Travel - Porcini mushrooms integral to Tuscany

Reshmi R Dasgupta

The chance opening of a long lost tin (recovered from the recesses of the storeroom this weekend) brought back memories of a family holiday... One that I had not attended, as a matter of fact, which is why the contents of the tin had been brought for me: dried porcini mushrooms. Alas, the ravages of two monsoons spent sealed in a tin in a damp storeroom had taken its toll and the mushrooms had turned to a rather odoriferous mush. But even in their blackened, fungal state they were redolent of a much-missed family gathering in a villa in Tuscany.

Nothing quite evokes the aroma of Italy for me than these earthy, smoky, almost meaty mushrooms. Just half a handful of porcini, first soaked in warm water and then added to anything from a risotto to a soup, magically transforms it to haute cuisine ! And fresh porcinis? The most memorable Italian item I’ve had in recent times (in the past couple of months) has been spaghetti with foie gras and fresh porcinis at San Gimignano at Delhi’s Imperial Hotel , magnificent in its rich simplicity.

One of the highlights of visiting Tuscany right around now — autumn — is that it’s fresh porcini season. So bands of locals and discerning tourists go out in search of these prized mushrooms under the oak and chestnut trees, varying in colour from ochre and rust to brown and chocolate. Once sliced, though, they reveal a creamy white interior . Those who know look for the smaller ones as a large size doesn’t necessarily guarantee better flavour when it comes to porcinis . In any case, the intense flavour of the porcini is what makes it so special, and a large specimen can taste a bit too earthy and may have some bugs in it — with good taste apparently !

Seeing porcinis on the menu of every Tuscan trattoria is not surprising then. They use the mushrooms in in their soups, on their pastas (often raw, just sliced finely) grilled, fried and added as garnish. And it’s almost much of a muchness when the porcini season melds into truffle season, so then there are two aromatic woodsy embellishments available to enliven their cuisine. The good news, of course, is that the magic of porcinis can be preserved by drying while truffles lose much of their charm when preserved in any way. Hence my lament for my precious tin of porcini