December 12, 2020 – Once the sole preserve of Istria, Croatia’s truffle hunting options are expanding – first Zagreb and now Dalmatia.
I love the randomness of life in Croatia.
A wonderful country there the unexpected is always around the corner.
An invitation to go truffle hunting in the forests outside Zagreb a few weeks ago piqued my curiosity. Truffles and Zagreb? Really?!?
Oh, yes, but not only that. It seems that Turopolje truffles (the region which includes Velika Gorica by the airport) have long been an established tradition for those in the know – for years, apparently, these Turopolje truffles have been sent to Istria and sold there. In some cases, they have even made their way back to the restaurants of Zagreb via an Istrian detour.
My day in the forests of Turopolje was indeed an eye-opener, and you can read about it in Move Over Istria: the Rise of Zagreb Truffle Hunt Tourism.
And the Zagreb truffle story went beyond hunting. The truffles are now being served in dishes in an increasing number of local restaurants and they are inspiring new culinary combinations, two of which TCN featured recently – strukli with truffles and truffle pralines. You can learn more about them and follow the Zagreb truffle story here.
And there the story might have ended had I not been made aware of something that had completely escaped me during my 14 years living in Dalmatia – truffle hunting on the edge of Split.
I am reliably informed that the best places for truffle hunting in Dalmatia are Dugopolje and parts of Zagora, but there is zero chance of finding them without those specially trained hunting dogs.
One small local business offers just that – the complete truffle hunting experience, complete with 4×4 transfers to their secret hunting locations. The Najev family are local Dalmatians in love with their heritage, offering a range of tours in inland Dalmatia, which is one of the most beautiful and undiscovered parts of Croatia in my opinion. Exploring the nature of the region is as exhilarating as the tour itself. Depending on the season, the truffle types to be hunted are the black truffle (Tuber aestivum, Tuber brumale, Tuber melanosporum) and the white truffle (Tuber borchi-bianchetto). At the end of the hunt, there is a truffle-themed tasting of local products.
One more authentic experience in Croatia that is not so well-known. Croatia is full of such experiences, and the development of an eco-system supporting and promoting such specialist local tourism will help develop a more diverse and sustainable tourism offer.
You can learn more about Truffle Hunting in Dalmatia on the official Facebook page.
