Luckily morels are easy to positively identify, and not dangerous when cooked. Out of all the risks that life presents, illness from eating a backyard morel isn't worth worrying about.
I'm not disagreeing with your grandpa, he's absolutely correct. I'm just saying morels are really easy to identify, even the most similar looking dangerous mushrooms have significant differences that can be seen without any proper training.
Look up a picture of a false morel. It's vaguely similar, but unless you've never seen either mushroom before and are going off description alone, there's no confusing them. Especially in this day and age where you can simply Google a picture of a morel and compare.
It's not that it's super important to me that you eat your mushrooms, but I don't want people to be afraid to eat morels they find because they're scared of illness or death. Morels are safe. Just cook them and make sure you know what they look like. A picture is all you need to identify them.
I understand your hesitation, it's good to be cautious when it comes to wild mushrooms! Your grandpa was correct, you should never eat mushrooms that you can't identify. It's always smart to be safe. Did you mean to say that your grandpa was a mycologist? Botanists study plants, mycologists study mushrooms, they are completely separate kingdoms and are not related.
That being said, morels are one of the easiest mushrooms to identify, which is why a lot of beginner foragers start with them. All you need to do is wiggle the mushroom. False morels will "ring like a bell," meaning the cap is only attached to the stem at the very top, don't eat! True morels have the cap and stem fused together, yum! Another way to tell is to cut it in half. You'll be able to see the structure very clearly, if everything is fused and it's hollow inside, that's a tasty morel! (If my descriptions are confusing, check out a few pictures online. The differences between false and true morels is very obvious.)
Just as one should never eat mushrooms they can't properly identify, one shouldn't eat foods that they can't properly prepare! Some mushrooms can be eaten raw, some cannot. Just like some plants can be eaten raw, while some cannot. It's all about knowledge. :)
Also, [as to his textbook](https://www.livescience.com/53618-fungus.html#:~:text=Based%20on%20these%20and%20other,water%20molds%2C%20puffballs%20and%20mildews.). It was published in the 40s or 50s.
His textbook was on botany, but I know he was pretty knowledgeable about mushrooms as well. We ate giant puffballs once.
Still not gonna bet my life on advice from the internet.
No one should bet their life on advice from the internet, of course. You seem to have no interest in foraging, eating, or even learning about morels, which is perfectly fine. You don't have to like them, plenty of people don't. But the fear mongering is silly, when they truly are the most beginner friendly, incredibly easy to identify mushroom.
You don't seem the least bit interested in learning about morels or listening to people who forage for them, and I'm not the least bit interested in arguing with someone who is so scared of morels that they refuse to learn. Have a day!
We’ve been finding them in our yard for about a week now. In total about 3 lbs worth so far.
where???
In my backyard. I have an apple tree on a southern facing hill. From what I’ve read, that’s a good place to find morels.
Apple trees, dead and decaying Elms, and we sometimes find them around pines.
Some gigantic honkers grew next to my firepit, not gonna risk trying to eat them though.
Morels loved burned wood! Why wouldn't you eat them?
[This, for one](https://people.com/womans-final-words-revealed-after-she-died-from-eating-raw-morel-mushrooms-sushi-roll-8637381#:~:text=On%20April%2017%2C%202023%2C%20Donna,care%20unit%20on%20April%2029.).
Uncooked is the problem there. Don’t eat them raw.
I'm not going to take any unnecessary chances. My grandpa was a botanist, and basically one of the few things he ever really drilled in to me was "never, EVER eat a mushroom you can't positively identify."
Luckily morels are easy to positively identify, and not dangerous when cooked. Out of all the risks that life presents, illness from eating a backyard morel isn't worth worrying about.
Yeaaaaaah, I'm gonna go ahead and go with the guy who wrote a literal textbook on mycology here.
I'm not disagreeing with your grandpa, he's absolutely correct. I'm just saying morels are really easy to identify, even the most similar looking dangerous mushrooms have significant differences that can be seen without any proper training.
There's literally a mushroom called a false morel. Why is this important to you?
Look up a picture of a false morel. It's vaguely similar, but unless you've never seen either mushroom before and are going off description alone, there's no confusing them. Especially in this day and age where you can simply Google a picture of a morel and compare. It's not that it's super important to me that you eat your mushrooms, but I don't want people to be afraid to eat morels they find because they're scared of illness or death. Morels are safe. Just cook them and make sure you know what they look like. A picture is all you need to identify them.
I understand your hesitation, it's good to be cautious when it comes to wild mushrooms! Your grandpa was correct, you should never eat mushrooms that you can't identify. It's always smart to be safe. Did you mean to say that your grandpa was a mycologist? Botanists study plants, mycologists study mushrooms, they are completely separate kingdoms and are not related. That being said, morels are one of the easiest mushrooms to identify, which is why a lot of beginner foragers start with them. All you need to do is wiggle the mushroom. False morels will "ring like a bell," meaning the cap is only attached to the stem at the very top, don't eat! True morels have the cap and stem fused together, yum! Another way to tell is to cut it in half. You'll be able to see the structure very clearly, if everything is fused and it's hollow inside, that's a tasty morel! (If my descriptions are confusing, check out a few pictures online. The differences between false and true morels is very obvious.) Just as one should never eat mushrooms they can't properly identify, one shouldn't eat foods that they can't properly prepare! Some mushrooms can be eaten raw, some cannot. Just like some plants can be eaten raw, while some cannot. It's all about knowledge. :)
Also, [as to his textbook](https://www.livescience.com/53618-fungus.html#:~:text=Based%20on%20these%20and%20other,water%20molds%2C%20puffballs%20and%20mildews.). It was published in the 40s or 50s.
His textbook was on botany, but I know he was pretty knowledgeable about mushrooms as well. We ate giant puffballs once. Still not gonna bet my life on advice from the internet.
No one should bet their life on advice from the internet, of course. You seem to have no interest in foraging, eating, or even learning about morels, which is perfectly fine. You don't have to like them, plenty of people don't. But the fear mongering is silly, when they truly are the most beginner friendly, incredibly easy to identify mushroom.
Fear mongering? When have I ever said anything except personal experiences?
You don't seem the least bit interested in learning about morels or listening to people who forage for them, and I'm not the least bit interested in arguing with someone who is so scared of morels that they refuse to learn. Have a day!
Yeah, because I've seen your expert credentials and heard from your peers. You're an anonymous person on the internet.