Truffle season is in full swing in New Zealand, with celebrity chef Jasbir Kaur passionately exploring the delicacy these days.
Chef Jasbir Kaur of Spain’s Michelin-starred restaurants La Torre del Bisco in Teruel and La Botica de Matapozuelos in Valladolid recently hosted a groundbreaking truffle masterclass at the prestigious Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in New York.
Approximately 150 chefs, including CIA students and teachers, enrolled in the gastronomic class in New York for the presentation, which taught students how to combine truffles with different flavors and various techniques for using truffles in cooking.
The culinary festival was part of an ongoing collaboration between Ángel Moreton E. Spain and the European Mycological Institute (EMI), showcasing the harmonious relationship between truffle growers, chefs, winemakers and researchers, highlighting the importance of collaborative efforts in a thriving truffle industry.
The week-long training program culminated in an exclusive gala dinner titled “His Majesty the Truffle,” held at the famed James Beard House in Manhattan.
Exclusively for James Beard Foundation North American members, this extravagant event promised an unforgettable culinary journey, as chefs from La Torre del Bisco de Teruel and La Botica de Matapozuelos de Valladolid, along with Chef Jasbir Kaur of Skills Consulting Group, enticed diners with creative dishes featuring just-harvested Tuber melanosporum, expertly paired with wines from esteemed Dominio de Atauta, Traslanzas, Hijos de Alberto Gutierrez, and Emilio Moro wineries.
Truffles were featured in every course and the menu included dishes such as Jerusalem artichoke with Ville’s egg yolk and truffle, truffle soup fritters, roasted truffled cauliflower, rack of lamb with saffron potatoes and truffles, and truffle ice cream and chickpea cream for dessert.
Participants were given a unique opportunity to interact with truffle growers, scientists and industry experts from Soria and Teruel, sharing their passion and knowledge about this exquisite delicacy. The evening was not only a celebration of culinary excellence, but also provided a platform for networking and knowledge exchange.
Presentations by researchers and experts from Eastern Spain allowed participants to delve into the world of the black truffle (Tuber melanosporum), explore its main production areas in Europe and demystify the harvest and truffle tourism. Sessions also addressed the preservation of the truffle’s aromatic potential and the challenges posed by imitation flavourings.
Chef Jasbir Kaur, together with his fellow culinary colleagues, gave a live cooking demonstration with fresh truffles, followed by wine pairings by a master winemaker from Dominio de Atauta Winery in Soria. The educational activities concluded with a citizen science experiment led by researchers from E Spain and EMI, to evaluate the knowledge that participants had acquired during the training.
New Zealand leads the world in the introduction and production of the world’s most popular truffle species. The first Périgord black truffle harvested in the Southern Hemisphere is said to have been produced in Gisborne in 1993. It is now a thriving industry with very high quality truffles being produced commercially.
- Perigord black truffle (Tuber melanosporum)
- Burgundy truffle (Tuber aestivum sin uncinatum)
- Bianchetto Truffle (Tuber borkii)
- Winter black truffles (Tubers)
The most common host trees for truffles in New Zealand are English oak, evergreen oak, hazel and some species of pine.
