Mushrooms served at Putin banquet draw attention for rarity, price

coimbatore: the serving of stuffed morel mushrooms at a state banquet hosted for russian president vladimir putin during his india visit on august 4 and 5 drew wide attention, with the delicacy regarded as one of the world's most expensive edible mushrooms.the banquet menu at the rashtrapati bhavan featured regional indian dishes, including murukku, kheer sandesh, yellow lentil dal, jhol momo and morel mushrooms from jammu and kashmir served with walnut chutney. morel mushrooms are priced between rs 35,000 and rs 40,000 per kg in domestic markets.explaining their significance, thirubuvanamala, professor of crop pathology and mushroom science expert at tamil nadu agricultural university, said the mushroom, locally known as 'kuchi', is scientifically called morchella esculenta. naturally found in cold, high-altitude forest regions of himachal pradesh, jammu and kashmir and uttarakhand, it grows after snow melts during april-june.he said the mushroom, honeycomb-shaped and ranging from cream to dark brown, is valued for its flavour, aroma and meat-like texture, earning it the tag of a “royal food”. rich in vitamins, minerals, fibre and antioxidants, it is also known for immunity-boosting properties.demand for morels is high in foreign markets, including europe, and they are mainly exported in dried form. china cultivates them under controlled conditions.meanwhile, angappan, head of plant pathology, said a controlled climate greenhouse would be set up at the university under the national mushroom directorate project to study morel cultivation and later introduce it to farmers.