Truffles, fly in the face of perfume.

What is a truffle? For botanists it is a hypogean or underground mushroom, but it is the mirage of a perfume for gastronomes. The truffle is purely pleasurable food; it is the absolute luxury of an intense taste experience. For once, nobody is concerned with nutritional properties, but rather, with the variety and provenance of the food and the best ways to exalt its hedonistic qualities by using the most suitable combination of ingredients and wines. Although truffles widespread as other and more common edible mushrooms, a valuable truffle can be found only in areas which are particularly suitable thanks to the climate (not too dry especially in the summer), the quality of the soil (clay and lime and sufficiently soft) the acidity of the earth and, above to the trees with which they live in symbiosis. Ideal partners for truffles are the oak, the common oak, the poplar, the aspen, the pussy willow, the white willow, the linden, the hop-hornbeam and the hazelnut. Each of these trees can host only a few types of truffle; something which the truffle-hunters bear in mind during their search. The exchange of substances happens at the level of the tips of the roots, in particular formations called mycorrhizal, through which the tree gives the truffle amino acids and sugars, and, in exchange, receives water and mineral salts

White and black ones.
The esteemed white truffle with the scientific name of Tuber magnatum pico, can be found in many regions of Italy, but the most famous – that which all the chefs of the world want to get their hands on – is the Alba truffle. The external appearance of this truffle is rather like that of an irregular shaped potato. Its flesh is a nutty-brown, sometimes with whiteish veins; its characteristics vary according to the tree with which it lives in symbiosis and according to how ripe it is. The truffles are collected from October to November: it is the truffle which makes the gatherer happy as it is the most expensive and its price goes up according to its size and not its weight.

details tartufi bianchi d' Alba >>

The esteemed black truffle has roundish shape, which is not always regular. When ripe its flesh becomes purpley-black. It is picked from November to March in areas populated by oak and hornbeam trees.

details tartufi neri di Norcia >>

In the kitchen
Truffles give off very potent, fragrant molecules which can spread through the ground and emerge on the surface to appeal to the sense of smell of a four-legged hunter. Once they are brought into the light of day the perfume of fresh truffles can be an overwhelming, almost sensual, experience. So that none of the truffle’s aroma is lost it must be kept very carefully. Years ago the truffles were covered in rice so that they didn’t dry out, however an excellent technique is to wrap them in straw paper and seal them in a glass container – the paper should be changed as soon as it becomes damp and the glass container should be wiped dry of any condensation. The truffles should be kept cool, in the fridge, and theoretically they can even be frozen. The truffle marries perfectly with rich ingredients or rounded, sweet flavours: above all with cream, butter, eggs and potatoes. To make the “truffled” feeling of a dish even more intense, or if you don’t have a fresh truffle available, you could use some of the ingredients that Peck has chosen from the best flavoured products on the market, such as pasta and oil.

alba white truffles cream >>

white truffle flavour olive oil >>

pasta - truffle tagliatelle >>