Truffles – The Diamond of The Kitchen!
Vegetables are an integral part of our diet and we consume them in many ways. For pure vegetarians Truffles are a heavenly food because of their taste and nutrition. If you get the chance to try them, you will love their divine taste. A truffle is the fruiting body of an underground mushroom, found close to trees. They usually weigh around half a kilogram.
Delicious if served raw, for example overpasta or a salad. When it comes to our food, we aren’t limited to vegetables, so for non-vegetarians, truffles can be eaten with meat dishes. Truffles come in two colours, a pale cream colour (white truffles) and a dark variety (black truffles). The colour depends on where they are grown. If you cut a truffle in half the inside has a marbled appearance.
Although, most truffles are found in the wild, during the 1800’s people started to cultivate them. Australia cultivates truffles on a large scale. Australian Truffles are rich in Medicinal properties, e.g. Truffle juice is medicine for the eyes.. The skins of truffles can beused in making sauces. Australian Truffles have their own distinctive flavour, and they impart that flavour to the food they are added to.
White and black truffles are delicacies due to their rarity and cost. They are generally used in restaurants and hotels. As truffles are best fresh from the ground, they are generally eaten raw or added to sauces etc. after they have been cooked. . . Fresh truffles may smell like roots,old cheese, or even earth. They can also smell similar to raw garlic or onions.
The Australian Truffle Industry is still in its infancy. The industry’s growth has accelerated significantly over the past five years as more truffles have reached production maturity. This trend has coincided with an increase in public awareness of this intriguing new industry. Australian Truffles are harvested in the winter starting in June and going through to late July or August. There are a few suitable climatic zones in Australia that are ideally suited to growing truffles.
In 1999, the first Australian truffles were harvested in Tasmania. Trees were innoculated with the truffle fungus in the hope of creating a local truffle industry. Their success and the value of the resulting truffles have encouraged many small farms or orchards to develop in Australia. Tasmania’s geographical position, along with the south west and south east of the mainland of Australia, with respect to latitude, climate and temperatures favour the growing of truffles.
Visit the author’s website Truffles Australia for more information on how to grow truffles in Australia
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