Our Instagram has many posts on food dishes too. 
This page is a summary of essentials for beginners, there is more information throughout the website.
Congratulations on your Truffle Purchase
Packaging is only for transport home, not long term storage.
It will be either wrapped in a napkin, or nestled in wood wool to help reduce excess moisture.
To keep your truffle in best condition, keep it relatively dry by storing it in a sealed container within your refrigerator's vegetable crisper.
Check it's napkin (or wood wool) daily. If it becomes damp to the touch, change it's nappy (truffles are like babies, they don't like being damp)
{picture to come of truffle in a container, in the vegetable crisper}
How long will it last?
A truffle is at it's best for 5-10 days,
This means the aroma is slowly dropping over time, and it will perform best during this time. With proper care, a good quality truffle will always have it's full flavour and will retain desirable aroma for several weeks. An older truffle is best cooked with something fatty to fully extract the flavour.
If you have a small truffle, simply make the most of it while it is at it's freshest.
If you have a large enough truffle for infusions, the first five or so days will be the most effective, as you use both the aroma and some of the truffle, then stop the infusions and focus on eating the remainder.
Cooking with truffle
Truffles are powerful, yet delicate too. The aroma can be lost, wasted(garnish) or even the taste destroyed, here are some hints on cooking with them. Generally a plain dish best showcases their unique flavour and aroma. They are a superb flavour enhancer, and with the correct techniques & ingredients, they are capable of 1+1=5 synergy.
Some key factors in releasing these qualities are temperature, oil/butter, and salt.
Too high a temperature will drive off a large amount of the aroma, (though not necessarily the flavour) whereas gentle heat will help release it into the food, where it is captured by any fatty substance like cream, butter, olive oil, meat fats, egg yolk.
Salt is essential to fully taste what truffles have to offer. Even if you generally prefer to avoid salt in cooking, make truffle the exception! People vary in their ability to taste different things, so if you find yourself wondering if you've used enough truffle, try a little more salt on a portion of the food, and if it increases the truffle presence significantly, then season the rest of the dish accordingly. Therefore, when using butter in any recipe, please ensure it is salted butter.
Serving Ideas
- A good demonstration of the above is also a traditional way to conclude a Truffle sale in France. Slices of truffle, on fresh sourdough bread, sprinkled with coarse sea salt. But there are better things to do with them
- Mashed potato, on first thought one has doubts, but it really does wonders for releasing the flavour and is a great way to share it around the table. Truly a wonderful and simple way to get your truffle dosage. Use cream/butter/or a neutral oil in the mashed potato in your favourite style, stir through finely shaved truffle and allow to sit for 20 minutes or so for the flavour to release, reheat a little and serve. Dont forget enough salt to make it tasty, it helps the truffle, even if you are usually a low salt person. {A Truffled mash potato was our introduction to this culinary delight}
- Chef's priviledge, trimmings normally go into the dish, or butter, but a little into a shot of vodka is amazing. (let sit for >20minutes)
Even better, shave ~5g into a full bottle of vodka and leave at room temperature overnight, then keep it in the freezer where all vodka belongs. It tastes like liquid truffle on your tongue, and it will keep in the freezer for months! - A simple pumpkin soup with slivers of fresh truffles sliced over the served dish, allow to stand a minute and see the truffle melt on the surface. Quite dramatic when done at the table.
- Fresh Truffle butter. See recipe Once made, it should used within 2-3 days, or it can be frozen for several months.
{In the fridge, Truffle butter loses its aroma rapidly, leaving only the flavour after 3 days} - Truffle oil: It is best to only infuse oil for immediate use. Eg. Make a salad dressing with a touch of balsamic or lemon juice. Great for the first Spring salads. Use a neutral flavoured oil, not "extra virgin olive oil", as the grassy notes noticably reduces the truffle flavour.
Do not attempt to make and store truffle infused oil for any length of time. Any attempts to do so without sterilisation presents health concerns, the oil will probably turn rancid, and the aroma would break down in a few days or weeks anyhow. ie. It's a waste of good truffle.
Commercial truffle oils rely entirely on artificial aroma (2,4 dithiapentane, and a few other components) for their overpowering strength. Thus they all seem to smell like garlic and burnt stainless steel. White truffles do have garlic notes to their aroma, but black truffles do not.