His Majesty the Truffle

There are hundreds of species of truffles that are big, but the fruiting body of some (mostly in the genus Tuber) are highly prized as a food. The 18th-century French gastronome Brillat-Savarin called these truffles "the diamond of the kitchen". Edible truffles are held in high esteem in French, Spanish, northern Italian and Greek cooking, as well as in international haute cuisine.

The origin of the word truffle appears to be the Latin term tuber, meaning "swelling" or "lump", which became tufer- and gave rise to the various European terms: French truffe, Spanish trufa, German Trüffel, Swedish tryffel, Dutch truffel and Croatian tartuf. In Portuguese, the words trufa and túbera are synonyms, the latter closer to the Latin term. The German word Kartoffel ("potato") is derived from the Italian tartufo (truffle) because of superficial similarities.

Culinary use

Because of their high price and their pungent taste, truffles are used sparingly. Supplies can be found commercially as unadulterated fresh produce or preserved, typically in a light brine.



White truffles are generally served raw, and shaved over steaming buttered pasta or salads. White or black paper-thin truffle slices may be inserted into meats, under the skins of roasted fowl, in foie gras preparations, in pâtés, or in stuffings. Some speciality cheeses contain truffles as well. The flavour of black truffles is far less pungent and more refined than that of white truffles. Its strong umami flavor is reminiscent of fresh earth and dashi, and when fresh, their scent fills a room almost instantly.

While in the past chefs used to peel truffles, in modern times most restaurants brush the truffle carefully and shave it or dice it with the skin on so as to use most of this expensive ingredient. A few restaurants, such as Philippe Rochat in Switzerland, still stamp out circular discs of truffle flesh and use the skins for sauces.