Product knowledge
What Do Desert Truffles Taste Like?
Desert truffles taste mild and earthy, closer to a good mushroom than to the intense, musky aroma most people associate with European black or white truffles. The texture is soft and slightly grainy once cooked, with some cooks comparing it to artichoke heart as much as to mushroom — a genuinely different eating experience from a shaved fresh truffle, even though both are underground fungi and share the 'truffle' name in English. They're eaten cooked, not raw or shaved, which is itself one of the clearest differences from their European namesake.
Desert truffles also aren't botanically related to European truffles — they belong to a different genus entirely, and the shared English name is a translation convenience more than a sign of a close relationship.
Not the same fungus as European truffles
European black and white truffles belong to the genus Tuber, prized for their intense, pungent aroma and typically shaved raw over a finished dish. Desert truffles belong to different genera entirely — Terfezia and Tirmania are the ones most commonly foraged across the Middle East and North Africa — and they grow differently too, associated with the roots of desert shrubs (like Helianthemum, or rockrose) rather than the forest trees European truffles need. The taste reflects that difference directly: mild and earthy rather than sharp and musky, which is exactly why desert truffles are cooked into dishes rather than shaved as a raw finishing touch.
The names this ingredient goes by
Regional naming for desert truffles is genuinely varied: kamah (or kama) is a common Arabic term used across much of the Levant and the Arabian Peninsula, fagaa (or faga) appears in Gulf usage, zubaidi names a specific lighter-coloured, often more prized variety, and terfez is a term that shows up in English-language and trade contexts drawing on the North African Arabic root. All of these point at the same general category of wild, foraged, mushroom-like desert fungus rather than distinct unrelated ingredients.
How kitchens actually cook desert truffles
Desert truffles are typically peeled, halved or sliced, and cooked much the way a mushroom would be — simmered in a seasoned broth or stew (a classic preparation in Gulf and Levantine cooking pairs them with meat in a simple broth), sautéed in butter or ghee, or occasionally stuffed. They aren't eaten raw the way a European truffle might be shaved over pasta or risotto; their texture and flavour are built to be developed through cooking, not preserved raw.
What we carry
We stock Whole Truffles — known on the label as kamaa — from Lio Food in Latakia, Syria, in a 635 g glass jar or an 800 g can, both packed by the case of 12. See capers and desert truffles: two Levantine fine foods worth knowing for how this line sits within our wider specialty-shelf offering, and a Canadian supplier for canned desert truffles for the sourcing and format picture specifically.
Related questions
Do desert truffles smell as strong as European truffles?
No — their aroma is much milder and earthier, without the intense, musky quality most people associate with fresh European black or white truffle.
Can desert truffles be eaten raw?
They're traditionally cooked — simmered, sautéed or stewed — rather than eaten raw or shaved the way a fresh European truffle sometimes is.
Are kamah and fagaa the same thing?
They're regional names for the same general category of desert truffle, with kamah more common in Levantine usage and fagaa more common in Gulf usage; zubaidi specifically names a lighter-coloured, often more prized variety.