Truffle Treasures…

They are unearthed just once a year, scrounged out with a passion. Smita and Kishore Iyengar discover the exalted flavours of truffles

They can, on certain occasions, make women more tender and men more lovable,” declared Alexandre Dumas, while referring to truffles. Fervently hunted out and relentlessly sought after, truffles are usually sold at exorbitant prices. Here, we uncover the enigmatic fungus.

Unearthing Truffles
The distant hills wear a misty veil of ominous mystery, the grey skies are occasionally lit by a hazy winter half-moon. Eerie silence descends the countryside of Alba, in the Piedmont region of north western Italy where damp earth is blanketed by mildew. Canine feet claw and forage, their growls and whines growing into persistent barking, followed by the sounds of shuffling boots. The hilly terrain of Acqualagna and Campi echo with these sounds. As the cries grow louder, more intense and hastened shovelling takes over, and in a couple of moments the truffles are scooped out of their dark, moist confines. They look soiled and exude a distinct, earthy aroma.

Creamy white or smoky black, truffles are found in the proximity of oak, poplar, hazelnut and chestnut forests in Northern Italy and Southern France. Scrounged since Roman times, 2,500 years ago, this subterranean fungus, with its earthy flavour and scent, makes discerning gourmands crave more. Black or white, they vary in size, from a bunch of wart-like rounded mushrooms to large ones the size of a fist! Preserved within rice or layered butter confines, truffles are always freshly purchased and cooked.

These prized mushroom-like gastronomic treasures are used to create a myriad of fine dining signature creations, aimed at tantalising your taste buds. Making a brief appearance for just over a month each year, they fetch astronomical prices close to a conservative USD 1,000-1,500 per kilogram, depending on the harvest. At a crisp winter morning weekly auction market in small town Vercelli in Piedmont, the energy around one particular stall is frenzied—droves of mountain-weary farmers and robust gents indulge in a verbal tête-à-tête over the pick and purchase of white Alba Tartufo. The prices are high and the stakes equally so. The women in the neighbouring stalls smile and wait for the final bidding price to be announced. That’s typical of Piedmont, reputed as a region for truffles.

On a platter
Soon after that, the white pearls of gastronomy travel far and wide across the continents to spread their aromatic mystery. To add a new dimension to gourmet cooking with truffles, Master Chef Emanuele Latanzzi of Vetro, the fine dining Italian restaurant at The Hilton Towers in Mumbai creates that once-in-a-year gourmet magic. Carefully picked and matched wines marry the harmonious synchrony of truffle dishes, going way beyond the expectations of a finely tempered tasting menu.

Truffle dishes are the highlight of fine dining the world over. Meticulously engineered dishes that synergise with the crowning aromas of finely shaven truffles (or tartufo in Italian) are a prized dining preference. Latanzzi explains, “At Vetro, you begin your meal with soft-boiled scrambled eggs, shaved black truffles and langoustines (also called Norway lobsters), onto a perfectly tempered Pheasant soup with Black Truffle and Chestnut Tortelli. Typically European, chestnuts have their own exhilarating taste and form an integral part of fine Italian cuisine, whether roasted or cooked.”

One can only relish the intrinsic aromas of these fungi when dishes are carefully calibrated to perfection as in Basil and Potato Gnocchi, the thrilling Fontina cheese and Truffle sauce. The Fontina Cheese is special to only the Vale D’Aosta in Italy and its delicate flavours enhance the magic created by truffles. Ranking at a heightened level of eclectic savouring is the herbed risotto with braised veal shanks and shaven black truffles. A well picked 2001 Danzante Pino Grigio vintage followed by a classic 2003 Barbaresco from Marchesi di Barollo match the progressive dining mood with magnificence.

Chef Latanzzi’s Black Truffle Red Snapper, Bell Pepper Sauce and Squid Ink Tagliolini is a culinary masterpiece that brings out the delicate flavours of these delicious fungi. It is interesting to discover that truffles, though sprinkled, shaven, garnished or served as truffle oils, retain their own identity without interfering with the essence of any signature dish. For a grand finale, sweeten up with an encore of Poached Carella Red Pears, Chianti Zabaione with Black Truffles or coffee-soaked sponge Mascarpone Cheese with Black Truffles. Sign off with an Espresso. The tastes and flavours linger on as memories.

Aromatic Splendour
One needs a certain orientation to appreciate truffle-based cuisine that is subtly crafted, balanced with the appropriate sauces, freshest of ingredients, presented with a flourish alongside wines and enjoyed with curiosity and enthusiasm. As Mark, the knowledgeable maître’d of Harts Restaurant, the contemporary fine dining place at the Harts Hotel in Nottingham, England puts it, “Truffles came along as the icing to a gastronomic experience. A couple of shaven crisps of truffles add fragrance akin to a garden in full bloom.”

From the depths of the underground recesses of the woods in Perigord in France, black truffles brighten up connoisseurs’ cravings like the Pâte de Foie Gras, while the renowned white species of Piedmont enhance dishes with their distinctly pungent scents. Exemplary in taste, they create gastronomic grandeur in specialties like butter, soups, starters, mains and desserts. Manager Hendricks D’souza, of the high-end Italian theme fine dining restaurant, Segreto at the Al Qasr in Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai, states, “If you can’t procure the truffles in their ground, or savour their delightful aromas or toast their subtle flavours with some champagne, then you miss out on one of life’s great indulgences.”

They are here now, gone in a flicker, until next year, when the sniffing hounds will be at it again. The mystery of truffles will continue—as long as Man pursues their ethereal excellence and revels in their heavenly aura.