Bigoli with butter, sage & black truffle - Step by step instructions

The north of Italy, Piemonte in particular, celebrates white truffle in the autumn; the ethereal perfume flavouring dishes like tajarin, agnolotti or risotto. But come winter, and the frosts, and the white tubers recede for another year. In January and February, they celebrate a different truffle – the black tartufo nero. It is earthier and less aromatic than its white counterpart, but with a greater depth of flavour, and it peaks just as the white recedes; a ray of flavour in the depths of winter. If white truffles are a celestial pleasure, black ones are very much an earthly one. And don’t we all need some earthly pleasures about now…

Your pack serves two and contains: 

• Bigoli
• A bag of butter & sage leaves
• A fat black truffle (15-20g)
• A little parmesan

Directions:

• Bring a large pan of well-salted water (10g/lt) to the boil
• Roughly chop the sage, and place with the butter in a frying pan
• Grate 1/3 of the truffle finely, and reserve
• Add the bigoli to the boiling water, and cook for 3-4 minutes
• After the first minute or two, add a ladle of the pasta water to the butter, and place on a high heat
• Bring this to a simmer, then cook to emulsify the butter and water
• Add the grated truffle to this pan, then the bigoli, and cook together for a minute or two until the sauce is glassy and thick
• Turn onto a plate, and scatter with the parmesan, then either shave or grate the remaining truffle (on a truffle slicer or mandolin or the small holes of a grater) finely on top