Is there better winter produce than truffles? The earthy, black fungus enlivens all the dishes it touches, providing an umami hit and a distinctive flavour that nothing else can match.
Chefs from St Ali have created a six-course degustation menu that highlights the black gold for a one-off dinner at Mercedes Me.
The dinner is designed to appeal to truffle aficionados as well as the truffle-curious, who will learn why chefs prize truffles so highly. On the menu are duck and truffle consumé, pain perdu with whipped duck liver and truffle honey, salmon and truffle roulade with dashi, quail with smoked corn and black truffle oil, and for dessert, sugar-baked parsnip ice cream and warm truffled mousse.
Two very special guests will also be attending the dinner: Australian shepherds, who work hard finding the truffles that will be hitting the plates. These dogs use their superior sense of smell to sniff out the ripest truffles throughout harvest time, which is all winter.