Truffles are essentially edible fungi like mushrooms.The word Truffle originated in France in 1895. Many people think that truffles are grown on trees like fruits. Truffles are not grown on trees, rather under trees.They are a kind of fungus that looks gross and grow underground like mushrooms near roots of trees like hazelnut that are calcareous. Truffles have been eaten and cherished for more than 4000 years! But they’re very hard to find, require intensive labor and have a very short shelf life, this is what makes them very expensive and inaccessible. There are many different kinds of truffles, but like fine wine, the place of origin also determines the quality and price of truffles, the most expensive kind are white truffles and black truffles. White truffles are found in Italy and black truffles are found in France. Truffles are usually the size of an apple but larger species have also been discovered, although they are very rare. There are about 40 known species of truffles. To know more about this precious and fascinating fungus, keep on reading till the end!After understanding why are truffles so expensive, you may also want to know where do morel mushrooms grow and are truffles mushrooms?What is so special about truffles?Did you know that some people are genetically designed to not like truffles? So a person’s like or dislike for these prized diamonds is because of their genetic designs.Now that we’ve established that truffles are rare to come by and super expensive, the question remains what is so special about them, that people are willing to spend a fortune on them just to get a taste. Truffles have not lost their glory and popularity since the time of the Babylonians and Sumerians and the reasons will surprise you. Truffles are said to be addictive, they seem to have the same effect on people as marijuana. They have such a unique taste that once a person tastes them, they crave it more. The taste comes from its sensuous aroma and complex chemistry.They have a deep earthy and musky taste with about a hundred different notes that it is almost impossible to put a finger on, this complicated and strong taste is what makes it so unique. Truffles also contain pheromones that have a strange effect on insects and animals, due to this many people have compared their aroma to sex. The attractive and almost magical aroma is said to attract the senses and inflame them at the same time.Why are truffles so rare and expensive?Truffles are very rare to find and cost a fortune due to a variety of reasons but mainly because they grow in very specific locations and environmental conditions, require intensive agricultural labor and lose their aroma very quickly after being dug up.Truffles are rare because in the wild they are very difficult to find, they usually grow underground in the roots of calcareous tress and provide phosphorous to the tree to feed on while the tree provides shelter to grow. But forcing a tree to get into such a relationship can be very challenging. In the wild, this mushroom usually reproduces through consumption by animals from the spores that pass through their feces.In ancient times they were hunted with the help of pigs as pigs are able to smell and detect the pheromones in these luxurious mushrooms, these days trained sniffers dogs are used for this harvesting these mushroom diamonds instead of pigs. Lagotto Romagnolo is the breed of dogs used as truffle hunters to identify the smell. These dogs are trained very well to specifically isolate the smell of the truffle. Truffle hunters are the dogs used for hunting truffles. Unlike pigs, dogs don’t eat truffles as food and are easier to work with.Growing truffles is a very difficult and painful process and it takes six years to grow premium truffles, therefore the growing cost of these mushrooms is significantly higher than any other commercial crop. They require specific climatic conditions, like mild dry winters, no frost, and mildly warm seasons, like the summer region, usually around March. Many countries have a very hot summer season and hence these regions are not capable of growing it. Truffles have very specific soil requirements as well. Truffles in soil need to grow in a favorable climate and have a perfect ph between 7 and 7.7 and they need to be transported quickly as the flavorful aroma turns pungent very quickly.Which truffles are the most expensive?There are about 40 kinds of truffles, but most of them are not edible. The other are not edible because of their very high price rate.While some truffles are relatively more affordable than others, The prices of a selected few are significantly higher, the most popular and expensive ones are the french black truffles and Italian white truffles. White truffles and black truffles are considered to be the premium ones. You may wonder what makes these truffles better than the rest, well here’s your answer.Winter white truffles that grow in the Piedmont district of Italy are the world’s most expensive and sought-after truffles. Winter white truffles have a very different and significant taste that distinguishes them from other kinds when you eat them. They have a strong garlicky taste with a high ammonia scent. However, the scent can turn pungent very soon after being dug up and therefore must be consumed fresh.Winter black truffles that grow in Perigord in France are the second most expensive truffles in the world, they have a mild chocolate flavor with a deep earthy taste. Their taste has also often been compared to that of red wine. They must be harvested at a very specific time of the year. Harvesting too late or too soon can spoil the taste. China is a country in the world that exports 29.98% of truffle harvested to the international world.When should you buy truffles?The best time to buy truffles depends on the kind of truffles that you’re looking to buy since there any many types like the winter white truffles different kinds grow during different times of the year.The best time is when the kind you’re looking for is freshly harvested to escape fraud, this is because truffles have a very limited shelf life and real truffles go pungent within a week. The main season to buy winter white truffles commences in September, although the white truffle market reaches its peak not in September, but in October and starts to taper in December. The harvesting season comes to an end in early January. Whereas the more affordable black alba truffles hit the market between January and April. On the contrary to black alba truffles, white alba truffles are equally expensive. He highly commercialized truffle oil, however, is available throughout the year. Did you know that truffle oil doesn’t really contain real truffles? They are just strongly scented with artificial compounds that are found in truffles.How much do truffles cost?Now that we know that truffles are very expensive and rare and that This fine delicacy tops the list of one of the most expensive gastronomy items in the world. The question that remains is how costly are these exactly?The finest and the most luxurious truffles are the winter white Italian truffles for which you might have to pay up to $4000 per pound! While for the more affordable ones you can expect to pay somewhere around $1000- $2000 per pound. But the good news is that you don’t need to buy a pound of white truffle to make yourself a nice gourmet meal. A little bit of truffle is enough for a meal. Most Italian restaurants use truffle shavings to top off dishes to make them premium.These restaurants provide dishes like pasta etc. Just adding these shavings will make the pasta cost a lot more, but the pasta will also taste a lot better. There are very few food items that pair well with truffles due to the strong umami aroma. Truffles have such a strong aroma that they are only used as a seasoning to envelop the whole meal instead of consuming it as a food item. Therefore, although they might be one of the most expensive foods out there, it is not completely inaccessible. The premium quality truffles are served at a price of around $3- $3.5 per gram.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for why are truffles so expensive then why not take a look at how do you know when mushrooms are bad, or why do mushrooms grow in my yard?
Truffles are essentially edible fungi like mushrooms.
