Making the most of truffles

Truffles are fantastic. Here’s how to make the most of them.

Pasta and cheese with truffle.

The novelty of an electronically operated hospital bed with guard rails and “nurse” button had well and truly expired, leaving long, long waiting periods pre-theatre without digital doodads for entertainment. Time aplenty to focus – not on the imminent procedure but the gnawing emptiness of pre-anaesthetic all-day fasting. And it wasn’t just food as a general concept that was scrambling my brain, it was something very specific. Supine beneath fluorescent lights and with nothing but a rumbling belly for a soundtrack, I could not rid myself of the olfactory memory of truffled macaroni and cheese. The longer it went on in pre-theatre, the more singular the fantasy/focus became. My last words to the anaesthetist? “A crisp, chilled Verdicchio thank…”

Having been generously given some truffles – one from a local chef and another from producer Manjimup Truffle Traders (the world’s greatest annual harvest of black truffles happens just up the road from me this time of year, every year) – we had recently been left to ponder one of the great first-world questions: what to do with my truffles?

That’s where chef Mark Best’s Kitchen Basics video series on IGTV had become a flea in the ear. Just watching him make this dish with real gruyere, reggiano and cheddar was about as evocative as food video can be, despite Mr Best’s methodical delivery. The food simply spoke for itself. We made it and achieved the kind of culinary mutual climax my colleague Nikki Gemmell might have committed to one of her novels, and my Kate doesn’t even like pasta that much! Thanks Mark.

So look, truffles are fantastic but unless you use them the right way, you’re not really maximising the investment. Which is not inconsiderable, although the fungus is probably better value this year than ever due to the quantities coming out of the ground (year-on-year yields keep growing) and obvious lack of demand from Victorian and overseas restaurants this season.

And the right way, in far more learned opinions than my own, is to grate them very finely with a Microplane directly over hot food (scrambled eggs, buttery asparagus, maybe a risotto made with good mushroom stock) or shave them very, very finely with a rasoio al tartufo. Without sounding like a complete wanker, it is nigh on impossible not to tell you that I have just such a device – given to me in Piedmont, home of the great white truffle, by my old friend and cheese guru Will Studd as a prelude to the consumption of just such a delicacy over a memorable lunch at a small trattoria in Bra some years ago. Forget I mentioned it.

The point is this: hot food and maximised surface to air ratio equals the biggest bang from your truffle buck and, let’s face it, it is all about the aroma. Mostly. Mac and cheese, made with quality pasta (in this case mezzi, or half rigatoni) and cheese is pretty special in the first place, even if it only represents a few paltry layers of the nutritional pyramid. Throw in the sweet/earthy undergrowth notes of a good black truffle and the story takes on a whole new layer of mystery. It’s one of those things that’s so good to consume, you won’t care whether it’s any good for you or not.

Some important points about this recipe. It goes without saying that the better the cheese, the better the sauce. Compromising on the pasta is fine but not desirable; you could use other shapes but cooking time will change. Buy your truffles direct, for freshness. It’s all online. Cooking the pasta in chicken stock first adds considerable depth; use home-made. Finishing it in the sauce probably adds a touch of starch but more importantly ensures the tubes are completely coated. “Cooking” half the truffle in the sauce maximises the taste/smell balance of the truffle you’ve sacrificed. Grating the rest over your crisp/salty/golden parmesan-finished dish straight from the oven is the complete bomb. And finally, where Mr Best’s recipe says “serves four”, he means four who haven’t cooked this before. Try two.

So get a truffle; create some memories. When you find yourself very hungry, these are the seams of pleasure you’ll mine for life.

Mark Best’s AEG Series Truffled Macaroni Cheese (serves four)

280g mezzi (half) rigatoni

40g butter

30g flour

500ml milk

200ml double cream (45% milk fat)

50g quality cheddar, finely grated

50g Gruyére or Comté, finely grated

50 Parmesan Reggiano, finely grated

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon salt flakes

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

50g fresh black truffle

Method

1. To prepare the roux: melt the butter in a medium sized saucepan at level five on the AEG induction

2. add the flour and cook for five minutes stirring with a wooden spoon.

3. allow to cool

4. bring the milk to a boil

5. add the nutmeg, salt and pepper

6. whisk into the cold roux and cook for 10 minutes on level 6 on the AEG induction

7. whisk in the cheddar, gruyere and mustard

8. add the double cream and whisk well

9. slice half the truffle finely and cut into very fine dice

10. add to the béchamel

11. adjust the seasoning to taste

12. bring the chicken stock to the boil and add the rigatoni; cook for nine minutes

13. use a slotted spoon to remove the pasta from the stock and add to the béchamel

14. cook for another two minutes over a moderate heat (six-seven)

15. divide the rigatoni between four plates and add any remaining sauce

16. cover each with the finely grated Parmesan as well as a grind of fresh black pepper

17. place each plate under the grill at 200c until golden

18. use a Microplane to garnish each dish with fresh truffle at the table

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