Top 12 Expensive And Exotic Mushrooms Around the World

Certain edible items are hard to find, cultivate, and even mass produces, so they are exotic, expensive, and hard to find in the market. And one such edible item is a mushroom.

Mushrooms are highly nutritious and tasty, which has yielded various business opportunities for artisanal farmers evolving new businesses globally.

Farm-grown mushrooms are available everywhere; certain wild habitats across the globe can only be cultivated by individual farmers in places like urban warehouses, caves, basements and forest areas.

Certain exotic mushroom bags have high prices in the market, and this fungus is grown only in certain conditions. To date, innumerable varieties of fungi have been grown and identified. Not all exotic mushrooms are edible and are now a part of superfoods; today’s science has brought many benefits out of it.

Mushrooms are filled with antioxidants, minerals, and healthy vitamins. And they have traces of potassium, iron, manganese, Vitamin D, B2, and B6. The mushrooms’ calorie count is low and rich in fibre and protein.

What are Truffles?

Just like Mushrooms, Truffles belong to the fungi family, but the difference between the two is that these truffles are rare and found very hard, and they grow only in specific conditions. This makes the truffle costly, and we have 12 exotic, expensive truffles or mushrooms worldwide.

Kalahari Truffles

This type of mushroom is grown in the Kalahari Desert in Namibia and is called the African potato. They are lighter brown, have a mild scent, and taste like black or white truffles. These truffles could be easily found between cracks in the sand. This truffle can be taken out using simple tools like a stick.

They can be eaten raw and cooked with spice, like other vegetables. Even butter and ice cream are also made with this mushroom and are not that expensive.

Cost: $4 per pound.

Oyster Mushrooms

These Oysters are large and appear pale grey or pearl white, so they got the name. It is also called Abalone Mushrooms with smaller outer stems. This is also available in colours like blue, pink, elm, and gold with an alien look. Japanese, Chinese, and Korean cooking use this specific mushroom as they are native to forest habitats in Siberian Asia, Northern Europe, and even the United States.
This is grown at Farmer’s Markets, which are used in cuisines for their exotic colours. The mushrooms have to be cooked immediately or could be used after completely drying them. These mushroom kits are available for home cultivation.

Cost: $5-$15 per pound.

Shiitake Mushrooms

This mushroom is a staple in Asian cooking, and now this can be easily found in western countries as well. They look brown with caps on from two to four inches in size.

This mushroom comes in different varieties that differ in taste and texture. Shiitake contains some medicinal values, so it is used in Japanese and Chinese cuisine, and its medicinal properties include antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and anticarcinogenic properties.

They have a chewy texture but taste delicious with the right ingredients, which are sold as fresh mushrooms or dried mushrooms in any part of the world.

Cost: $12 to $24 per pound.

Lion’s Mane

This mushroom comes under a weird variety as it has no predefined shape, no cap and no stem. This looks like a round balloon with shaggy spines. It has other names, pompon or Bearded Tooth Mushroom.

Due to the spine-like structures, they tend to have a furry appearance. It is also found on dead or dying logs in North America, Europe, and Asia from late summer to early fall. Mushroom can be cultivated in controlled environments as it looks white when tender and gradually grows yellow. This edible mushroom has high medicinal qualities as it contains a high amount of antioxidants and is now under study in regenerating nerve tissue. This Lion Mane has the same texture and flavour as crab and lobster.

Cost: $8 to $36 per pound.

Porcini Mushrooms

While compared with other mushrooms, Boletus Edulis is expensive as it can be seen only in hardwood forests and on the ground among hemlock spruce, chestnut, and pine trees. It is also called “King Bolete,” which translates to “piglets” in Italian.

Finding porcini can be challenging because they are not widely distributed and cannot be easily farmed. They are recognizable by their large crowns, which may be up to 10 inches in diameter, and by their strong, hefty stems. They can reach a few pounds in weight when fully grown.

This mushroom is used in various meals because of its meaty, nutty flavour. They grow in different regions of Europe, North America, and several other nations despite being renownedly found in Italy.

Cost: $55 to $70 per pound.

Enoki Mushrooms

Enoki mushrooms have long stems and small caps, with little clumps of fungi as fruit, the most edible part. Enoki mushrooms are used in several dishes with a mild flavour of fresh white grape or mild radish.

Enoki Mushrooms, a more unusual species, conjure images of little cauliflower or shiny bean sprouts with tiny white button tips. They contain a substantial amount of nutrients, including high concentrations of niacin, folate, thiamin, potassium, pantothenic acid, phosphorus, and riboflavin.

The linked ends should be cut off to separate the various strands of enoki. Enoki is simple to utilize in stir-fried meals and soups. They are frequently used in Asian cuisine and keep their crunch even after cooking.

Cost:$108.00 per pound.

Chanterelles

This variety of golden Chanterelle resembles a flower when spotted inside a forest. Chanterelles grow in clusters after heavy rainfall during hot, humid days. This should not be eaten raw and must be cooked fully.

They can be easily identified as polished caps and ridges that run down the stem. Generally, this type is found in Central Europe and Ukraine, as beech trees coexist with pines. It has a light fruity scent and a spicy flavour. The golden variety is in high demand, and others are equally tasty. And the colours range from orange and yellow to white.

They start to grow in late spring, but because they can only do so in a sauna-like environment, they are only available until early October.

Cost: $225 per pound

Morels

These Morels are expensive and have a steady stem with a conical head like little trolls blooming in the forest. Fresh ones are a lot cheaper than dried ones as it is light. The cone-shaped head of the mushroom is so spongy and can be found only in the forest from March to May. It has a nutty flavour similar to that of Shiitake Mushrooms, and they have an intense, unique taste. Due to their small size, they are used to garnish and are served as a sauce.

Cost: $254 per pound dried and $30 to $90 per pound fresh.

Black Truffles

Black Truffles are costliest in European countries, and harvesting there is difficult because a black market exists to meet the demand. Initially, female pigs were trained to find the truffles in the wood, and now pigs have been replaced by trained dogs.

The French Black Perigord, tuber melanosporum, is harvested by training animals. Still, commercial production has started due to high demand and to reduce shipping delays in countries like Australia and the United States. Producers in Tennessee, Kentucky, California, and Oregon have had some success, but it is an expensive industry. According to USDA figures, more than 425 tonnes of fresh, dried, and canned truffles were imported into the US in 2017, up 75% from only seven years earlier.

Cost: $800 to $900 per pound.

Matsutake Mushrooms

This little pale mushroom is The Japanese Matsutake which can be recognized easily with a cap and a short stem. And it carries a spicy, little fruity flavour and an aroma.

This grows under red pine trees in the Tamba region of Japan, near Kyoto.

This expensive Matsutake Mushroom has a spicy, somewhat fruity flavour and aroma. Typically it grows under red pine trees in the Tamba region of Japan, near Kyoto. It is regarded as a Japanese delicacy and has long been connected to the start of the fall. However, their habitat is dwindling due to insect damage to red pine woods. This mushroom proved unsuccessful in being cultivated; now it is part of endangered species. The cost is quite expensive because of its extreme rarity.

Cost: $1000 to $2000 per pound.

European White Truffle

This is the rarest and most expensive mushroom grown near the base of oak trees and could be found in Europe. This is tough to harvest even with the help of female pigs or trained truffle dogs, as they detect the pungent odour and the ripened ones.

This is too expensive due to the drawbacks of the cultivation, which is why the price is high. However, it’s interesting to note that prices for all truffles are now lower than they were two years ago, partly due to increased harvesting in other European nations.

The black truffle is also more widely available to chefs and mushroom enthusiasts worldwide as more places have started cultivating it.

The most costly truffle continues to be the white Alba, also known as tuber magnatum pico, from Italy.
Cost: $3,600 per pound

Yartsa Gunbu

According to Tibetan customs, this fungus is mentioned in ancient scriptures as an aphrodisiac. Buying and consuming it in small amounts is a sign of social prestige.

Small airborne spores from this parasitic fungus attack the caterpillars’ bodies. Once inside the caterpillar, the fungus starts to consume it from the inside out.

The caterpillar passes away in a mummified form at the earth’s surface while standing erect. The fungus will start to grow up in the early spring, sprouting from the caterpillar carcass and poking its head above the ground. You may gather the long, thin mushrooms in the Himalayas and Tibetan Plateau between 3,000 and 5,000 metres above sea level.

Cost: $2000 per ounce.

Anne Peterson

Anne Peterson is a budding writer who is interested in Hollywood movies. She covers most of the trending news in Hollywood for the website MovieThop. She always has a curious zest about the celeb’s lives. She now writes and keeps the audience updated.
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