White Truffles
Every year, my wife Lisa and I host a white truffle dinner for 6 of our close friends where we explore the sensational marriage between white truffles and older Barolo wines. I am always reluctant to post about white truffles because their price is so extravagant and it sometimes feels a bit elitist, but this year is different - they are cheap (well, cheap for white truffles) and most food lovers can afford a self-indulgent splurge to end 2018 in style.
ISO: Sexy White Truffles
White Truffles, photo by Francois de Melogue
This is the absolute best season for white truffles that I have seen in my 30-year career as a chef and lover/eater of all things delicious. It's in sharp contrast to last year when Italy was plagued with massive droughts and truffle shortages which caused the white truffle market to skyrocket into obscene prices hovering around the $5,000/pound stratosphere. This year, not only is the quality one hundred times better, but prices are about 20% of what they were last year and they keep going down.
Now is time to take the leap and try preparing white truffles at home.
Slinging Truffles
I should mention, as a disclaimer, that I do sell white truffles (and black winter truffles, black fall truffles, etc.) for a living, and yes, you can buy truffles directly from me if you wish. It's so hard not to sound 'first-worldly' when 15 times a day I catch myself saying to a chef "they are so cheap this year." As if something priced at $920/pound could even remotely be considered cheap. Yes, they are still very expensive and certainly not something you are going to shave over your eggs for breakfast every morning. But if you were ever curious or wanted to serve white truffles at home - this is the year to do it.
The White Truffle Rules
So you've taken the giant leap and forked out a few hundred dollars for an enormous white truffle. Now you are wondering how to properly store, cook, and even what wine to serve to maximize your truffle dollar. Pour yourself a giant glass of a Barolo and let me help you out with a few pro-tips that will ensure you get the most for your truffle dollar and have a truffle experience better than you would get in any high-end restaurant.
What to Look For
If you are lucky and can hand select your very own truffle, look for very pungent truffles that are hard like potatoes to the touch and are generally blemish-free. The color will vary from almost pure white to cream-colored, sometimes there will even be red stains on them. A lot of the truffle color comes from what trees the truffles grew next to. The red stain comes from Linden trees and is highly sought after by truffle aficionados.
Avoid soft truffles, clammy truffles, and ones with lots of small holes (generally a sign of worms).
Storage
The big day has arrived. A very aromatic FedEx package is sitting on your kitchen counter; your hands are starting to feel clammy and your heart is beating faster than normal. You take another sip of wine and remind yourself you have eaten countless shavings of truffles over the years in high-end restaurants. But today is different; You are the chef and You have a stinky fungus that costs as much as your monthly mortgage sitting on the counter.
You glance at the calendar and remember it's only Wednesday and your party is on Saturday. My storage recommendations are simple: If you are making risotto, find a Tupperware container large enough for all the arborio rice you are using in the dish and your white truffle. Put them in the container, close it snuggly, and let them sit in your refrigerator till your party. The same would apply if you are making a simple fonduta or even egg-yolk-rich tagliatelle. Simply put the eggs used in both of those dishes into a Tupperware container and store them for a few days. The flavors will penetrate the rice and/or eggs and amplify the truffleness of your dish. If for some reason you do not want more truffle flavor, wrap your truffle in a clean paper towel and store it in a Tupperware container. As the chef, you get the extra treat of opening the container and getting blasted with the incredibly intoxicating fresh scent of truffles.
Fresh truffles have a short shelf life so plan on storing no longer than 4 or 5 days if they are absolutely fresh.
Cooking with Truffles
The great news for home cooks is that white truffles command a simple preparation to make them shine like the diamonds they are. I have seen more than my fair share of well-intentioned professional chefs kill white truffles with elaborate overpowering preparations. Truffles are best served extremely simply like shaved over buttered fresh egg noodles tossed with just a touch of Parmesan or over a bowl of risotto. In fact, those preparations are preferred. Truffles really shine when there is an element of creamy fat in the form of butter and cheese.
Remember a basic truffle rule: white truffle flavor is killed with heat and black winter truffles need heat to accentuate the truffle aromas.
Which Wine? Things that grow together, Go together.
In my mind, there really is only one choice - Barolo. I swear you can taste earthy truffle flavors in good Barolos. There is a saying in the restaurant industry: Things that grow together, go together. Barolos are grown and made in the same region where white truffles are found. In their youth, Barolos can be very tannic and hard to drink so you will need to either open and decant your Barolo at least 1 day before or continue your splurge and find an older Barolo whose tannins have already mellowed somewhat. I usually do a younger Barolo (like 10 years old) and contrast with an older one that is 40 or 50 years old.
Assertive, strong flavors need a bold wine to match power for power.
If you want a reliable source for great old wines, contact my friend Ben at Cellarraiders. I must caution you, Ben has an incredible list and soon you will find your paycheck disappearing as boxes and boxes of wine appear on your doorstep.
3 Recipes to get you started
I am going to share three recipes that I make every year to celebrate white truffles. These recipes may be a little looser than perhaps a beginning cook would like, but my speculation is that if you are buying truffles for your home you are already fearless and confident, and not going to be stopped by a recipe with more steps.Please post your truffle creations with us at #PistouAndPastis - We LOVE seeing them!
Carne Crudo all'Albese
A perfect starter for a white truffle feast that will wow your guests.
Crudo
8 ounces beef tenderloin, very fresh (hand chop finely)
1/2 lemon (juiced)
1 clove garlic (mashed)
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 anchovy filet (chopped finely)
to taste sea salt flakes
to taste black pepper
2 teaspoons chopped chives
Garnishes
8 slices brioche (toasted)
8 shavings Parmesan
1/4 cup truffle aioli (see notes)
2 ounces white truffles (brushed clean and sliced as thin as possible)
Crudo
Hand chop 8 ounces of high grade and very fresh beef finely, though not as far as ground beef. Beef tenderloin makes a perfect choice because of how tender it is and mildness in flavor allows all the other flavors to marry well together.
Squeeze half a lemon over your meat, then and add one clove of garlic finely chopped, a small spoonful of Dijon mustard, a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, one chopped anchovy, and sea salt and black pepper.
Let sit for two hours then taste and adjust seasonings as necessary. Mix with chopped chives.
Plating
Use a small ring-shaped mold to press the meat in on the center of a chilled plate. Drizzle with a touch more olive oil and garnish with shaved Parmesan and white truffles. Squirt truffle aioli around the meat in a decorative pattern.
Pass toasted brioche and enjoy.
Some people have a phobia of eating raw meat or fish. The lemon juice actually cooks the meat and will hopefully remove that worrisome thought. I like to use brioche because of the delicate crumb and richness that plays perfect foil for earthy truffles. To make truffle aioli, mix a quarter cup of mayonnaise with super finely chopped truffles. I generally do it in a food processor and usually the day before so the truffle has time to permeate the mayonnaise thoroughly.
Raviolo al Uovo (egg yolk ravioli)
This recipe is super simple but appears to be complex and hard to master.
Raviolo
1 recipe egg yolk pasta (see notes)
8 ounces whole milk ricotta
1 ounce grated Parmesan
2 grates nutmeg (use microplane)
to taste flake sea salt
to taste black pepper
8 pheasant (or small chicken) egg yolks (see notes)
Truffle Sauce
1 can truffle juice (or chicken stock)
1 ounce prosciutto (chopped fine)
1/2 lemon (zest and juice)
4 ounces butter
1 tablespoon chives or parsley (chopped)
2 ounces white truffles (sliced paper thin)
Raviolos
Make the pasta according to Smitten Kitten's detailed recipe. You can make the day before but not much more than that.
Mix the ricotta, Parmesan, nutmeg, flake salt, and black pepper. Put in a pastry bag with a medium sized plain tip or a large ziplock with the corner cut out.
Carefully crack your eggs, separating the egg yolks from the whites without breaking the yolk. Save the whites to brush the pasta dough to seal the raviolo in the next step.
Roll two sheets of pasta dough out as wide as your pasta machine allows, mine is about 4 or 5 inches, and about two feet long. The pasta sheets should be about 1/16th inch thick.
Cut 16 sections of pasta roughly 4X5 or 5X5 inches. Don't stress too much exact size because you will be trimming it down to a 3.5-inch circle.
Brush one square of pasta with egg whites. Pipe a two-inch ring of ricotta (see pictures) and then place an egg yolk in the center of the ricotta.
Place another square of pasta snuggly over and press the edges. If you have a set of round cutter use one that is about 2.5 inches across and one about 3.5 inches across to finish your raviolo. First, grab the smaller cutter and use the non-sharp backside to gently press around the ricotta filling. This will seal the dough thoroughly and make sure your raviolos do not come apart. Use the larger 3.5-inch cutter to cut a circle. Use a spatula to lift the raviolo and put on a floured tray till you are ready to cook. Repeat with the remaining dough.
Refrigerate raviolo for up to eight hours.
Truffle Sauce
Put the truffle juice into a small sauce pot and let reduce by fifty percent. Add the prosciutto, lemon zest and lemon juice in and lower to a simmer.
Whisk in butter and remove from heat. Taste your sauce and adjust seasonings to your tastes.
Finishing the dish
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Drop raviolos in and cook for no longer than two minutes. Use a skimmer and put one or two raviolos per person into a warmed bowl.
Add herbs to your sauce and pour over. Shave with as many white truffles as you can and eat.
Egg Yolk Pasta: If you have a favorite recipe then use it. Try Thomas Keller's version posted at a favorite blog Smitten Kitten here: pasta recipe.
Eggs: Use only uber fresh eggs, preferably direct from a farmer. I work with MacFarlane Pheasant Farm in Wisconsin and use their pheasant eggs for this dish. They taste richer and are the perfect size.
Spaghetti with Eggs (Lu Spaghetti a L'Ou)
A Nicoise preparation for spaghetti heavily influenced by her Italian neighbor that I modified slightly from Jacques Medecin's original.
1 pound spaghetti
4 ounces butter (room temperature)
3 eggs
3 egg yolks
7 ounces Parmesan (grated, not shredded)
1 tablespoon olive oil
5 ounces pancetta (diced)
1 pinch piment d'ville (or Espelette)
1 cup cream
to taste flake sea salt
to taste black pepper
4 ounces white truffles (sliced thin)
Cook pasta al dente.
While pasta is cooking, beat the eggs, egg yolks, and half of the Parmesan together.
Heat the olive oil and brown the diced pancetta. When brown, add the piment d'ville and all the cream.
Toss the pasta with the room temperature butter, egg mixture, and pancetta mixture. Shave the truffles over, sprinkle with remaining Parmesan, and serve immediately.