FRESH TRUFFLES: DON'T BE SOLD A PIG IN A POKE

WHAT TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT WHEN BUYING FRESH TRUFFLES

The long-awaited black truffle (tuber melanosporum) season is approaching in Maestrat, one of the most sought-after mushrooms in international gastronomy.

The black winter truffle is the second most expensive truffle on the market, but how can I know that I am not being cheated with a similar one?

Like most products, our beloved black truffle also has its Chinese "imitation", the Tuber Indicum. This truffle is of very low gastronomic value, not at all comparable to more sought-after varieties, and its market value can be up to 10 times lower.

It is legal to market it, but it must be correctly indicated on the label.

Due to the high prices of both Tuber Uncinatum and Tuber Melanosporum, more and more cases of fraud have been detected lately, that is to say that people try to pass off Tuber Indicum as if they were Uncinatum or Melanosporum, taking advantage of the fact that the price of the latter is much higher.  This fraud can be committed at any point in the distribution chain, and distributors, wholesalers and restaurants can be the target of fraud.

ANY OFFER WITH PRICES FAR BELOW THE MARKET SITUATION SHOULD RAISE SUSPICIONS!

At www.delitapas.com we only work with truffle growers from the Maestrazgo region of Castellón-Teruel, people from small villages and who can be trusted.

If you are still curious, it is relatively easy to tell the difference between a Tuber Indicum and a Tuber Uncinatum or Tuber Melanosporum:

Although outwardly they are almost the same the Tuber Uncinatum inside is brown and the Tuber Indicum inside is black.

More difficult to detect for not so expert eyes is that Tuber Indicum has a reddish skin and thus differs from Tuber Uncinatum or Melanosporum, which have darker shades.

But the most significant feature is the aroma, which is almost absent in the Indicum and very pronounced in the Melanosporum.

The harvesting calendar for Tuber Indicum coincides completely with Tuber Uncinatum, which is normally in season from October to November, and with Tuber Melanosporum, which is in season from mid-November to March.

We hope that www.delitapas.com counts on your confidence when buying FRESH TRUFFLE FROM MAESTRAT.