This topic will be old hat for many of the FTCers here, but I’m a White Alba Truffle newbie and am curious what a la carte dishes you’d recommend from restos in Los Angeles. If you make truffle dishes at home, please be kind and share where you purchased the prized $$$ funghi.
I’m aware of tasting menus featuring the mushroom, but am interested in regular “A La Carte” size portions so I can enjoy at least 1/2 a dozen forkfuls or spoonfuls (b/c 1-3 bites is not enough!).
I’m planning on visiting Angelini Osteria soon to try their White Truffle Risotto and will post a pic here if I get a decent shot.
Grazie mille (TYVM) to those of you who share your truffle intel!
You just missed Sabatino’s 25% off. Urbani still has their 20% off sale I believe.
I ordered some for dinner Thursday. Don’t worry the quality and quantity will improve Nov-mid December and the sales go as deep as 50% off around Thanksgiving.
I do egg pasta tossed with butter and a touch of parmigiano reggiano. Use the water you boiled the pasta in to loosen up the noodles if it is too tight.
Also, I cheat and use the frozen lasagna sheets from Surfas and cut them into my desired thickness. It is way chewier and more al dente than regular store bought fresh egg pasta.
Use a truffle shaver (a must) and shave as thinly and as liberally as possible.
kiriko’s white truffle ice cream, i just remembered. it’s pretty fucking good and it won’t break the bank, this is no Masa Takayama $150 per FUCKING scoop white truffle ice cream. but it’s damn good.
A celebrated aphrodisiac since the times of ancient Rome, the truffle emits an aroma said to be irresistible to the female persuasion — at least to female pigs. Sows are traditionally used to hunt these delicacies, because the animals go after a pheromonal compound in the truffles’ scent called androstenone, which is similar to male sweat. That’s why this scent also works on humans — although for some it is too strong to be appealing, while a small portion of the population can’t smell androstenone at all. However, for most — male or female — the indulgence in a truffle, whether black or white, is among the most alluring culinary experiences in the world. There is no better way to sum up the sensuality of the truffle than with the words of the great gastronome Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, “Truffle. As soon as the word is spoken, it awakens lustful and erotic memories among the skirt-wearing sex and erotic and lustful memories among the beard-wearing sex. This honorable parallelism comes not only from the fact that this esteemed tuber is delicious, but also because it is still believed to bring about potency, the exercise of which brings sweet pleasure.”
I’ve also done it with the microplane but you do lose a lot aesthetically. Yes, theoretically increasing the surface area is supposed to give you more aroma.
Practically though, with good truffles and ample shavings the aroma and taste isn’t that much stronger with a microplane vs thinly sliced via truffle shaver.
And there is something to be said about the beauty of the white truffle sliced vs grated.
That’s a reasonably priced up charge considering most fucking joints charge upwards of 120 for truffles, and the meal is completely fucking expensive to being with so the up charge in comparison relatively doesn’t register as much.
Had dinner at the bar at Providence last night. Did the four course with waygu upgrade as well as the white truffle supplement with pasta alla chitarra. The truffles were not the most fragrant, but tasted amazing when blended with the warm pasta. After the first grating, one of the bartenders told me to hold off for a minute as the server might return. He did come back as predicted, stating that he weighed the truffles and calculated that I had not received the full six grams that the restaurant allotted. A very nice Xmas present for me and a great addition to an otherwise fantastic meal. If only the bar lighting was more conducive to food photography…
Tried Shunji’s Truffle Gohan back in December 2015 – he used White Alba Truffles, in addition to Perigord and Burgundy. Shunji spoke to me in Japanese saying he used white for aroma and the other 2 kinds for taste and texture.
It made for an interesting 3-D effect.
Personally, I would prefer not to mix the Alba truffles with other varieties. A friend suggested I simply shave it over freshly cooked Japanese rice – I’m thinking about doing that next season using the Koda Farms heirloom rice.
