How to Fry Morel Mushrooms in a Fry Daddy

Learning how to fry morel mushrooms in a fry daddy is a must! Morel mushrooms are considered a delicacy in our neck of the woods. They are sooo good and hard to find.

I hope that you have the chance to try this at some point in your life. There is nothing like taking something straight from nature and being able to enjoy it!

A lot of people believe that deep frying them is the best way to serve them. Let me know what you think in the comments below.

Let’s dive right into the glory of the fried morel. 

What ingredients will I need to fry morel mushrooms in a fry daddy? 

You will need self rising flour, salt, black pepper, eggs, milk, fresh morel mushrooms, and oil.

You can use vegetable or canola oil. Avocado oil has a high smoke point if you are looking for a healthier oil to try. 

If you want to substitute all-purpose flour or a pre-mixed batter mix you can. We have even used a fried chicken or fried fish mix on ours. Any seasoned flour will complement the unique flavor of the large morels.

Bass Pro has good breading choices. Onion powder makes a yummy addition to your seasoning blend.   

Where do I find Indiana morel mushrooms for frying? 

You can hunt and forage for your own morel mushrooms. I haven’t found them at the grocery store. Let me know if you have.

You might get lucky enough for someone to find the mother load and share some with you.  If they do, the mushroom hunter will probably not tell you about their secret spots! We have found two or three here and there, but not a huge group.

Read more about finding morel mushrooms on my How to Hunt for Morel Mushrooms post. I talk about morel season, what to wear, and what to look for.

Make sure the check the texture of the morel mushrooms. They shouldn’t be moldy, hard, or mushy. You want a fresh mushroom to get that earthy flavor.

For best results, fry them within 3-5 days of harvesting them.   

How Do I Store Them 

You can store them in a large bowl in the fridge. Just make sure you cover them with water or salt water. It will affect the texture of the morel mushrooms if you leave them in there for a long time.

The little bugs will float out of the crevices of the mushrooms so don’t panic when you see little things floating in the water.

When you are ready to fry them, drain out the salted water, rinse them with cold water, and pat them dry. Lay them out in a single layer on paper towels to finish drying. 

How do I keep my space clean when frying mushrooms? 

Frying mushrooms can be a bit messy.  I like to fry and prepare them in small batches.

We used to have this pretty cool product that you could put the mushrooms in after they were dipped in the egg and milk mixture.  The container held your flour mixture.  You would just put the lid on it, shake it around, and the mushrooms would be perfectly coated.  Our lid quit fitting properly and it took up a lot of cabinet space, so I got rid of it.

Now I use two shallow glass pie pans, one for the egg/milk mixture, and one for the flour mixture. I like to use a 9×13 pan lined with paper towels to put the finished mushrooms in.

I keep extra paper towels with me and wash my hands when necessary. You will find your fingers get coated after frying up a batch or so.

Keep your slotted spoon handy.  Take everything out and set it up on your table.

Frying outside on a stable folding table of sorts really helps to keep the mess down in your house.

What steps do I take to fry morel mushrooms in a “fry daddy” (deep fryer)?

Preparation Steps

• Rinse morel mushrooms in cold water and pat them dry with paper towels. You don’t want extra water hanging around on them when you go to fry them. You can even just lay them out on paper towels to help them dry off a bit.  
• Slice the morel mushrooms into rings or slices. We love slicing them into rings! They seem to fry up quicker this way and they are bite sized when you go to eat them. However, either way, they are delicious.  
• To make the egg wash, mix together two eggs about ⅓ cup milk (or heavy cream) into a dish that is large enough to hold 5-8 pieces at a time. A 9×9 pan size works well. You can use a large bowl, but I prefer a shallow bowl. I use my glass pie dish for this. Just mix it well with a fork. If you hold the fork with the backside in the mixture it acts as a whisk. I have tried to give a guess on the milk. I always eyeball this.  
• Mix together one cup of self-rising flour, 1 tsp. salt, and 1 tsp. pepper. Again, I always eyeball how much flour, salt, and pepper to mix together. I have given my best guess on amounts. You can always salt and pepper them to taste after they have come out of the fryer. You just want to make sure they are coated in the flour.
• Plug in your fryer or start heating your oil on medium heat. Give it around 5-10 minutes to heat up. You will see the oil start to swirl around. You can do this while you get everything ready if you would like. That way the oil will be hot when you are ready to fry.

Frying Steps

• Dip 5-8 mushrooms into the egg mixture first and then shake off the excess. This is a quick dip. 
• Dip those same mushrooms in the flour mixture and coat on both sides. Your hands are going to get messy.
• Shake off the excess flour, and slowly lower the mushrooms into the hot oil. Don’t drop them in or the oil will splash and burn you. You can use a spoon to lower them in if you are nervous about dropping them in with your hands.
• Let them fry for about 5-8 minutes or until golden brown. I don’t have the exact time noted here because you need to go by how they look. You don’t want them to look gray (underdone) and you don’t want them to look dark brown/black (overdone).  
• Take them out of the oil with a slotted spoon. I have pictured the one that I have used for years. It is my go to.  
• Lay them out on the plate or 9×13 dish that has paper towels in it. Give them a little more salt and pepper and you are ready to go.

What do you fry morel mushrooms in?

I have a very old “Fry Daddy” that I have used for years. I like it because you don’t have to program it.  You literally just plug it in and it heats up the oil to the right temperature.

You could use a large cast iron or regular skillet as well. I prefer the “Fry Daddy” because the oil doesn’t splash out and it heats up to the perfect temperature.

Don’t let it stop you from making these if you don’t have one though. You can make it work with a large skillet.     

Where do you fry morel mushrooms?

After years of stinking up our house with that fried smell that doesn’t seem to go away, we take the time to set up in the garage or outside.

We just set up a small table and run an extension cord to the “Fry Daddy” plug in if it is too far away from the wall outlet.

We set up our table just outside of or at the edge of the garage.  

How long does it take to fry morel mushrooms?

It will take around 10 minutes to set up everything and get ready for frying. That is a good amount of time for the fryer to heat up.  

I like to set up the table, pour the oil in the fryer, plug it in, and then go get the rest ready to carry out to the frying area.

Once you have everything ready, it will take around 5 minutes to dip them into the milk/egg mixture followed by the flour mixture, and then get them into the fryer. They are probably in the fryer for a good 6 minutes.

They will be floating and turn a nice golden brown color. I have just always gone by how they look.

You don’t want them to look gray (underdone) and you don’t want them to look dark brown/black (overdone). 

How should I slice morel mushrooms before frying them?

You can slice them into rings or in slices/halves. We love slicing them into rings! They seem to fry up quicker this way and they are bite sized when you go to eat them.  However, either way, they are delicious. 

What type of oil do I use for frying morels?

We use either vegetable or canola oil.  I don’t have a preference.  If it is on sale, that is the one I will buy.

There really isn’t anything healthy about frying, but man is it delicious.

I have been experimenting to eliminate the oils listed above from our diet. I used avocado oil for our last frying and it worked well.

I haven’t tried olive oil and am not sure if he can be heated to that high of a temp. My research shows that you can use a light olive oil, but just be careful.  

How long is the oil good for?

We leave the oil in the fryer if we are going to be using it within 3 days. I don’t recommend keeping it longer than that. We will reuse it if we are frying again within that 3 day window of time.

What should I serve with morel mushrooms? 

These are more of a side dish, not the main course. We like to go ahead and fry up whatever fish we have in the freezer when we have the fryer out.

It’s a great time for a fish fry since you already have everything out. Nate usually has some crappie or bass in the freezer that we can get out to use.

Plan ahead here, so it has time to thaw out. It makes sense to fry more things since you already have everything out and you have probably already made a mess.

Morels are a great side for almost any meal. We like to serve them with loaded baked potatoes and pulled pork. They go great with BLT’s and mac-n-cheese. They are special enough that you can eat them by themselves. Enjoy! 

-anna sue