INGREDIENT: Truffles

As I was talking to my friends, I realized almost all of them have no idea what TRUFFLES are, so this being one of my favorite ingredients, I decided to educate you guys on it! And no, I am not talking about the chocolate truffles everyone is so fond of, I'm talking about the mushroom(ish) type fungus. This earthy, umami (savory), rich flavored fungus is known for being a culinary delicacy.  

Yes, I know these are not the prettiest looking things in the world, and you might be thinking... so what, it looks like a ball of dirt, but for a pound of these, are about $500-1000.Truffles are known as the diamonds of the culinary world, the most expensive natural food. Why you ask? These are grown wild, can only be grown in specific temperatures and conditions, and  most importantly, have to be searched for BY SPECIALLY TRAINED PIGS AND CERTAIN BREEDS OF DOG!


Now, back to biology class, (if any of you were awake for that class): the reason truffles are hard to be cultivated for mass production, is because they are grown by a symbiotic relationships between oak, pine, beerch and a couple other types of trees. If you don't remember what symbiotic means, here's a definition: (symbiosis) the relation between two different species of organisms that are interdependent; each gains benefits from the other. Now, America is trying to mass produce the black truffle, but France (the brighter of the two), restricts the production of the truffle in order to keep the price high. 


The most expensive type of truffle is the WHITE truffle:  



These truffles are around $2,000 per pound!! And the most expensive one sold was 1.6 pounds for $150,000!! The reason white truffles are more expensive then black is these are more rare, are only grown a couple months a year, and are exclusively in one part of Italy. Also, unlike the black truffle, you CANNOT cultivate them, so instead of being mass cultivated like regular mushrooms, these truffles have to naturally grown on their own under the leaf litter and soil of these trees!

Some really great places to try food that has truffle in it: 

Umami Burger: yes, I know its known for it's umami burger, but I personally thought their truffle burger was MUCH better than their most famous! 

The Six: located on Pico, near Westwood, has amazing amazing fries! What they did is they topped their fries with Parmesan and truffle. Absolutely delicious! 

One of the most delicious uses of truffle was our dinner in Dubai of our steak garnished with truffle shavings and a truffle sauce: 

Enjoy!