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Everything You Wanted to Know About Black Winter Truffle Farming But Were Afraid to Ask
The black truffle (aka – Black Perigord Truffle or Tuber Melanosporum) is being farmed here in the province of Huesca, Spain as a alternative crop. Black winter truffle farming is still in its infancy in many aspects. Black truffle farms have been successfully established here in the province of Huesca, Spain and in many other parts of the country. Black truffle farms in Spain normally use the inoculated holm oak as the tree of choice when establishing a black truffle farm. Other types of trees can be used as your host tree, such as the downy oak or the hazel nut tree. The downy oak prefers a humid environment, while the hazel nut tree isn’t very well adapted to dry conditions. That makes the holm oak the preference of choice as its a hardy tree and can withstand droughts better than the downy oak or hazel nut. The holm oak has the added advantage that it is very resistant to cross contamination of undesirable and lesser quality types of truffles.
The truffle grows on the roots of certain trees, mainly the holm oak, the downy oak and the hazel nut tree. It grows in what is called symbiosis, meaning that the tree gives the truffle a place to grow and in exchange for this favor, the truffle ports certain nutrients directly to the trees roots.
In the province of Huesca, Spain, the soil has a natural high PH balance which makes it a very good area to establish a black winter truffle farm. The black truffle prefers a soil PH balance between 7.0 to 8.5. The truffle / holm oak prefers a rocky soil ( marginal ), good draining properties, well established organic matter, low clay content and some sand doesn’t hurt. Read the rest of this entry »
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Black Truffle Cleaning and Recipes
Cleaning The Black Truffle
When you have fresh black winter truffles, do not clean them until your are ready to eat them. Other wise they will spoil quicker. Remove any soil from the black truffles just before using them in any recipe. They must be washed with water and a nail brush under running water. The truffle must be completely clean since they will be used unpeeled. Dry well with a paper towel.
The black truffle (Tuber Melanosporum) must always be used as a condiment, not as a food. Use only fresh truffles, if possible. To enjoy and appreciate the black truffles, 100 g is enough. With this amount we can make several recipes.
How to use black truffles to flavor food.
Use an airtight container and put together the food you want to flavor with the black truffle. Close the container and leave it in the fridge for at least 24 hours. The aroma of the black truffle will penetrate the food in the sealed container. The black truffle aroma adheres to fatty foods best. Read the rest of this entry »
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The Fungi Called Truffles
You have in all probability heard about truffles, both the fungi and the chocolate treat. But let’s center on truffles as a mushroom. Aside from being costly, what else do we know about them? Truffles are considered rare and a delicacy in some countries.
Truffles are hypogeous mushrooms, meaning, they need to be dug out. But it’s not the entire mushroom or fungi, the truffle is just the fruit. The body of the fungi is the hyphae located in the soil. It is thought that the grounds why truffle mushrooms grow belowground is to protect themselves from forest fires and during extreme temperatures during frosty periods.
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