(dried morels)-- @ my 1 grocery, took pix, 'cept my pc & websites won't sync-- $399.00-- unheard of, damn-- given, they're dry/bulk-- still!! that's a new piece of furniture 4 me, scads of items--
don't take this for gospel - it's from long ago....
(a) morels do not cultivate 'easily' / commercially - hence they are only harvested from the wild = time/manpower/etc.
(b) mushrooms are roughly 90% water by weight - so one ounce of dried stuff is a pound of 'fresh'
(c) they taste good (g)
I fantasize about getting a truffle dog and tromping around Europe, hunting that funqi, having fun and making lots of money while actually getting to TASTE one of the damned things!
I think a beagle, Lab, or ESS would be easy to train to be truffle dogs. Buy a couple of truffles and train them to retrieve a stock with the truffles inside; play hide and seek with the sock. It's how they train drug and bomb dogs.
Fresh chanterelles are $15 a pound here, at present.
I fantasize about getting a truffle dog and tromping around Europe, hunting that funqi, having fun and making lots of money while actually getting to TASTE one of the damned things!