Spotlight Japan
Matsutake Mushrooms
Japanese delight in the scent of matsutake
Matsutake mushrooms are deeply linked to the lives of Japanese people, and are considered a very special food in their diet.
Japanese delight in the scent of matsutake mushrooms and cherish them. Domestic matsutake are of very high quality, and consequently are quite expensive: prices vary each year and the average price per 100 grams (3.5 oz.) is about 70, 000 yen (US$70.00). These mushrooms are considered the highlight of any autumn menu from the months of September to October, when they are harvested.
Matsutake have a long history in Japan: mention of these mushrooms appears in documents as early as the late eight century. Poetry was composed describing how the nobility enjoyed hunting for matsutake, and celebrating its taste and flavor. Matsutake mushrooms were already a specialty food around this time, enjoyed at banquets or sent as souvenirs from a journey or as gifts. They were also presented to the emperor. In one ancient book, the Shin-Sarugo-ki, written some one thousand years ago, matsutake are described by a common woman who loves gourmet foods as being her favorite.
Matsutake grow at the roots of red pine trees. Artificial culturing is extremely difficult, and thus its numbers have declined significantly along with the country’s diminishing red pine forests.
Imports of matsutake started in the 1970s and these days they come from a range of areas such as China, the U.S. and the Middle East. As these foreign mushroom imports have grown, their prices have fallen, but this has only driven the Japanese to hunger even more for their own domestic matsutake with its enticing aroma and flavor.
There are many ways to enjoy matsutake. The best method is to grill the raw mushroom, then sprinkle with sudachi juice (a citrus fruit) and a few drops of soy sauce. Other ways include cooking with other vegetables in dashi in an earthen teapot as dobin-mushi; cooking with rice; enjoying in a clear dashi soup; as tempura; or in the steamed egg-custard chawan-mushi.
Many food products such as instant soups and ready-made toppings for rice try to imitate the matsutake flavor. This suggests the depth of the Japanese attachment to matsutake mushrooms.
