Truffles – not the chocolate, dessert kind – are high-value delicacies among the genus Tuber species and is the fruitbody part of a type of fungi that grow underground. They are typically used in gourmet cooking and are usually expensive.
One way to preserve the freshness and prolong the life of truffles is to refrigerate them. As they are a delicate fungi it is highly recommended that they be stored similar to ordinary fresh mushrooms, wrapped in unbleached paper towels in order to reduce moisture damage.
The shelf life of truffles vary depending on the type of truffle – white truffles typically maintain their freshness for up to a week, while black truffles – the more resilient – last about two weeks when refrigerated.
Truffle Varieties
Truffles are commonly featured in French, Italian, Croatian, Spanish and other haute cuisines for which consumers are nonplussed about paying a premium.
There are reportedly about seven different varieties of truffles found throughout the world, but the most common are black truffles and white truffles. They are grown entirely in the wild and require some effort to harvest by foragers.
The successful growth of truffles rely heavily on animals who eat fungi as their primary diet – fungivores – such as some mammals, insects and birds, who contribute by spreading spores of the truffles.
Cheaper alternatives to actual truffles exist in the form of flavored oils, cheeses or creams so that others may enjoy the delicacy without the hefty price tag.
In addition to organic truffles, synthetic truffles are frequently substituted at a fraction of the cost of the real ones.
Where Are Truffles Found?
Truffles usually attract a high price tag owing to their rarity and the effort which is spent hunting for them and getting them into shops or restaurants.
Truffles cannot be farmed as they require specialty soil and certain natural weather conditions found in the wild, which cannot be replicated.
Foragers typically hunt truffles at the base of chestnut, hazelnut, oak or beech trees in the wild and after they have been ferreted out by specially trained dogs.
Different varieties of truffles can be found in diverse geographical regions such as New Zealand, Australia, the Middle East and the United States.
The most popular region for harvesting truffles is Europe, specifically in the countrysides of Italy and France.
Truffle Storage Tips and Tricks
There are several helpful hints to store fresh truffles so that one may enjoy their delectable flavor at their peak.
They should be handled just as one would a priceless and delicate piece of jewelry. Truffles should first be removed from their original packaging and stored only when all traces of condensation have been removed. Moisture could likely damage this dainty specialty and contribute to rot.
For short-term storage, refrigerating is a viable option, however, the truffles should be consumed within a maximum of two weeks if they are the black variety, and within a one-week window if they are white truffles.
After carefully drying the truffles and individually wrapping them in unbleached papertowels, they may then be placed within a resealable plastic bag or container, which should remain open in order to allow air to circulate within the package.
The newly packaged truffles should be stored away from the cooler parts of the refrigerator, again, to avoid excess moisture getting into the package.
By their nature truffles, being about 70% water, consistently lose moisture so one should check and replace the papertowel as necessary so that the truffles are not impacted by any resulting humidity.
Truffles may also be dried or canned or infused with oil.
Truffle Infused Foods
As the flavor from truffles can vaporize and seep into surrounding absorbent foods, pepping them up with the pungent and musky aroma, experts suggest that they may be stored with eggs or within rice.
When storing with eggs, the shell is pervaded by the strong aroma of the truffle so one could end up with a lovely truffle-infused omelette after some time.
A savory truffle risotto could be consequent to storing your truffles with certain types of rice. The earthy, woody and sometimes garlicky fragrance permeates the rice while simultaneously keeping the truffles dry.
Note, however, that truffles start to lose their flavor at the moment of harvesting and storing them in rice hastens this loss.
Long-term Storage of Truffles
Truffes are emitting their flavor and losing their pungency the moment they are harvested, this means that the longer they remain in storage, the less intense their flavor.
Therefore, truffles are best consumed fresh so as to fully enjoy their delicate taste, flavor and aroma.
Over time, truffles could even become inedible or unsafe to eat if they remain too long in storage without consumption.
To be sure that your truffle is still fresh, one may perform a “smell test”. Once the aroma is still fragrant then it is almost guaranteed that you will enjoy the intense flavor as it was meant to be experienced.
If you are lucky enough to come into possession of a larger quantity of truffles that you might not be able to use within two weeks, you may freeze them for up to six months.
The truffles may be wrapped in tinfoil or placed within a vacuum sealable bag in order to minimize the occurence of trapped air or moisture during freezing. It is not recommended to freeze white truffles.
The key is to avoid the truffles being dried out or them becoming rotten.