Truffle Oil

Our answer

Truffle oil is a wonderful ingredient and the reason there aren't many recipes using it is as the oil is generally used as a flavouring at the end of cooking, rather than being used as an ingredient used in cooking. Also as the flavour is quite delicate you want to use the oil in dishes where its flavour will stand out and not be masked by other flavours.

White truffle oil tends to be the type most commonly bought so we are assuming that this is the type you have bought. First we would suggest trying Nigella's Lone Linguine from Kitchen (p81). Although the recipe is an indulgent dish for one, it can easily be made in larger quantities for a small group of friends. Scrambled eggs with a few drops of truffle oil would be another simple solo supper dish with a little luxury.

Truffle oil also stands out well when paired with other starchy, slightly bland ingredients so you could use it to finish other pasta dishes with creamy sauces - something which already has an earthy note such as apasta with a mushroom cream sauce would be good. Risottos can also benefit from a drizzle of truffle oil but again make sure the other flavours aren't too assertive. A risotto made with peas or broad beans and/or chicken would be a good match. Mashed potatoes can be elevated by adding some truffle oil and would be a good match for a fillet (tenderloin) of beef at a dinner party perhaps with an extra few drops dribbled over the potatoes before serving.