How to Buy a Truffle
First, smell it. Then feel the weight in your hands; fresh truffles are full of moisture, so it should feel heavy. Next, make sure the truffle does not have stones, pieces of wood, or metal stuck in it—unscrupulous hunters sometimes add these objects to increase the weight of their product. Finally, cut a tiny piece of the truffle to see inside: It should be the color of charcoal with dark veins running throughout.
Don’t buy cheap truffles. The price varies, but right now it’s about $800-$900 per pound. If you are expecting miracles you are likely to end up with the sad, bland, Chinese kind. Better to opt for canned truffles from a good purveyor such as Pebeyre or Plantin. Look for “first cooking whole” on the label—this means that the truffles are kept intact and are packed in the juice that’s rendered in the canning process, so their flavor has been preserved to the greatest extent possible.
How to Store a Truffle
Put it in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator, and use it fast—the aroma disappears very quickly. Sometimes people store truffles with eggs or rice, but I don’t recommend this: These foods absorb and reduce the truffle’s flavor.
How to Cook a Truffle
Very gently. Truffles release most of their flavor when first warmed. If you’re going to use your truffle in a sauce, don’t chop or add it until you are three-quarters of the way through making the sauce. Otherwise the sauce will have stolen all the flavor, leaving the truffle itself bland and lifeless.
How to Serve a Truffle
Here’s my favorite recipe: Slice one truffle. Put it on thickly buttered country bread. Warm gently in the oven, sprinkle with rock salt and cracked black pepper. Enjoy!
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