If you have tried black truffle, you will surely know that it is a gourmet ingredient that helps to dramatically enhance the flavour of any dish you add it to. It has a characteristic mild flavour, but very persistent at the same time and can be grated or sliced over the dishes we cook, although it tends to be a widely used ingredient in specialised restaurants and in the world of haute cuisine.
However, to resolve any doubts, we will say that the black truffle is a species of fungus that grows underground, establishing a symbiosis with the roots of different species of trees, such as oak, hazel, holm oak or truffle hornbeam, which are known as ‘truffle trees’. Tuber melanosporum Vitt, therefore, has a dark appearance on the outside and an almost black colouring with very characteristic white veins on the inside.
This exquisite delicacy, so highly valued in the world of gastronomy, usually fetches quite a high price on the market, as its cultivation is quite complex. That is to say, it requires very specific climatic and geographical conditions, which in Spain are found around the municipality of Sarrión, capital of the Black Truffle and located in the Gúdar-Javalambre region, in Teruel. However, it is possible to buy this gourmet mushroom fresh or canned. If you want to know what you should choose, we recommend you to continue reading this article.
Advantages of buying fresh black truffles
The fresh truffle that you can buy in Trufalia is obtained thanks to the intervention of truffle dogs, which have been trained to detect black truffles when they have reached the perfect maturity during the harvesting season, which starts in November and ends in March, although it can extend until April.
Now, among the main advantages of buying fresh black truffles, we can mention that this type of mushrooms give off a much more intense flavour when they are not subjected to any kind of preservation process. However, as the days go by, they gradually lose their properties and their flavour fades. Keep in mind that these mushrooms are at their best when they are freshly harvested, that is when they are fresh.
It is also true that fresh truffles have a rather short shelf life, since, in order to guarantee their properties, flavour and aroma to the maximum, they should be kept in the fridge inside a sterilised and hermetically sealed glass container, at a temperature of between 2ºC and 4ºC and with a little rice, to eliminate excess humidity. In this way, their shelf life would be around five or six days.
Advantages of buying PRESERVED black truffles
As we have mentioned, fresh black truffles, although they have a great flavour and all their properties intact, tend to spoil quite quickly. For this reason, buying preserved black truffles has the great advantage of allowing them to be preserved for much longer, despite losing part of their original flavour, aroma and properties.
Bear in mind that, as we have already mentioned, the black truffle season lasts, at most, from November to March or April, and that it is only possible to enjoy fresh truffles during those months. What if we want to enjoy the flavour of this gourmet fungus during the rest of the year? Precisely for this reason, at Trufalia we also sell canned truffles.
In this way, thanks to the preserved black truffle, it is possible to enjoy our favourite dishes with the use of this ingredient whenever we want, even though its flavour, aroma and properties will be altered compared to the use of fresh black truffle.
Which is better: fresh black truffle or canned black truffle?
There is no closed answer to this question, as both options have great advantages. It is obvious that the fresh truffle has the advantage of keeping its flavour, aroma and properties better, but it is also true that it can only be consumed during the black truffle harvesting season because these mushrooms deteriorate quickly, at most, five days.
However, it is also true that the preserved black truffle has the advantage that it can be consumed at any time of the year and not only during the harvesting season, even though, when preserved, its properties are altered, as well as its flavour and aroma are considerably reduced.
In short, we can say that, although the best way to eat Tuber melanosporum Vitt is fresh, thanks to canning, we can eat it throughout the year, although it is no longer fresh and its flavour and aroma are not as intense. Therefore, the choice between fresh and preserved black truffle is not a simple one and ultimately depends on your gastronomic preferences.