Wild porcini in Yunnan province [Photo/kunming.cn]

Porcini, also known as boletus edulis, comes in the form of three colors: white, yellow and black. The mushroom grows in forest areas at an altitude of 900 to 2,200 meters above sea level. The mushroom can be found in the provinces of Heilongjiang, Sichuan, Yunnan, Henan, Guizhou, and Taiwan.

Porcini grows from June to October. It grows vigorously after rainfall and is easy to pick in clear days.

Plump and with a fresh texture, porcini is rich in protein. Yunnan began exporting porcini to Western Europe as early as 1923 and has since generated a significant amount of foreign capital through exports of the fungi.

Edited by Jacob Hooson