Discover the morel our chef's way ...
Focus on the morel from Vexin, the product sublimated by chef Alexandre Semperé, currently on the restaurant’s menu: Morels from Vexin stuffed with herbs, foie gras and lardo di Colonnata.
The morel is a mushroom much appreciated for its versatility in the kitchen. Thanks to its unique flavour and delicate texture, it enriches every dish by offering incomparable depth and richness of flavour.
Sacha, morel producer in the Vexin region of France
Guided by a shared commitment to responsible cuisine and farming, Chef Alexandre set out to meet Sacha, a morel from Vexin producer, who works with respect for the produce and the seasons.
4th generation producers, Sacha and his father run the Ferme Beauséjour estate, located in Vigny in the Île-de-France region. They grow a wide variety of vegetables and cereals throughout the year. Over the last 3 years, Sacha has embarked on a new project: the cultivation of morels from Vexin by building 3 greenhouses on the family’s cereal-growing estate.
Morels cultivation
The morel, very delicate, fragile and sensitive to its environment, is a hollow mushroom, recognizable by its honeycomb-shaped cap made up of numerous cells.
Sacha grows various strains of morel in greenhouses on loamy soil, nourished by mycelium.
“With the greenhouses, we have recreated an undergrowth environment: shade and humidity while playing with the sun, heat, light and ventilation. We are learning every day about the particularities and difficulties of growing this mushroom. It’s a continuous process of research and we gain experience every year.
This exceptional mushroom requires particular care in terms of cultivation and harvesting. Morels come out in strains between February and March, and take between 15 days and 3 weeks to reach maturity. It is important to monitor the quality of the environment on a daily basis: humidity, shade, light, temperature… nothing is left to chance. The morels are then carefully picked by cutting at the base of the stalk.
Depending on their size, the harvested morels are used in different ways: whole, in sauce or dried
