Good markets in the Loire Valley have mushrooms for sale. They fall into two categories -- cultivated (truffles, buttons and chestnuts in various sizes, several species of oysters, shiitake and wood blewits) or wild foraged (ceps and boletes, chanterelles and girolles, morels, trompettes de la morte and hedgehog). Expect to pay between €800 and €1200/kg for truffles (a ping pong ball sized truffle costs about €30), €10 - €15/kg for cave grown and €25 - €30/kg for wild foraged. Supermarket button mushrooms (champignons de Paris) are about €2.50/kg.
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| Black Truffles at the specialist market that is held once a month over winter. |
If you would like to see the markets where they are sold, visit an underground mushroom farm or meet expert mushroom foragers let us know when you book your tour with us.
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| Wild foraged Chanterelles at a greengrocers in rue Daguerre, Paris. |
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| A truffle orchard. |
To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.
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The reality of market shopping in the autumn in the Loire Valley :-).
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| Mushrooms being cultivated in a troglodyte cave. |
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| Shiitakes growing in a troglodyte cave. |
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Chestnut mushrooms (champignons rose in French).
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| A selection of ceps and boletes gathered by us in our local forest. |
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| Susan's friend Dominique teaching members of the public how not to die by accidentally picking and eating a Deathcap. |
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| Hendrick
the mushroom man with his cave grown mushrooms at the market in Loches.
Sadly, he retired in January, but this was where we usually bought our
mushrooms. |
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| Homemade
mushroom ragout with polenta, made using a mixture of mushrooms bought
at the market -- button, blewits, oysters, shiitake, porcini, girolles. |
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| Homemade sautéed cave grown button mushrooms, onions and lardons. |
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| Homemade
cultivated White Ferula Mushrooms (a highly sought after and rarely
grown type of oyster mushroom) in cream and garlic sauce. |
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| A wild foraged Bay Bolete (closely related to ceps/porcini) prepared for cooking at home. |
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Yellow Oyster Mushrooms being cultivated in a troglodyte cave.
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