By GARY ROBINS, Food and wine guy
Remember that little piggy that went to market? What was he looking for? Well, the way my mind works, I think he was rooting around for truffles. The muzzled snouts of truffle pigs (or dogs) can detect the prized aroma through the chalky soil where they grow just under the surface.
The truffle has been sought after for centuries. It goes back as far as ancient Egypt when they were coated in goose fat and cooked, as well as the ancient Greeks and Romans attributing aphrodisiac powers to the truffle.
Truffles are round, varying in size, shape and color. The two main categories of truffles are black (winter) and the white (summer). They can be found in various forms throughout the year; fresh, canned, dried and oil that has been infused with the glorious tuber. The fresh white truffle is the most prized and expensive at $3,200 a pound (the fresh black truffle at a mere $650 a pound).
The truffle may seem overpriced, but the praise of these fungi is warranted, for they are quite yummy!
Growing
Truffles’ price and rarity are due to the lack of calculated cultivation on a large scale. They are neither sown nor planted. Truffles spontaneously spring up when fungal spores meet the rootlets of an oak or other nurse tree. The truffles search the soil for water and mineral nutrients, and pass them to the tree through the roots. The tree produces sugars that pass to the truffle.
There is more effort in growing truffles methodically. The difficulty with cultivating truffles is the tree rootlets. They are prime real estate not only for the truffle, but also for other fungi that do the same thing the truffle does. No one that we know of finds these other fungi as yummy as the truffle yet.
“French truffle scientists” have been able to increase the chances of their growth greatly by inoculating seedlings while they are still in the nursery. They carefully pick planting sites and create soil conditions better suited for the truffle. These growing procedures have allowed greater production of truffles and a clear pathway for greater controlled growth in the future.
Truffle production, despite serious efforts in France and America, has been on a decline. In 1890, the harvest was 2,200 tons. In 1914, the reported harvest was 300 tons. Today, only 25 to 150 tons are harvested annually. Pesticides and deforestation are two of the culprits to blame. Many farmers have been using environmentally unsound growing procedures that ruin many harvested products.
The market is beginning to be infiltrated by non-traditional truffles. These are the Chinese and the Oregon truffles. Both possess the characteristics of the authentic truffle, but do not have the same depth of taste or fragrance. There are only two types of authentic truffles, namely the French Black and the Italian White Truffles. The price of these depends on the strength of the season each year. Weather conditions determine its fate and must not be too wet, too dry, too hot nor too cold for a good yield.
Generally, both truffles are excellent. The black is cheaper than the white due to its durability. It is less perishable and travels well. The black truffle is a visually obvious addition to food, whereas the white disappears as it integrates with the food.
You and me
Servers should understand the delicate flavor as well as the high status that truffles have as food stuff. They should introduce them to people who do not understand the world of truffles and their wonderful flavor. You will have happier guests after they have had their fill of your chef’s truffled creations.
As a cook, learning how to infuse these mushrooms into more dishes will help you add more delicious dishes to your cooking repertoire.
Federal Way resident Gary Robins loves food and wine. Contact: grrobins@earthlink.net.
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More on truffles
White Italian Truffles: Coming from Piedmont in northern Italy, the taste and texture of the white truffle has a faint garlic taste that is creamy and velvety to the palate. Exquisite with risotto, white truffles have a clean taste.
Black French truffles: These grow in the Perigord region of France. They have a lighter aroma and have a taste that is nutty, mushroomy and of loamy earth.
$35,000 for a mushroom? Restaurateur Joe Pyka paid by far the highest price ever for a single truffle. It was an enormous 2.2 pound white truffle, the rare and exotically perfumed tuber maganatum pico prized by gourmets throughout the world.
