Historical Background
East and Southeast Asia
China and Japan have known Tuber species for centuries, mostly as wild delicacies, but they never reached the iconic cultural status that European truffles hold in France/Italy.
The global importance of Asian truffles rose only in the late 20th century, when Tuber indicum (“Chinese black truffle”) entered international markets.
Arabian Peninsula & North Africa
The desert truffles (Terfezia, Tirmania, Mattirolomyces) have been used for over 2,000 years in Middle Eastern and North African culinary and medicinal traditions.
Classical Arabic texts, Bedouin ethnomycology, and Mediterranean folklore describe their seasonal collection after rains.
Cultivation in Asia
China – the most important truffle-producing country in Asia. Large plantations of Tuber melanosporum, T. indicum, T. himalayense; research centers in Yunnan, Sichuan, and Hunan.
Taiwan – smaller but technologically advanced experimental orchards.
Japan and South Korea – experimental plots, mainly with T. magnatum, T. melanosporum, and local Japanese Tuber species.
Desert truffle cultivation
Species: Terfezia, Tirmania, Mattirolomyces.
Successfully cultivated on a limited experimental scale in: Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Tunisia, Israel
Desert truffles are much harder to cultivate than Tuber because:
They require specific arid-zone rainfall patterns
Their host plants (Helianthemum) are difficult to maintain at scale
Mycorrhization success is low and inconsistent
Native Truffle Species by Region
1. Arabian Peninsula
Dominated by desert truffles (family Terfeziaceae):
Terfezia claveryi
Terfezia boudieri
Tirmania nivea
Tirmania pinoyi
Mattirolomyces terfezioides (less common)
These species form mycorrhiza primarily with Helianthemum shrubs.
2. North Africa (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt)
Rich in desert truffles:
Terfezia arenaria
Terfezia leptoderma
Terfezia claveryi
Tirmania nivea
Picoa lefebvrei (sometimes included)
In Mediterranean coastal zones, true Tuber species also occur:
Tuber aestivum (Burgundy/ summer truffle)
Tuber borchii
Tuber melanosporum (documented in certain microhabitats)
3. Far East / East Asia (China, Japan, Korea, Himalayas)
East Asia is a biodiversity hotspot for Tuber.
China
Common and economically relevant:
Tuber indicum
Tuber himalayense
Tuber pseudoexcavatum
Tuber sinense
Tuber liyuanum
Tuber lijiangense
and more than 25 lesser-known species from Yunnan, Sichuan, Tibet
Japan
Tuber japonicum
Tuber himalayense
Tuber japonicum var. formosanum (Taiwan link)
Other local black truffle relatives
Important Asian and International Researchers / References
Below are the most cited researchers who work specifically on Asian Tuber or desert truffles.
Researchers on Asian Tuber Species
Li, Qiang (Q. Li) – soil microbiome & T. indicum ecology
Fan, Li (L. Fan) – phylogeny and taxonomy of Chinese Tuber
Zhang, Shu-Yan; Liu, Pei-Gui; Wang, X-H. – species description and molecular work
Kinoshita, Akiko – genetics & distribution of Tuber himalayense in Japan
Murata, Hiroshi – Japanese ectomycorrhizal truffle studies
Researchers on Desert Truffles (North Africa & Middle East)
Diez, J.; Manjón, J.L.; Martín, F. – molecular phylogeny of Terfeziaceae
Mandeel, Q.A. (Bahrain/Saudi Arabia) – desert truffle ecology
Khabar, Lakhder (Morocco) – biodiversity studies
Slama, A. (Tunisia) – desert truffle biology and distribution
