Abstract
Truffles, the subterranean mycelial fruit bodies are wonderful gustatory delights across the globe. Of late, several therapeutic compounds with antioxidant, immunosuppressor, antimicrobial, and anticarcinogenic properties have been discovered from truffles. The so far unexploited fungal resource truffles have been recently discovered to possess great economic potential. However, their cultivation methods have not proved much successful. Submerged fermentation for higher production yield, use of response surface methods for optimum polysaccharide extraction, innovative storage techniques to eradicate spoilage, adulterant determination in canned truffles by molecular tools are strategies for their optimal utilization. In the present paper, the issues hindering the popularity of truffles, the current scenario and the future potentials are reviewed.