Truffle-flavored potato chips, marcona almonds, butters, flatbreads… If “truffle” is in its name, we happily toss it into our carts. So it serves as no surprise that when we learned Truff, a brand known for its bestselling truffle-infused hot sauce, as well as its mayonnaise and pasta sauces, was launching a black truffle oil, we knew we had to try it.
Elegantly packaged in a sleek bottle with a black label and signature truffle-shaped lid, it took but a drizzle to appoint the newly released oil our new go-to condiment.
Truff Black Truffle Oil ($24.99; truff.com)
Actual truffles, with their earthy, musky aroma and a subtle garlicky flavor, are mushrooms grown underground, and are often cited as one of the world’s most expensive foods, as they’re hard to grow, find and in popular demand. And while true gourmands may vehemently disagree, in lieu of the real thing, we think truffle oil can serve as an affordable, tasty and even addictive substitute. (Really. An Italian study from a few years back found black truffles produce a natural chemical much like THC, the active compound in marijuana.)
During our Truff truffle oil taste test, we drizzled it (it’s not meant to be used as a cooking oil) on scrambled eggs (we will never go back to plain eggs again), mixed spring greens (it served as a wonderfully savory simple dressing), french fries fresh from the air fryer (so yummy seasoned with salt and pepper) and — our favorite, favorite, favorite — on just-popped popcorn (do yourself a favor and try using the Truff oil with this James Beard-approved recipe).
But we’re not stopping there. Pasta, roasted potatoes and other veggies, breads, fish, pizza… They’ll all be getting a healthy dose of instant luxury with Truff’s black truffle oil in the weeks to come.
The flavor of Truff’s oil, a blend of a neutral olive oil and real black winter truffle, is unmistakably truffle, which some find overly pungent, but we’d describe it as rather delicate with a nice depth. One thing to note: A little truffle oil goes a long way, so start with a few drops to avoid overpowering your food. Given that the bottle itself is a whopping 6 ounces, we expect to have this bottle for a very long time.
Truff’s black truffle oil, which is non-GMO and gluten-free, is available at truff.com, Amazon and other retailers. Our advice? Grab a few bottles ASAP. If the brand’s previous launches serve as indicators, it’s going to fly off the shelves. And going back to plain butter on our popcorn? That’s just not happening.