Truffles and Eggs…

Typically a truffle will last for around a week in normal kitchen conditions, and during that time you can maximise it’s impact by infusing it’s scent into other ingredients.

You should store it in a glass container, rather than a plastic one, but typically this is what I do :

This allows me to have truffle scented risotto, and even better, the best scrambled egg imaginable. The egg shells being porous allow the truffle to permeate the egg. You could also make a very luxurious eggs Benedict.

If you are going to poach your eggs, the most efficient method I’ve found to date is the Marcus Wareing one – instead of putting vinegar into the pan, you put a tiny amount into a little bowl (or wipe the bowl around with the vinegar) and crack an egg into it. This causes the egg white to coagulate and when you tip it into the water, you’ll end up with a beautiful poached egg! Don’t forget to season your water too, for the perfect egg. Poached Eggs

Another magnificent eggy dish is the Michel Roux’s recipe for:

Truffled Eggs en Cocotte

4 eggs
60g fresh black truffles
6tbsp double cream
30g softened butter
salt and freshly grated papper
60g Emmenthal or Comte, grated

Pur the eggs in an airtight container with the truffles and keep in the fridge for at least 24 hours or 48 hours if possible to allow the aroma of the truffles to permeate the eggs.

Slice the eggs as thinly as possible [if you don’t have a truffle slicer, do use a mandolin, carefully]. Bring the cream to the boil in a small saucepan, then immediately drop in the truffles and turn off the heat. Stir the truffles into the cream with a spoon, cover the pan, and set aside until almost cold.

Preheat the oven to 170oC / Gas 3. Brush the insides of 4 cocottes or ramekins, about 8cm in diameter and 4cm deep, with the softened butter and season with salt and pepper. Put three-quarters of the grated cheese into one cocotte and rotate it to coat the inside. Tip the excess cheese into a second cocotte and repeat to coat all 4 dishes.

Didvid the cooked cream and truffle mixture between the cocottes, Carefully tip an egg into each one, sprinkle on the remaining cheese, and bake the eggs until cooked to your liking. The cocotte can be cooked by putting the dishes into a greaseproof paper lined baking tray. Fill the pan with boiling water up to half the height of the cocotte and put in the oven for around 10 minutes. The egg white should be just set, with the yolk still loose… Put a cocotte on each plate and serve.

You can find this recipe and many more in: