by EMERSON SLOANE
My exceptionally talented friend, Heidi Ash, is a world-class chocolatier and owns 185Chocolat in Duluth, Minnesota. She was kind enough to bring this bottle of one of my guilty pleasures, black truffle oil, back with her from her specialty foods supplier.
I think most of us have all *heard* of truffle oil, but many people--including myself at one point in time--wonder just what the hell can you *do* with it? Well, here are five things you can do with truffle oil *right now*.
1. Make truffle oil vinaigrette. Use a couple of tablespoons of truffle oil, combined with olive oil, lemon juice (or vinegar), salt, pepper, and dijon mustard. It's great on salads with hearty cheeses and cured meats, but I would use this dressing on any salad I make.
2. Drizzle it over eggs. It's a truly delicious pairing over scrambled eggs or over an omelette filled with mushrooms, cheeses, and meats. Whenever you drizzle truffle oil, keep in mind that a little goes a long way. It's potent.
3. Drizzle it over vegetables to give them an extra depth of flavor. Use it on asparagus, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, yams, corn, mushrooms, and squash.
4. Drizzle it over pasta, grits, potatoes, and risotto. The starchy base of these foods is a culinary match made in heaven when you combine them with truffle oil. I just put some into grits I made tonight. It heightens the flavor profile.
5. Finish fish fillets, lamb, steaks, and chicken with truffle oil.
Oh, one more thing can't hurt, can it? Drizzle it on your popcorn, potato chips, and French fries. Truffle oil served on fries is already a popular appetizer in many restaurants, but I also like it on fresh popcorn. I *never* eat microwaved popcorn because, in my opinion, it has a terrible taste and it's not good for you. But, if you pop it on the stove with olive oil and add a dash of salt and some pepper, it's a great snack. Enhance it by drizzling a tiny bit of black truffle oil over the popped corn and shake the bowl to coat the popped kernels.
You can find truffle oil at your finer food stores and at many local grocers.