Unearthing the Truffle

Kitchen Musings from a French Chef

by

In the woods of France, Italy, Croatia, as well as the Pacific Northwest, the piney-woods of North Carolina, and even the hills and hollers of Appalachia, grows a mysteriously delicious tuber called the truffle.

For those of you who have not yet had the pleasure of an encounter with this wondrous culinary beast, picture a sack of spores: the fruiting body of a fungus which attains maturity under the earth, attached by an almost-invisible mycelium to the roots of certain host trees. As a survival tactic, in order to entice predators to aid in its quest for sexual reproduction, it emits a powerful odor when mature. It is this aroma which causes chefs to swoon the world around.

Fruity, musky, floral, earthy, pungent, feral, elusive, captivating, once it grabs your senses you are already lost (or found!).

In the annals of history, truffle hunters wore berets and were mostly of the male persuasion. In current times, a truffle hunter might just as well wear bright-colored boots, a plaid shirt or a tank top, and a baseball cap, and is as likely to be female as any other sex.

On this rapidly-changing horizon lies the variable of the species of truffle targeted for the hunt. Traditionally, the species destined to elevate the dishes of Michelin-starred establishments were Tuber melanosporum (commonly called the French black Périgord) or Tuber magnatum (the Alba truffle), at least twice as expensive as the Périgord. Next in line behind these species would be the Burgundy truffle (Tuber aestivum or Tuber uncinatum, depending on its fruiting period), and Tuber borchii, the bianchetto truffle, a lesser version of T. magnatum.

The Pacific Northwest sports four species of native truffles, which are revered locally but have not hit the global market. In the southeastern states, truffles have been cultivated since 1979, with the first production in 1992, thanks to the groundwork of Franklin Garland and others who have since followed in his footsteps.

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Enter the Dog

Today we enter new territory, as dogs which have been trained to sniff out intentionally-planted orchards have begun to find rogue truffles, many of which have yet to be identified. Recently, two new species were added to the “tree of life”: Tuber cumberlandense, sniffed out by Margaret Townsend’s Luca, in Holland, Kentucky, and Tuber canirevelatum, unearthed by Lois Martin’s Monza in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. This leads us to believe that we have only touched the tip of the iceberg when lured into the truffle world.

Two other Appalachian species have also been relatively recently identified, one of which is currently being successfully cultivated in Quebec and in Maryland: Tuber canaliculatum (the Appalachian truffle), and Imaia gigantea (the Blue Ridge truffle). Tuber lyonii (the pecan truffle) is another species that is frequently found as a rogue in purposely cultivated orchards.

If you want to find a truffle, the surest way to succeed is to cultivate a canine companion to do the trick. This is not a simple task, as it requires rigorous training, but the rewards are enormous. Historically, sows have been used to detect the underground prize, as truffles contain volatile aromas that resemble the sex hormones of male pigs. However, it is often hard to extract a ripe truffle from the mouth of a hungry sow, whereas dogs will be just as happy with a treat in compensation. Plus, a dog is much easier to live with the rest of the year when truffles are not in season.

Natalie Dechiara, of Fletcher, North Carolina, and her Lagotto Romagnolo (Italian water dog breed particularly gifted in detecting the truffle scent), Eva, recently unearthed the first harvests from an orchard cultivated on the campus of Warren Wilson College, during the annual Asheville Truffle Experience, and have also recently unearthed several species of unidentified truffles, where are currently being sequenced by Davis Upchurch, a graduate student at Cornell University.

A luxurious ingredient

Cooking with truffles is a skill to be cultivated, as after a decade or so of planning, planting, nurturing, waiting, watching, training a dog, etc., if the chef misses the mark, all the labor is lost. A common mistake is to use too many ingredients, thereby masking the beauty of the truffle or overpowering it.

While one of the most luxurious ingredients in the world, the truffle pairs best with a poor man’s food: pasta, potatoes, eggs, butter, cream. The very most important thing to do, first thing when you come in possession of a truffle, is to store it in a closed container with eggs and butter, so that these take on the aroma of said truffle. Then use these ingredients when confecting other recipes, in order to maximize the effect of your treasure.

Here are three simple things you can do when you have a truffle in your pantry.

Parmesan Truffle Crisps

Simple and delectable, these serve as a perfect amuse bouche or as a garnish to a soup or a salad.

Ingredients:

  • 1 hunk of good quality Italian Parmesan cheese
  • 1 truffle (or, in the absence of truffle, a sprinkling of cayenne or thyme leaves)

Preparation:

Grate Parmesan on a medium-sized grater. Grate truffle on the same (or finer) grater, and mix together. Spoon small quantities (about a half-teaspoon) onto a baking sheet, and place in oven for a few minutes until cheese has flattened out into a cracker shape and begun to crisp. Remove before it reaches the burning point, cool and serve.

Oeufs Cocotte Truffé  (Baked Eggs with Truffles)

One of my go-to dishes, with or without truffles, is a baked egg. In just minutes you can transform simple ingredients into a tasty and fortifying appetizer, main course, or snack.

Ingredients:

  • 1 or 2 fresh farm eggs per person
  • 1 teaspoon heavy cream
  • A sliver of butter
  • A grinding of salt
  • A grating or a few slivers of truffle if you are lucky enough to have one

Preparation:

Butter a ramekin for each egg. Break one egg in the center of each ramekin (previously perfumed, if you would like, with truffles or whatever aromatic ingredient you choose for the association). Pour a little bit of heavy cream on top, add a grinding of salt, and stick in a 400°F oven for 8-10 minutes, depending on the size of your egg, and whether it is room or fridge temperature at the outset. You will know it’s ready when the cream begins to bubble on top of the whites, and the yolk jiggles a little but not too much (this is a question of taste). Just before serving, shave a bit of fresh truffle on top, and breathe in the heavenly aroma.

If not using truffle, you can add some fresh herbs or a tad of cayenne to your egg before placing it in the oven for some extra zing.

Truffled Corn Chowder

Hearty and satisfying both in summer and winter, this soup can be varied by the addition of in-season squash (both summer and winter), and can be augmented by dried beans or fresh lima beans for more sustenance.

Ingredients:

  • 2-3 ears of corn or baby frozen kernels
  • 2-3 potatoes
  • 1 onion
  • 2-3 ribs celery
  • 1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
  • 1 quart chicken broth
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • Slight touch of cayenne (optional)
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • Grated truffle, to taste

Preparation:

Peel and dice onions to ¼-½ inch and sauté with diced celery in olive oil until translucent. Add diced potatoes and chicken broth and heat to boiling. Lower flame and add beans, corn and seasoning. Purée if you wish, or leave textured. At the very end, stir in the heavy cream and the grated truffle. Top servings with more grated truffle or truffle slivers.

About the author: Susi Gott Séguret, CCP, CSW, hails from the depths of Appalachia in Madison County, North Carolina, but honed her culinary skills in France, where she resided for over 20 years, earning a diploma in Gastronomy and Taste from the Cordon Bleu and the Université de Reims. Author of several cookbooks including Appalachian Appetite, and Cooking with Truffles, Susi orchestrates multiple sensory experiences including the Seasonal School of Culinary Arts, the Asheville Truffle Experience, and the Appalachian Culinary Experience. Passionate about elements of taste and style, and how they extend from our palate into our daily lives, Susi strives to blend food, music, words and images into a tapestry for the senses. For more details, visit quintessentialtable.com.

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