The West’s culinary gold rush...seeking nuggets of white and black fungi

“Presently, we were aware of an odour gradually coming towards us, something musky, fiery, savoury, mysterious—a hot drowsy smell, that lulls the senses, and yet ­enflames them—the truffles were coming.”
William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-1863)

There’s something oddly humorous about staking out flying squirrels in the lower elevations of the Oregon Coast Range. But, if you’re a serious mycology fan, it’s no laughing matter.

The flying squirrels, Glaucomys sabrinus, are on a “must have” mission. These little nocturnal rodents are in need of Vitamin D after the dank, dark months of a cooler than usual Pacific Northwest winter. And their little noses are twitching.

I’m attending the last event of the four-day Oregon Truffle Festival (OTF) held at the Valley River Inn, Eugene, Oregon at the end of January [2009]. Dr. James Trappe (pronounced Trap-ee), one of three co-authors of Trees, Truffles and Beasts: How Forests Function, is talking truffles and the squirrels that love them. Dr.Trappe, Jim to his colleagues, sporting a salt-and-pepper beard and informally dressed in a plaid wool shirt and khakis, is a guy who knows fungi. His research interests include the taxonomy of hypogeous fungi, floristics of alpine fungi, mycorrhizal ecology and applications, and last, but not least, fungal-animal interactions. It’s the latter I’m here to learn about. Dr. Trappe is warming up his audience for a lecture titled Tales from the Truffle Zone.

After introducing ourselves, I discover I’m the only native Oregonian in the house, a fact not lost on the “transplants” that call this moist corner of the USA home. Nevertheless we’re drawn together like hungry squirrels to glean all we can about Tuber gibbosum and Tuber oregonense, aka Oregon winter white truffles as well as the Oregon black truffle known as Leucangium carthusianum.

Jim gives us some background by stating “Five hundred types of truffles are found in Oregon and Washington, and nearly 1,500 types have been identified in North America.” That’s a lot of fungi to dig through!

He continues with anecdotes about hunting indigenous truffles near Douglas fir tree farms and in the foothills of the Coast Range. “On one foray we discovered a new genus that we named FEvanseia, after Frank Evans, co-author of the North American Truffle Society Field Guide.”

Turns out NATS was founded in 1978 by Frank, so the notion of native Oregon truffles has been around more than 30 years. Jim goes on to explain “We use an implement called a truffle fork to pull back the duff to uncover the fruiting fungi that live on the interconnecting webs of Douglas fir roots.” Frank smiles and nods from his place near the slide projector. A photo materializes showing some dirt-covered lumps just below the surface.

In Taming the Truffle . . . The History, Lore and Science of the Ultimate Mushroom by Ian R. Hall, Gordon T. Brown and Alessandra Zambonelli, Oregon white truffles are described as possessing “a sweet, musky, cedarlike aroma with hints of cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla.” No wonder the flying squirrels’ noses are twitching. Ripening truffles emit subtle pheromones to discerning olfactory glands. To pique the senses, Dr. Hall adds that Oregon black truffles are often described as having high notes of pineapple and green apple. It’s all in the nose of the beholder. As a plate of thinly sliced truffles, resembling brown pepperoni, is passed, I daintily sniff and behold the essence of: dirt.

In a nod to sustainable entrepreneurship, fledging Oregon truffle orchards (truffieres) are poised to produce world-class truffles. Dr. Charles Lefevre, New World Truffieres, Ltd., has been a key player in cultivated truffle implementation. With many decades of research by Pacific Northwest professors/mycologists, Oregon is establishing itself as the epicenter of all things related to truffles.

Call them a winter crop, because they tend to come to fruition between November and February with January often the month to grab your dog, your truffle fork and your sense of adventure. If you’ve got a trained truffle-sniffing dog, the gaseous emissions wafting from the earth will get his/her attention.

The truffle fork will come in handy for clearing away needles, moss and twigs to unearth the fungi. A sense of adventure will serve you well as cold rain pelts you in the face and your boots accumulate a couple inches of mud.

And there’s gold in them thar’ truffles. Dr. Hall notes “typical prices can run US$220/kilogram “for Oregon white truffles. Since you’re wet and muddy anyway, check for Leucangium carthusianum, aka Oregon black truffles. Market prices can go as high as US$1,000/kilogram for those dark lumpy spheres.
Whether you “dig” truffles or not, Oregon fungi are on a culinary roll with local and national chefs. Truffles have joined the ranks of caviar and foie gras in both price and demand. Ron Paul, chef, restaurateur and chair of the Oregon Arts Commission has diligently lobbied the City of Portland to create a year-round produce-based Public Market. Ron added his opinion on the status of Oregon truffles by stating “We are all about the food in the Pacific Northwest because we are sitting in a culinary Eden.”

The previous evening, the OTF 2009 showcased the culinary adaptability of Oregon truffles at the Grand Truffle Dinner held at Eugene’s Valley River Inn. The semi-formal evening featured a creative batch of northwest chefs who met and exceeded the challenge of preparing a four course meal plus dessert featuring Oregon truffles. From Portland’s Park Kitchen, executive chef Scott Dolich prepared a first course of black truffle cauliflower polonaise and salt cured eggs. Chef Rocky Maselli of Eugene’s renowned Marché restaurant followed with Kampachi crudo with celery root slaw, uni vinaigrette and shaved white truffles. The third course, prepared by Chef Gabriel Rucker of Le Pigeon, Portland, presented Rabbit & Black truffle spanakopita, prosciutto and arugula.

The main entrée highlighted a black truffle boudin blanc with braised cabbage and confit of white truffle fingerling potatoes prepared by John Gorham of Toro Bravo. And who said truffles aren’t for dessert? Chef Cheryl Wakerhauser of Pix Patisserie in Portland, delighted all in attendance with a truffle mignardise plate (a sampling of French confections featuring Oregon truffles).

Trekking through Oregon’s foothills to harvest ripened truffles for the kitchens of imaginative chef-magicians has proved once and for all that our state is on the cusp of culinary grandeur.

Oregon wines have won international awards, and it won’t be long until Oregon truffles compete with the truffles of France, Italy and China as the culinary world demands quality luxury produce. But the flying squirrels figured that out a long time ago.

When you go
Check the OTF website for future dates, events and special truffle-related packages at ­www.oregontrufflefestival.com
Oregon Truffle Festival, Valley River Inn, Eugene, Oregon, January 29–31, 2010.

PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVID BARAJAS

Eugene-based freelance writer, Marcie Bushnell, is proud to be an Oregonian with the requisite webbed digits and ability to com­municate with water fowl. For that reason, unearthing the mystique of Oregon truffles was a walk in the garden of eden for her. Happy hunting and bon appétit!