Truffle Butter

Make any dish feel decadent with some homemade Truffle Butter! This compound butter goes great with steak or potatoes.

I have been loving making my own compound butters. Garlic Butter is probably the most commonly known one, but you can flavor butter with so many things! These flavored butters can add so much to a dish with very little effort. Today we are adding rich, earthy flavor from truffles.

What Are Truffles?

Truffles are part of an edible fungus that grows underground. Most notably they around the roots of specific trees, like hazelnut and oak, in damp forests. Botanically speaking, they are a species of mushroom, and are often confused with mushrooms because of their taste, aroma, and appearance. 

Truffles range in size from about the size of a walnut to as large as the size of a fist. They come in a variety of colors, ranging from light to dark, and are sold as white truffles or black truffles. Their flavor is distinct and because of that, often hard to describe. Truffles are earthy, savory, and similar to the flavor of a dried porcini. Sort of.

Truffles are also expensive, but because they’re so distinctively strong, a little goes a long way. Ingredients like truffle salt and truffle oil offer an affordable way to enjoy the flavor of truffles in a variety of dishes, including compound butter recipes like this one.

Ingredients

The base will be unsalted butter that’s been softened to room temperature so that the other ingredients can be easily mixed in.

The truffle flavor in this compound butter comes from a combination of truffle salt and truffle oil. You can purchase both online if they aren’t available in stores near you. Like the actual truffle, a little of each goes a long way in this recipe. 

Truffle salt is made by combining salt with pieces of truffle, covering them, and allowing the truffle to permeate the salt. Truffle oil is made in much the same way. Pieces of truffle are soaked in olive oil, infusing the flavor of the truffle into the oil.

Other than that, all you need is a clove of garlic. Let’s get started.

How To Make Truffle Butter

To make the Truffle Butter, combine the softened butter, truffle salt, truffle oil, and garlic until well mixed. Transfer the butter to a ramekin or form into a log using parchment or plastic wrap as shown in this Compound Butter for Steak recipe.

Refrigerate at least 3 hours before serving or slicing. This will allow the butter to solidify again and the flavors to meld together.

Using Truffle Butter

This compound butter can be used to cook with and as well as a finishing butter. My favorite way to use it is to toss it with hot pasta right before serving. Try a pat on your steak or add a dollop on mashed potatoes for a boost of rich flavor.

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