The city of Giaveno is proud of its product of excellence, the mushroom.
Val Sangone mushrooms have always been appreciated for their quality. But why is the Giaveno mushroom so renowned? Because it is really good, perhaps thanks to a combination of soil and climate: the particular combination of soil, tree component, exposure makes Val Sangone a special area for the growth of mushrooms, especially porcini mushrooms.

The renowned market, both for quantity and quality, has been going on for centuries and was also taken into consideration by the Savoy court. In fact, a receipt from 1659 was found in the archive in which a girl was paid who brought mushrooms to Madama Reale for a banquet.
The golden period was the nineteenth century, with abundant collections and the achievement of fame in Turin and in the Turin area.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, the market took place in Vicolo della Breccia (now via M.T. Marchini), at the corner of the Palazzo Abbaziale, in the square that the Javanese call Balet (Ballet). There are historical photos showing dozens of boulajours with their products in baskets.

The Giaveno mushroom has been sought after on the markets for decades, throughout the Region; there are boulajours who have built economic fortunes on the mushroom; the secrets of the places are handed down from one generation to the next, away from indiscreet ears.

The mushroom is included in the list of PAT (traditional agri-food product), in the category "Mushrooms of the Piedmontese valleys".

The types
At the Giaveno market you can find beautiful porcini mushrooms, surrounded by garitole, mùtun, fré, famiole and other controlled and certified delicacies. However, the porcino remains the most coveted. The king of the forest is the product of excellence around which the food and wine identity of the city of Giaveno and its valley is built.

There are 4 types of porcini:

the Porcino Chiaro (Boletus Edulis), harvested between the end of summer and autumn;
the Porcino Moro (Boletus Pinicola, subspecies Edulis), the first to appear, already in spring
the Summer Porcino (Boletusn Reticulatus), harvested in summer-autumn;
the Porcino Bronzino (Boletus Aereus) is found between May and October.
In the kitchen
Fried, sautéed, raw, perfect accompaniment to risotto and pasta. Mushroom in sauce, mushroom on meat, mushroom that combines and marries, with its strong yet delicate flavor, to practically everything.

Who are the boulajours
"Boulajour" is the term by which the expert local mushroom hunters are called.

The boulajours are strange people: they wake up at dawn and dash into the woods, in any weather, perhaps even before going to work. Black figures, in the dark, with various coats, some hooded, move conspiratorially in the woods, accompanied only by sticks. They are silent and circumspect, they seek absolute solitude, they change direction when they meet a similar one.
Someone, in the golden years, took their holidays in the autumn, to devote themselves to research. Others have made it "work" in a certain sense, even numerous women.
It can be a huge passion, it was also a huge economic resource.

Source: City of Giaveno, Staff Area and Public Relations