Truffles!! Need advice - updated.

[cbayer]

Last edited Tue Jul 29, 2014, 12:54 PM - Edit history (1)

A man just wandered through our property with his dog. The dog is a truffle finder and this man's pockets were full of truffles. He gave us a couple and these were his instructions.

Wash well with a toothbrush.
Grate into a bottle of olive oil.
Use the oil.

That sounds good to me, but I am very interested in any other suggestions. I love the taste of truffles.

[yellerpup]

1. Out of my league with that one!

I've heard of shaving truffles over a pasta Alfredo. Rock on! Sounds like you have a culinary adventure in store.

[cbayer]

4. I think I have had them shaved onto a simple pasta dish before.

I think I will make a caci e pepe, which I love, and grate some truffle onto it.

Thanks for the input!

[yellerpup]

14. Now you're cooking!

Enjoy your treasure trove.

[elleng]

2. Very exciting,

and sounds like you're wealthy now!

I know nothing about handling them, and have never had them, but enjoy!

[cbayer]

3. I am indeed wealthy!

Now if I could just figure out the best way top spend my wealth.

[Galileo126]

5. Out of my league, too

But I do have 'truffle oil', which is nothing more than olive oil infused with black or white truffles. I like to use that by rubbing it on a roast, or baking a potato in foil. Yum!

Best of luck - I wish I had a tip or two, but alas - I live in a place where they have "both kinds of seafood - catfish AND trout". Sure it the high desert of SoCal, but it's also a culinary desert.

[elleng]

6. 'Both kinds of seafood!!!'

[cbayer]

7. Lol, catfish and trout?? How in the world do you choose?

I was very unimpressed with the food in SoCal. I guess if you have a ton of money, you might find something good. But most of the food is terrible - England terrible.

I hope that you get to a shellfish orgy sometime this summer. They have lobsters over on Catalina Island, but I think they are not even worth eating. They don't have big front claws!! What's up with that?

[Galileo126]

8. There is one grocery which has a lobster tank

Maine lobsters, that is. But at $17 a pound, it's a once a year treat. (My folks in Rhode Island were complaining that lobster prices went up to 7$ a pound. I broke out my violin and stated "O, you poor babies!"

ps: I borrowed a line from the Blue Brothers movie: "We have both kinds of music - country AND western".

Classic!

[cbayer]

9. I did not get the Blues Brothers reference, but I like it!

I love those places in Maine where you go to the dock and pick your lobster. Then they cook it right there and serve it up with butter. If you are lucky, they have steamed artichokes and some corn as well.

What a magnificent treat.

Some foods are just worth holding out for.

[Thor_MN]

18. Tonight is coho salmon that I caught in Lake Superior.

The one fish we got out of two days of fishing. The water is so cold (and we don't know where to find the warmer water) that the fish are lazy. Maybe I'll get back up there in a couple weeks and things will have picked up.

[grasswire]

10. I can only tell you what Mario Batali says about them.

He (and the other Iron Chefs) abhor truffle oil. They prefer to slice the truffle over the dish or to perfume some butter to be used right then.

I am a little worried about the truffle man who is gathering an extremely valuable item on your property!

[cbayer]

11. How do you think you "perfume" some butter?

I'm not worried about the truffle man, but it's not my property. I'm just a temporary tenant.

The rules are very flexible here. We keep trying to figure out if the fig, plum, apple and pear trees that we are harvesting are on our property or not. When we ask, no one seems to know or care, lol.

I suspect the same applies to truffles, but what do I know.

[pinto]

12. Nice gift! No help here though, I've never cooked them. Have had them on pasta in restaurants. +1

I have a friend who comes by occasionally with fresh picked chantrelles. As with all "mushroomers" around here, his harvest spots are a closely held secret. So I don't ask, just thank him. He has never taken any cash from me for them, says he gets well paid by local restaurants as is.

[cbayer]

13. DH wants to go out mushroom hunting, but the whole idea scares me to death.

I'm not even sure where the closest medical facility is, but I am quite sure that it is not very close.

I would love to have a friend with a stash, if you know what I mean.

[greatauntoftriplets]

19. Many years ago, my cousins took me mushroom hunting in Luxembourg.

I was wary of the idea, but they assured me it was fine. The key, they said, was to pick mushrooms that were white under the caps. We did that, ate them and I suffered no ill effects from them.

As to the truffles, sounds like you hit the jackpot. Grating them and putting them in olive oil sounds like a good use that will last a while. I've also hard of them served grated over pasta.

[pinto]

15. This guy is an interesting character. He was homeless for a long time and lived up in the hills.

Got to know the area real well, the flora and fauna, and found out-of-the-way chantrelle spots. Started collecting them and selling to restaurants. In season it was a good source of cash for him. Resourceful survivor.

Back when I was working I helped him get into housing, at his request - mainly the paper work stuff, he did his own leg work. After a bit I asked him how it was going. "Finally settled in", he said. "But the first week I slept in the yard. It was a little overwhelming at first."

[cbayer]

16. Good for him. Sounds like someone you can trust in this regard.

I know you relate to the sleeping in the yard bit, don't you?

[pinto]

17. Yeah, he really knows his mushrooms. And yep, I can relate.

[Major Nikon]

20. IMO truffels are best used as you would use herbs

You can either slice them very thinly or grate them when you are ready to add them to a dish. They lend themselves very well to most oil based meat or pasta sauces. If you want something simple, make a Beef Stroganoff and add a bit of truffle. I think you will be amazed at the results. German dishes like Jagerschnitzel or many tomato based Italian pasta sauces lend themselves very well to truffles.

[cbayer]

21. Thanks for this. Very much appreciated.

I think I will put some in some good OO and use the rest as you describe.

I love the flavor, but am really unfamiliar with how to use it or the amounts. Will be experimenting and let everyone know!

[cbayer]

22. So, this is what I am doing with these precious things.

I have two, so I am breaking this down.

Truffle number one, which I have named prezioso:

1) I put one in a closed container with some eggs. Apparently, the eggs will absorb the flavor over a period of a few days.

2) I am then going to put that one in a container with rice. The same thing is supposed to happen.

3) That truffle will then be shaved and placed in a bottle of olive oil for use over the next month.

Truffle number two, named ricercato:

1) Black Truffle Risotto - simple and made with a fresh chicken/mushroom stock which I will make tomorrow

2) Fresh pasta with truffles and parmesan - very simple and with a very special parm

3) Homemade Tomato soup with a truffle grilled cheese sandwich.

And that should take care of that. I feel like royalty!