By Ahmed Saeed and Alaa al-Marjani
SAMAWA DESERT, Iraq (Reuters) – “Here is the truffle, a blessing from God!” Zahra Buheir carefully digs a desert truffle out of the sandy earth and displays it between his callused fingers.
“Rain came and then thunder, bringing truffles to the surface,” said the 72-year-old.
Facing the harsh desert climate of southern Iraq, as well as the landmines left behind, Buheir and his family of seven spent weeks hunting for seasonal truffles that have provided them with income for generations.
Bringing hunters up to $ 7 a pound this year, Iraq’s desert truffle is cheaper than its rare European cousins, which can cost hundreds of dollars or more a pound.
But with Iraq’s economy in crisis, the local variety is a big help to Buheir and his family.
This year the rain came late and Buheir was only able to find about a kilo of truffles a day, a tenth of what he would collect in a good year.
Turning stones and poking the earth with bare hands, Buheir’s granddaughter, Riyam, 5, accompanied her parents to learn a trade and the desert lifestyle.
“When there is no work, truffles are a source of income. And we are happy here,” said Riyam’s father, Mohsen Farhan, who values the weeks he spends with his family in his desert tent.
Learning how to hunt truffles today also involves understanding the dangers of the desert.
“We are afraid of wolves, there are many here. And there are mines. Some time ago, someone died,” said Farhan.
Remnants of the 1991 Gulf war, unexploded devices under the ground can be mistaken for truffles by inexperienced eyes.
Every few days, Hussein Abu Ali drives by car from the city of Samawa to the desert to take the truffles to the market.
There, Ali Tajj al-Din sells them at auction, each with a different name according to size.
“These are nuts, eggs, oranges, and here is the pomegranate, the biggest one,” he said.
This year, shortages have raised prices and truffles that do not sell locally are exported to wealthier Gulf countries.
But customers at Samawa’s “Beit al-Hatab” restaurant savor their weekly truffle specialty.
“We fry or grill them, but the favorite dish is truffles with rice,” said owner of the restaurant Fawwaz Hatab.
(Written by Charlotte Bruneau; Editing by Giles Elgood)