One of the most expensive mushrooms in the world is the white truffle. For price and taste, he competes only with his black counterpart. Even in past centuries, only very we althy people could afford to eat white truffles. Nowadays, not every restaurant can boast of a permanent menu of these exquisite mushrooms. In addition to excellent taste, they have another interesting property. White truffle is a mushroom that is one of the most powerful aphrodisiacs in the world. Dumas also noted such miraculous properties of these mushrooms.
Truffles have a simply amazing aroma that allows animals to find them even under a layer of soil. From the point of view of cooking, you can simply talk about the properties of these mushrooms ad infinitum. They perfectly harmonize with various dishes and are able to turn ordinary food into a delight for connoisseurs. These mushrooms are most often consumed raw or dried. This allows you to better feel their indescribable taste and aroma.
Description
White truffle is an underground fungus. Its fruiting body has a somewhat irregular shape. In appearance, it resembles a tuber of Jerusalem artichoke or potato. The weight of a mature specimen can reach 1.5 kg. However, there were individuals with a larger mass. In diameter, a white truffle, as a rule, reaches 15-20 cm. At the base, it has a slight narrowing. In dried form, the volume of the fungus decreases several times. Young specimens are covered with a whitish smooth skin. Over time, it darkens, becomes covered with tubercles and cracks. The flesh of the fungus is quite dense and dry to the touch. In young truffles, it is white with a marble sheen and yellow veins (they contain reservoirs with spores). Older specimens have dark flesh with brown streaks. White truffle has a very strong specific aroma. A photo of this mushroom can be seen in this article. The appearance of macromycetes may vary slightly, depending on the region of growth.
Habitat
Truffles grow in coniferous, deciduous and mixed forests. You can find them in loose, well-heated and moderately moist soils with not too developed grass cover. Most often they are found in birch forests, aspen forests, near hazel bushes, as well as in young plantings of spruces and pines. They are collected in August-September. Only white truffles are found in Russian forests. Although there is information about the presence of blacks.
Truffle Search
Animals are used to find truffles. As a rule, these are dogs and pigs (boars). They can smell and find a mushroom even under a layer of soil. In boars, the aroma of these mushrooms, for unknown reasons, is associated with the smell of the female, and they are able to smell the target at a distance of about 10 m. However, when hunting truffles with pigs, you need to be careful. If a boar finds a mushroom, he will not hesitate to dig it up and eat it. Therefore, they are often put on muzzles. Truffles are also sought with dogs (females). They are specially trained for this from the first months of life. First, they are given milk with a decoction of mushrooms. When the puppy grows up, they begin to work with him at room conditions. They hide somewhere (under rags of cloth, etc.) a piece of wood rubbed with truffle, and force the dog to search for it by smell. Success is rewarded with tasty treats. As the dog grows older, training moves to the yard, to the garden, and then to the forest.
